UK Finance Placement Student Review

My placement with Faurecia was hard work but it has been very rewarding. As Faurecia is a global company, I have had the opportunity to work with lots of new people and gain new insights from an automotive perspective. The support I have had from my manager has also made my placement very relevant to my degree.

The office I work in is very small but everyone has been very welcoming. I have built up good relationships with everyone in the office and I have found that if I am ever struggling with a task or if I have a query, everyone in the office is willing to help.

I have had monthly catch ups scheduled in by my manager just to see how I am and make sure everything is okay. He is very approachable and friendly. He also carries out the company required reviews at 3 months, 6 months, 9 months and 12 months to track my progress and set new targets.

Due to the nature of the company, there are some days when you feel rushed off your feet and some days where you can catch up on things that didn't take priority the day before. My manager always asks how I am coping with my work load and whether I'd like to reduce or increase what I am doing.

Initially, when I was still learning, I didn't take on much responsibility. I wanted to be comfortable and confident with the jobs I was taking on. However, as the year has gone on, I have taken ownership of one entity and complete the month end reporting for this entity with my managers supervision to make sure I am on the right track.

I feel the most important skill I have developed is being able to work in a small office environment. I am quite a loud character and I have had to learn how to be mindful of others in the workplace. I have also been on several excel courses to develop my knowledge and this is going to be a massive help with my future career.

Due to the office being small and the workload being very high, the office has generally always been quiet because everyone is concentrating and getting on with their jobs. There are however, times during the day when the level of conversation rises and it seems more relaxed. Overall, the atmosphere in the office is friendly.

The placement has been well organised. Faurecia have a well established placement program and they ensure that students get the most out of their placement year. There has always been work for me to do and it has been specific work for me not just other people's jobs that I complete.

Faurecia have invested a lot of time into me by providing me with the opportunity to get involved and work as part of a team in a global company. They have helped me to develop and taught me life skills that you can't put on value on and skills that can't be taught in the classroom.

Faurecia have an excellent graduate scheme that has recently been explained to the current placement students. The graduate scheme guarantees two more years of employment and the opportunity to study a masters or complete a professional qualification. This makes Faurecia very appealing for the future and I will definitely be applying to the graduate scheme.

As I was in a separate, smaller office, there wasn't much opportunity to socialise with the other placement students. Two events were run during the year where all the student met up at an induction event and a wrap up event but apart from that, there weren't many opportunities to socialise.

I commuted to work so the cost of living isn't applicable but the area in which the office was based (Lichfield) was quite an expensive area. The area did have a lot to offer though, with the town centre being a five minute walk away from the office and plenty of places to eat.

Cannot comment as did not go out

There are lots of restaurants to try but I didn't venture to far as I had a long commute back home.