Virtual Internship Review

I enjoyed being able to talk to current graduates on the programme and get an insight into what I would have been doing if the programme had gone ahead in person and also what a graduate job at Centrica would be like. We had regular meetings where we also learnt about the company and they told us what they saw the future of the company to be. I enjoyed this because it allowed me to get an insight into the company that I would have got of the Summer Internship Programme.

I felt extremely valued by the company over the course of the virtual internship. They provided us with weekly meetings so would could get to know the company and get to know other people who would have been on the summer programme. As well as this they provided us with many resources that would support us outside the virtual internship programme for example on mental health. This made me feel valued by the company and like they cared about our well-being beyond the internship.

There was a lot of guidance and support during the virtual experience. The people at Centrica sent us emails more or less every week with information on the weekly meetings. As well as this there were regular posts in the Facebook group with links to podcasts and zoom meetings on a range of different topics including mental health. The people organising the virtual experience were quick in replying to any emails that we had on the internship or the graduate scheme which made me feel like I was supported a lot and could email them whenever I needed to.

The information I learnt has assisted me not so much in my degree studies but in my decision of what I want to do after my career. The well-thought out and supportive internship that was provided supported my decision in pursing the graduate scheme at Centrica.

The virtual internship was well structured with emails being sent out the week before we would have a weekly meeting. The meetings had weekly agendas and consisted Q&A section at the end, allowing us to ask any questions we wanted about the company and the graduate scheme. As well as this if there were any zoom talks that we would be able to join we were told this a week in advance and if we were unable to attend the resources would be provided on the Facebook group page.

During the weekly meetings there was a happy, supportive atmosphere. During the meetings it never felt like they were or the people running them did not want to attend. The first few meetings we had ice breaker tasks which helped to ease everyone into the experience and helped us get to know each other which helped to create a positive environment.

The virtual experience helped me to understand would it be like to have a full time role with the company because during the weekly meetings we spoke to a range of different employees on the graduate scheme. They talked to use about what they have done in their different rotations, what they like most and least about their job and what a day to day would be like. This gave a good insight into what life would be as a graduate at Centrica.

The virtual experience helped me to understand that culture at the company is supportive, adaptable and supportive. The virtual experience demonstrated how much the company values its employees, and potential employees, since they could have just cancelled the internship entirely or not have put in as much time and effort into providing an informative and well organised virtual internship.