Power System Assistant Engineer Review

It was insightful, I saw many parts of the business and how national grid operates. Friendly environment and quite relevant if you study electrical engineering. the experience made my uni studies much more tangible. It was also interesting to learn how National Grid makes profit and understand their importance in transmission of electricity across uk.

Colleagues were really helpful and took time to guide me through the weeks I was there. I was often praised for my achievements and given feedback on the work I’ve done. At the end of the placement a presentation day was help where all interns had the opportunity to present the work during the past 8 weeks and therefore get recognised.

The new talent program is very good and well organised and the whole summer was planned out quite well. I not only had the support of my manager, but also other employees and fellow interns who were always more than happy to help with any problems I had. Everyone is very patient and understand that you will have a lot of questions at the start.

As well as my goals, there were many site visits that I took part in and therefore kept me busy through out the days I was working here. However, after finishing objectives, there wasn't much else to be done. It would be good if students are given more work that is usually done for employees. This perhaps can be further improved.

I was given adequate responsibilities and felt that what I'm doing is important. However, I wasn't given any other work outside the scope of my objectives. This can be improved. I was always praised for the work I did. I recommend students to ask for more responsibilities if they feel like the placement is not challenging them.

I gained a lot of presentational skills and improved my writing abilities. I improved how I manage my time also which is very useful for my degree. I did a lot of programming too which gave me a lot of confidence that has helped in my university project. Learning other skills such as using excel has been quite useful for me in uni.

The office has a vibrant feel to it. There are a lot of places to eat and drink and go for a walk. This is very important as it can get quite repetitive to sit behind your computer screen for too long. Having the choice to move around and go for a walk makes that a lot easier.

It was very well organised. At the start, there was a welcome day where students were given a lot of information about the company and what is expected of everyone. There was also an opportunity to ask as many questions as you want before your work started. We were also told who our line managers were and were told a time and place to meet them on the first day.

The company takes personal development very seriously. This is their main ethos and is important to me because at this age I would like to develop myself as fast as possible so that I can go up the career ladder and be good as what I do. There were a lot of opportunities to improve my core skills such as communicational and writing skills.

There are a lot of opportunities. However, they are all mainly in Warwick which means you are very limited to where you can work. Despite national grid having satellite office all around UK, all their graduate programs is based in Warwick and some in in Wokingham. This perhaps can be improved in the future.

I met some ETP students during the first week of my placement and we have kept in contact, gone out together and supported each other throughout our placements. Also getting involved with Newnet events helps you to develop relationships with people in the same position as you, so you will surely meet people on the placement.

Coming from London I did hope that it would be a lot cheaper leaving outside of London, although Leamington Spa is a 'royal' town and is not as cheap as anticipated. Nevertheless, it has been manageable on the salary to live comfortably and enjoy nights and evenings out. The cost of living was manageable.

The night life pretty good in Leamington and there are lots of things to do and see with friends. Being close to two universities and the company having taken on a fair amount of undergraduates and graduates, it has been easy to meet people and develop relationships. So I imagine that it's alright.

Yes! At the beginning I was not too sure about what to do. However, the companies new employee's group called Newnet gets you involved in lots of activities outside your day job which allows you to meet new friends, volunteer and learn about different aspects of the business. I managed to make a reasonable number of friends during my internship but it was a long shot from blowing me away with the number of possibilities.