Software Developer Intern Review

I absolutely loved all of my placement even though 6 months was spent virtually in lockdown. I had a very busy 12 months with my work ranging from client (bid) work & client events to internal reviews and team meetings. I also loved the intern atmosphere within the office with over 100 interns all in the Southbank office in London. Add this to the quality of work which is offered to placement students and you have a fantastic internship.

My team were not office-based and were often working from home. I found this difficult to create strong connections with my team, but I was an exception. Most interns had a good strong connection with their team. I also found that when I got involved in other projects where people were around the office more I felt like I belonged more and was valued. As a large company, it is not expected that you know everyone but my network definitely grew with people that hold a genuine interest with you.

Whilst on placement at IBM you have 2 managers, one for your welfare and to reach out to about anything (work or non-work related) and a task manager who you work with on a day to day basis. This works particularly well as you are given huge amounts of support from both these individuals as they do their best to develop you and challenge you throughout the year. Even though my task manager was very busy and had a hectic schedule they always made time to catch up with me and assist me wherever needed.

In my role, my workload varied a lot week to week. These mainly varied depending on whether I was on a bid team at the time. If so, then my workload would increase dramatically and I would work late days wherever needed so to best position ourselves as a company. If I was not on a bid then I could find myself with fewer core responsibilities however there are huge amounts of online learning which you can complete.

A lot of responsibility for an 'intern'. I got given ownership of a Task ID and every query that comes with that. I was responsible for looking after rooms for engagements. You can also decide if you want to take on more responsibility with opportunities that arise. A little bit less responsibility when it comes to clients but this may be due to my inexperience and patchy technical knowledge. Overall, for an 'intern' you have all the responsibility you need to grow and expand your soft skills and to gain experience for the future.

I think I've developed numerous skills during my year at IBM. In particular, I think my networking and interpersonal skills have flourished. This can be attributed to the warm and welcoming atmosphere in the office and the 'hot desk' system where you can sit anywhere within the office. Also through the use of the online learning platform, I managed to complete a number of badges and specialised courses which have helped me go back to university more prepared than ever.

The atmosphere is second to none. The open office with the 'hot desk' ability makes it incredibly easy to settle into. This allows you to sit with whoever you like so that you feel the most comfortable and can be your most productive self. I also think that the intern atmosphere in all offices but Southbank in particular, is fantastic. With so many interns around its very easy to get along with colleagues your own age.

I think that the 2 manager system is very well set up and there are lots of extra opportunities for people to get involved in. They really do put a lot of thought into what you can do and what opportunities are out there. You also have a huge amount of freedom to do what you like. They have 3,6 and 12-month reviews, I don't like these but I understand why they are there, they make you understand what you have actually learnt on placement.

There are lots of online learnings to do, with placement specific channels to help develop the core skills that are required in order to progress. This is part of the IBM think 40, where all employees aim to complete 40 hours of learning each year to continue with their development and stay up to date with market trends. More opportunities are available as a graduate such as sales school that is not available as a placement year student.

Even during the recent lockdown and Covid period, IBM have already interviewed many of the current interns for graduate roles in the future. These range across many different areas such as Cyber Security, Sales and tech consultancy which spans across many services lines which implement software like AI, Cloud, SAP and Oracle. All in all, I believe their grad roles look incredibly attractive for any individual interested in any area of pure tech or tech mixed with business.

I have made some great friends whilst on placement, there are lots and lots of interns at IBM so finding friends is really not hard. There are many offices as well, London has the mos though, but there are times where all interns meet up. Ie, the Xmas party. There are lots of things to do and some people set up sports teams such as Netball and there are plenty of places to get food and drinks. However, we could not do much this year due to Covid.

As I was London based mos things were above average price, pints near the office were at least £4.50. Most things that you did to socialise with workmates would only cost £20 and when getting paid that was ok. There are lots of places to eat around the south bank and lots of those places offer discount to IBM staff. When you add student discount on top this made food a lot cheaper to get. I did not spend much as I worked from home during Covid.

There are lots of things to do in and around London at night. Unfortunately, most of these are expensive. But, there are plenty of bars and places to eat and drink, club nights events and concerts. As there are 5 24/7 tube lines transport is very easy to come by at night if you do not want to pay for a taxi. Also, the Xmas party is a boat cruise down the Thames at night which is pretty special.

There are lots of things to do outside of work, I was a member of a gym and there are lots of other activities that occur. Sports teams set up by people at work such as Netball, there are boxing gyms, rugby clubs football clubs all around the place. I did not find it hard to find something that I was able to enjoy. A lot of people from work are up for trying new things so often are willing to do things with you as well.