Corporate Communications, Marketing and Events Review

I really enjoyed my placement. It was everything i was expecting and more. I feel i have developed and heightened my skills and knowledge throughout the year, and now feel i have a better understanding of what area / job i would like to go into in the future. In addition, i believe the knowledge i have obtained will really help me with my final year studies.

They call it 'The Hams Hall family' for a reason. From arriving on my first day right up to the end of my placement i felt truly welcomed and valued. All the associates are firendly, you'll never walk past someone without them saying hello, and every effort is made to include you as part of the wider team.

Although having plenty of my own tasks and projects, i worked very closely with my manager. She was always available to provide support and guidence even if it was just to bounce ideas back and forth. In addition, there were plenty of other associates at the plant willing to provide support and guidance also.

How busy i was varied on a day to day basis. For example, one day i could just be dong some usual daily tasks and not be too busy, whereas on another day i might be really busy event planning or helping run an event where i would be out of the office for the majority of the day. It fluctuated largely throughout my placement.

I was given responsibility from day one, with set tasks and roles given. Alongside the usual day to day tasks i was responsible for, i was also given the opportunity to take on several of my own projects to carry out from start to finish. This was really beneficial to my development throughout the year.

The skills i have developed will not only assist my final year studies, but also help with any future roles i take on. For example, the knoweldge i have learnt and put into practice on placement will help provide background and practical knowledge for my studies. In addition, i now have an expanded skill set which i can use and develop further in future job roles.

The office in general was really friendly and open for conversations, yet still professional. It was a fairly large office with a variety of departments within it which made it easier for cross departmental working and socialising. I enjoyed the office environment i was in as it was a good mixture of socialising and working.

On the whole, my placement was organised mostly by my manager which was really good regarding my individual role at BMW. However, in terms of organising interns as a whole i would say it could have been better. It would have been nice to have all our inductions together so we could meet from the start rather than finding out who was an intern and who wasn't later on.

Training was essentially done through on the job training and an initial handover period with the previous intern. In terms of learning the key aspects of how to do the job this was satisfactory, however further training throughout the year on specialised topic areas could have been beneficial for further development.

Within the job area i am currently in, there are not really any opportunities regarding job prospects at the plant. This is becuase the department i work in consists of my manager and a new intern each year. However, there could be other opportunities at some of the other BMW Group sites.

The social scene is really what you make of it, and what effort you decide to put in. There are no set socials or parties, but associates tend to hold their own team nights. Organising social activities with the other interns was something we did frequently throughout my placement, which was great.

The cost of living was as suspected. I would say the cost of renting is fairly priced, and a lot cheaper than places like London. In regards to socialising, it really depends on what you are doing and where you're going. The greatest social scene requires you to get a train or taxi to Birmingham city centre which can be expensive.

Near to the plant are several towns that all have several pubs and bars. However a 10 minute train will take you into Birmingham city which is where you will find a a lot more nightlife prospects including pubs, bars, clubs and many other alternatives. The nightlife was really good, but a fair amount more expensive than your usual uni locations.

Opportunities outside of work mainly came down to those that were charity based. For example, in my time on placement there were opportunities to: join football tournaments, take part in the BMW mountain challenge, as well as several other charity events ranging from cake sales to marathons. Outside of charity events there wasn't much else. However there are plenty of clubs and activities available to join in the local areas.