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 fairly enjoy my work placement. The working environment is very good, Knorr-Bremse has the appropriate professional manner that a student can learn from. Managers and colleagues are supportive and have expertise in various aspects. However, since I have been living in a bigger city, the location of the company would be personally considered as a drawback.
On regular basis, I have discussion about ongoing projects and daily activities with line manager and colleagues, in which my opinions and ideas are always listened and valued. After work, we sometimes socialise by organizing badminton, football sessions, hanging out for some drinks in local towns. Especially, this year, we have nearly 20 placement students working across all departments.
I always have support and guidance from line manager and other managers. I have access to books, daily operations and relevant documents for the objective of maximising my learning and observation achievement within this placement year. On monthly basis, we usually have a meeting with our mentor to talk through any concerns and experiences we might have.
For the beginning, it would not easy having the balance, some days would be really busy, the others I found nothing to do, as it takes time to settle in and to get used to these kinds of office work. However, as the time gone by, I have been handed more work, my organising skill has been improved as well so that I can prioritise based on the importance and urgency of task. I usually work 8 works on every working day.
I am given enough responsibility at a level appropriate for a third-year placement student with the objective of balancing between learning and focusing on personal development as well as contributing to the company. My key responsibility is about building and consolidating continuous improvement ideas, also supporting the team on their daily basis activities.
There are two sets of skills that I have been developing through this placement. Firstly, I have had chances to observe and put into practice theories, expertise skills that I learned in university. Secondly, daily activities train and improve my soft skills in communication, leadership, organisation, logical thinking. These will assist me identifying gaps in knowledge which can be closed in my final year. Also, this placement and what I have achieved will be a big plus in my CV.
The Company
I love the atmosphere in my office every day. My team consists of people originally from different places of the world, there is a diversity when we share about cultures. Everyone focuses on their work, but do make jokes regularly. Talking about generations at work, we do have the diversity here as well.
All placement students had a training course off site to deliver company’s vision and mission and also to recap some relevant soft skills which would be used within the placement. However, since I have been involved in more daily basis activity, I believe it would be beneficial, perhaps from the student’s point of view, to have some more technical trainings.
Flexi Time
Subsidised Canteen
Sports and Social Club
Company Car
National Travel
International Travel
Financial Bonus
Working from home
The Culture
There are 20 placement students working across all departments this year. In general, we have a good social scene. Outside of work, we usually meet together at lunch time, on some weekends and if we have social activities in nearby towns. We have a group chat on Facebook to inform each other what is going on. Some of us have become really closed and did travelling together.
20 students live in different places nearby Melksham where the site is based. From my knowledge, if compared to other bigger cities such as Birmingham or Bristol, the cost of flat renting is generally similar in Melksham or slightly cheaper in Trowbridge. All the shops are available in Trowbridge or Bath and Bristol, in Melksham town centre, there are Asda, Sainsbury’s and Lidl. A nearest place to Melksham that has a place for socialising would be Trowbridge.
During the Christmas holiday, for example, the company usually organises free Christmas lunch at work and dinner party at one of the nearby venue. At the beginning of December, students can get involved in a paid event on weekend doing Stock Check, it was an interesting event when we can physically touch and count the parts that we usually see on paperwork. Every week, we have badminton session on Tuesday and football session on Wednesday for anyone looking for sports and fitness.
Details
Placement (10 Months+)
Engineering, Logistics and Operations, Manufacturing
South West
January 2018