Software Development Engineer Review

I worked alongside various other engineers building products based on stories and requirements outlined in tickets. Mostly working in Java, as well as Groovy for testing, I built parts of systems within API monoliths and microservices, as well as involving myself in tickets regarding more maintaining functionality of existing services. I felt as if I was really making an impact as a member of the team and getting my hands dirty with experience so to speak.

I definitely learnt new skills, adapting to the vast and varied tech stack was difficult to begin with but I received support from my team throughout the process. I learnt a lot about the inner workings of a large organisation's technical needs and solutions, as well as getting great experience with very useful technologies such as Kubernetes, AWS, Azure Pipelines, Jenkins, Git, and NoSQL amongst various others. I also felt as if my existing skills were definitely refined, as I would 100% say I'm a better software engineer for it.

I was given slightly less responsibility than the other members of the team, namely not having to deal with all the big support issues that rely on team-specific experience, but overall I felt my experience in the team was very much one of integration. Despite all the support, I wasn't handheld after my induction and was allowed to work without feeling as if I was being watched or micromanaged, and I really appreciated the acknowledgement of me as a responsible member of the team whilst it was still acknowledged that I would sometimes need help.

I received more than enough support throughout my internship; during the induction, we were introduced to one another and got to know each other, and I was quickly integrated into my team and onboarded. The onboarding process was a bit slow, as it tends to be at large companies (or so I've heard), but during the process everyone was very understanding, and continued to be afterwards. I was also supported professionally, with any questions I needed asking being answered promptly and members of the team being more than happy to collaborate and take time out to sit down with me and work through issues together.

The company culture is one of my favourite parts of my experience at TESCO as a whole, everyone is always very friendly, and even though not everyone is as talkative as I might be personally, they're all great people and try their best to be helpful and inclusive to all. The culture is one of support, and most importantly understanding - everyone understands that everyone else is a human being and I feel treated as such, with understanding given that working outside of work hours isn't expected at all, understanding that we all have other things going on, and most importantly and understanding of reality.

I really enjoyed my internship at TESCO and would highly recommend anyone else looking into it to take it up - it's a phenomenal experience with great people, and I can't recommend it any more highly. It's a chance to not only develop your career and do meaningful work, but to meet amazing people and make great friends. I know some of my friends questioned my decision to work during the summer after such a stressful year of uni, but I really have enjoyed my time at TESCO and I definitely made the right choice!

Yes

Take full advantage of everything offered, from getting help with work if you need it, to just making as many new connections to your network as you can. Keeping an open mind and an open attitude is really helpful with this, and will really help you make the most of your experience at TESCO. Most of all, enjoy yourself, it's a genuinely great place to work from my experience, and there's so much variety, so explore it!