Technology Evangelist Review

I’ve had a great time at Oracle. The experience has been so valuable - networking, learning about upcoming technologies and how this can be applied in various industries, applying my uni knowledge to tasks and projects, getting involved in events outside my role e.g. raising money for charities, understanding work-life balance, figuring out what I enjoy/don’t enjoy, and going to events and socials!

I’ve been very lucky to be a part of an incredible team/organisation this year. My colleagues have all supported me to achieve goals and get me involved with projects and events. They’ve been there to help me with anything, and have given me tasks which are challenging.

My manager has been incredible. She has guided and supported me to achieve things I didn’t think I could. I’ve have learnt so much from her, whether it’s interacting with your colleagues across the company, or knowing how you can apply Technology links between different use cases. I’ve had a lot of fun!

The flexibility of my role meant I was busy on most days, and some days I would be quieter - which is good. I have worked more hours than expected, but I enjoy my role and want to make sure I get my tasks done to a good standard. Time management is a skilI I’m continuing to work on, and there have been many occasions where I have started work earlier and finished later than expected. The role requires you to be flexible with work hours. I’ve definitely enjoyed this way of working as I’ve achieved so much.

It took me a good few months to get stuck in and be reesponsible for work/ projects. Self learning was key, before getting involved in tasks. Over time, I began understanding my role even further, and the experience gave me confidence to begin taking on more work. Towards the end of the year, I was able to help with oragnisation of events and help lead on various projects.

The work I’ve been involved in this year has been very valuable. You learn skills on the job, whether it’s new skills or improving on the go. The role has very much helped me decide what I’m good at, and where I’d like to take my career after uni. I’ve learnt that the most useful part of my degree (Computer Science) has been the coding skills.

I was based in the Reading office for the year. It does vary over the days, but usually it can be quiet. This is dependent on your team/ department. The London office can be more lively.

The process of applying, being called to the assessment centre and knowing the final result was good. It was done quickly and had a great experience. The improvement would be to define the role more clearer to students applying, as I wasn’t fully sure until I began my placement.

I spent a lot of time with my manager reflecting and figuring out what I want to achieve over the year. I set short term goals and continued to add/work on them over the year. I had the option to enrol on training courses over the year to help develop my coding skills. I also had to do reports and assessments for uni, so I spent time on this as well.

I’ve been very lucky enough to be offered a part time role with my team during my final year of uni. This is all dependant on your team, and whether you want to work there. They do ensure that if you are interested in working for Oracle after uni, then they help you figure out what role you want to take on.

We’ve had great social events together and got on really well (both placement colleagues and students).

I lived with a house of interns for the year. The rent was a good price as we lived in a brand new refurbished house. The only downside is traffic to get to work as there are a lot of one-way roads. We socialised a fair amount of times and had a good time.

Nightlife isn’t great in town. There are more restaurants and pubs you can go to which are nice.

I have got involved in numerous activities such as volunteering, raising money for charities (e.g. doing a static bike ride challenge at Waterloo station on a weekend, and waking 54 miles in 24 hrs in Scotland). I joined a society called Toastmasters which is a great club to join if you want to improve your public speaking skills.