Design Engineer Review

I have enjoyed my placement so far and the work that I have completed has been very rewarding. I have been introduced to engine design to a very high level and has allowed me to apply the skills I have learnt at university. My placement so far has fully allowed me to decide that design engineering is what I want to do as my career.

I do feel valued by my colleagues as they are dependent on my work and I am dependent on theirs to get the job done correctly. This means interacting and communicating with them on an daily basis which has allowed me build a strong relationship and don't feel worried to ask questions.

I have been given fantastic support throughout my placement so far. I Have been given a mentor who I sit next to, to guide me through the practices that are carried out in order in able to work as a design engineer and completed the necessary tasks that are required.

I have a perfect balance for my work, I can complete tasks to the required deadlines without running out of work to do. I am also involved with the placement student scheme and mandatory EEEC events and I can still keep on top of my work and not fall behind.

I have been given 4 engine components to look after throughout my placement which it is my responsibility to whatever happens to those components. Therefore I felt like I had quite a lot of responsibility to keep those engine components on track and do all the necessary tasks to do with those components.

I feel that this placement progressed my skills that I learnt at university, these skill that I have learnt are definitely the base layer for becoming a design engineer in the future. This placement is directly proportional to my coarse at university so it will assist me with my final year very well.

There is a very nice environment in the office and everyone I very friendly and approachable. I have found that people like you to ask questions and are happy to help. The office environment is also quite relaxed and you can have a laugh and a joke with people as long as the work gets done.

The organisation of the placement year so far has been seamless. A very well laid out student placement scheme has been set which allowed me to get everything I could out of the placement year, whether this was to develop crucial skills for the work environment or events that are taking place or coming up.

The company invested in me as if I was a permanent employee. Any training that was required I was invited to attend to some of which was mandatory. All the training that I was given was required to do the job role as it was the same job as the permanent employees.

To gain a position with the company would be perfect for my career path. The placement has allowed me to make my decision to become a design engineer in the future. To be able to walk out of university straight into a job with Cummins would be a dream come true.

Yes, all of the placement student have made a very good friendship and allows us to socialise in and out of work. I also socialise with my mentor outside of work mountain biking as we have a common hobby. There are also team building exercises that take place between colleagues and the placement students every quarter.

I was very fortunate that the firm was 16 miles away from my hometown. This meant that I could live with my parents rent free. Darlington as a town is also a cheap place to socialise and bars and leisure activities are relatively cheap which allowed more people to get involved.

Regular nights out were organised throughout the year, which allowed everyone to socialise. The quality of the night out however was average if you compare it to the nightlife in the major cities. This was not a problem however as everyone enjoyed each others company. As the nightlife was cheap, this made social events more popular.

There was always an event that occurred pretty much every which I could get involved in. For example, the placement students organised a Go - Karting race which all 25 of us got involved in. I also attended regular mountain bike rides with some of the other students and my mentor.