Summer Intern Review

Working on my intern project (individually) and attending meetings for wider sub-disciplines, as well as working on side projects and joining in extra curricular groups. There were lots of sessions every week to learn about other parts of the company and all the different projects. There were a lot of meetings that I sat in on. There were also many opportunities to present information like at bpChallenge, a poster competition. There were a few social events every week as well.

I have developed my verbal and written communication skills as well as my teamwork, poster, and presentation skills. I have also learnt how to use new software packages. I found that some other interns would ask their line managers or supervisors to direct them to other people when they felt that they wanted to improve a certain skill. I would say the opportunities are all there if you act on it and actually ask your supervisor/line manager.

Not very much responsibility over technical things or on my main project, but for extra-curriculars I was given more responsibility. My project was very isolated and didn't feed into active decisions that were being made at the time so I think this is understandable. I was also quite encouraged to know that my project, when completed, would later feed in to important decisions and would be useful to the company later on. I found this provided me with a sense of responsibility.

I had a supervisor and a buddy (graduate/challenger student) who helped me and they provided plenty of guidance. There were other people in the discipline who also gave us advice and support. Everyone is very approachable and is eager to help. If you contacted them with a request, they would almost always reply and help out. However, my line manager barely communicated anything to me. I also found that the early careers team provided great support and resources during my time at bp.

Very friendly and relaxed. Despite being very busy and having packed schedules, they were eager to make time to talk to me about my project or to stay in contact and give me advice. Some people even contacted me out of the blue because they wanted to hear more about my project as they had heard about it from other colleagues. Even VPs were eager to communicate with interns, so I would say it was very welcoming and supportive.

I enjoyed it on the whole. Some parts were more interesting than others - I personally found the subject matter itself to be uninteresting, and there some very quiet days where I was quite bored. The other opportunities in the internship were great - especially extra-curriculars and intern side-projects. The feedback I received was useful too - I definitely think I've gained a lot of valuable experience that will help me at uni and in the workplace later on.

Yes

Read up on the 5 BP values and use them when answering questions or when in interviews/meetings. Know some fluid dynamics and heat transfer to do well in the technical interview. In group interviews, if someone is hoarding all of the attention, fight harder for the attention. Gain as many contacts as you can at the company and don't be afraid to book a meeting with someone you don't know yet, especially if they are quite high up in the company. Also, have very regular meetings with your line manager or supervisor and ask them plenty of questions about anything.