This review was submitted over 4 years ago, so some of the information it contains may no longer be relevant.
Rating
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The Role
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The Company
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The Culture
- 1. To what extent did you enjoy your work placement or internship?
- 2. To what extent did you feel valued by your colleagues?
- 3. To what extent were you given support and guidance by management/your supervisor(s)?
- 4. How busy were you on a daily basis?
- 5. How much responsibility were you given during your placement?
- 6. To what extent did/will the skills you developed, and training you received, assist you in your degree studies and beyond?
- 7. What was the general atmosphere in your office?
- 8. How well organised was the overall work placement or internship set up?
- 9. In terms of personal training and development, to what extent did the company or firm invest in you?
- 10. What were the perks on your work placement?
- 11. How appealing are future employment prospects within the organisation?
- 12. Was there a good social scene amongst any fellow placement students/colleagues?
- 13. What was the cost of living and socialising in the area you worked in?
- 14. What was the Nightlife like in the area you worked?
- 15. Were there many opportunities to get involved in activities outside of work?
The Role
I thoroughly enjoyed my time working for BMW. I had the opportunity to experience lots of different areas of the company and be involved in so many different processes.
I was responsible for my own role and tasks, which was overlooked by my manager/mentor. You work as part of a team and autonomously, this was great as you could ask for help when needed. Your work and input in discussion are greatly valued, and the decisions you make actually impact the company.
You are given the freedom to organise and prioritise your tasks and work and personalise how to manage everything. With such a large company and network, there is always something that you can call to ask about anything. My manager was incredibly helpful at guiding you to make the right decision and effectively manage your work load.
Everyday was different to the next. You always had something to do, and if you organised your work well you it was all manageable.
You had a big responsibility to escalate issues to the BMW network, to organise and present issues to specialists and engineers. Your input is vital for making the testing process to function.
I was involved in so many areas that will benefit me in whatever role I want to apply for such as: Data Analysis Engineering Client Interaction Process Management Automotive in general I was given a month handover from the previous intern which gave me enough time to understand almost everything and had all my questions answered before fully raking over. I was put on a Defensive and ecological driving course to improve my driving style as you are involved in driving lots of new production vehicles.
The Company
Everyone is very friendly, respectful, always up for a laugh but professional at all times.
Because you are put in a set role, you are given the specification to work against. How you organise yourself to complete the tasks are up to you.
There are a number of e-learning training videos which allow you to learn and develop an understanding of what goes on around your role and in the company as a whole. I was a given Fire and Safety Training. I was also given a Defensive and ecological driver training course.
Company Car
National Travel
International Travel
Company Parties/Events
Staff Sales/Staff Shop
Above 25 days holiday
If you work very hard, show enthusiasm for your job there is a good chance you could get a job working for BMW. Speaking German is a big bonus.
The Culture
There are Intern meets of about 70, who go every week on a thursday to drink at a new pub in Oxford. The more you invest in speaking with interns and colleagues the more you will get out of building better relations with everyone.
If you know where to look and ask in the Interns group chat you might be lucky like me in finding cheap accommodation close to work. Generally it is expensive to live in Oxford, but then again you get paid a decent amount as an intern.
Oxford has lots of restaurants, pubs and clubs in the centre.
The interns are proactive in doing trips round the UK, getting football teams together or going to events.
Details
Placement (10 Months+)
East Midlands
July 2017