Product Communications Assitant Review

Overall I feel that I have thoroughly enjoyed my time on placement, a combination of an engaging role that allowed for opportunities to work out of office and a team that are enjoyable to work along with made for a good experience. There are certain aspects of the company which made it less enjoyable, but overall I would say I had a positive expereince with Vauxhall.

My colleagues made me feel very welcome and were always supportive of me in the work I was doing, whether this be uni work, gaining work experience with other companies, or putting me onto external training programmes. Greater sense of value in my team was made through being invited to all press launches and events we hosted and allowed higher involvement with my role.

Overall I feel the managers and senior members of the team did offer high levels of support in my placement and felt I could always go to them with a question with confidence in them helping resolve the problem. Consistent performance reviews throughout the year allowed us to both identify where performance is strong and weak, and experiences I want to achieve during my placement. The nature of their jobs meant a significant amount of time had to be spent working out of office, which meant that during these days there was a reduced level of support for myself and other undergrads in the department.

The workload was consistent throughout the year, with time being filled during the day through increased responsibility from people within the department leaving during my time, as well as the usual day to day tasks that came with my role. Workload would also come in waves dependent on any events that were coming up. Due to the nature of my role this meant it could be inconsistent at times with the run up to events being flat out, and times in between events being a bit quieter.

My role came with good levels of responsibility, by being able to have the opportunity to complete tasks such as organizing and coordinating all new product photoshoots, as well as having involvement in the events planning and organisation - all of which very good experiences for myself. High involvement with the work each of my colleagues within my team also increased responsibility.

In terms of my degree studies relatively limited purely because my role within PR has little application to my Marketing degree due to it being different fields of work. However what I have learnt in my time with PR will certainly benefit me in my career beyond university and the understanding of business I have acquired during the year will only support me in my university studies. The training and work experience opportunities presented to me by my line manager were also great experiences in allowing me to further my skillset beyond my job role and learn additional fields of work in a journalism and agency capacity.

Atmosphere in the office is good when colleagues are in, with a good mix of people to make chat more interesting. However on frequent occasions there have been times when only a few of my colleagues have been in across the whole department which made for a poorer vibe in the office. Also a lot of uncertainty around the company during my time meant atmosphere was a bit cloudy - no one sure on the future of the company and a bit tense at times.

Overall I feel organisation of the placement was ok, with frequent performance management reviewals encouraged by the company, and a mentor system that meant for settling in to be easier for all undergraduates. I feel organisation of the placement could have been improved significantly through greater sense of interest being applied to the development of all undergraduates during their time through training or meetings to discuss the undergraduate scheme.

I personally had a good experience of receiving training and development in my time with Vauxhall. By being enrolled onto the MIPAA training programme which allowed me to attend several training days external to the company, as well as being encouraged to spend time with as many of the agencies/suppliers we work closely with, allowing me to expereince two week long work placements during my placement.

The company does not offer a post-graduate scheme for those high performing undergraduates to enter, and does not encourage it's undergraduates to stay on with Vauxhall beyond their degree. From a personal perspective, Vauxhall isn't a particularly appealing post-graduate prospect due to large voluntary redundancies and the uncertainty around the company.

There is plenty happening amongst undergraduates to get involved with going out and about, which makes the year more enjoyable. A few of the undergraduates are up for sorting out regular social outings throughout the year so there's plenty going on. Although the local nightlife isn't great there are surrounding towns which have a better scene and are easily accessed by train.

I lived at home and commuted so I wouldn't know about the cost of living, but living locally it isn't overly expensive to live in Luton. Local pubs and bars are cheap and a night out isn't expensive, with plenty of places to eat in town as well. There's a gym next to Vauxhall offices that is relatively inexpensive,

The local nightlife is pretty bleak being honest, with only a couple of decent bars in town that have a good vibe and do not attract the wrong crowd. Surrounding towns like St Albans, Bedford and Harpenden have a better nightlife but is a bit more inconvenient to get too.

There is a weekly 5-a-side game that is played among Vauxhall staff and only costs a few quid to play. My department had several food and drink outings through out the year, which were a great social opportunity and allows you to get to know your colleagues outside of the office.