Gorilla Keeper Intern Review

by Howletts Wild Animal Park

Rating

5/5
  • Skills
    5.0
  • Responsibilities
    5.0
  • Support & Guidance
    5.0
  • Culture
    5.0
  • Your Impressions
    5.0

    Overview

  • 1. Please give an overview of your role and what this involves on a day-to-day basis.

    • Your primary role will be to assist the needs of the senior staff in the running of the section. Tasks include but not exclusive to are, cleaning of animal enclosures and work areas, feed prep and feeding, general maintenance and gardening. Creating enrichment that will help express natural behaviours.

    Skills

  • 2. Have you learnt any new skills, or developed your existing skills?

    • - animal husbandry techniques - rope splicing - injection training - the requirements of captive apes - communication - team work - resillience

  • How would you rate the training provided during your experience?

    • 5/5
  • How would you rate your development of industry-specific skills during the experience?

    • 5/5
  • How would you rate your development of personal / soft skills during the experience?

    • 5/5
  • Please rate how these skills have helped you in your career development

    • 5/5

    Responsibilities

  • 3. Were you given much responsibility during your placement / internship?

    • I was given multiple tasks throughout the day and was responsible for these tasks to be complete by the end of the day. I was responsible for moving gorillas around the enclosure to make safe spaces for keepers to enter and clean. I was responsible for administering medications to the correct gorillas.

  • Please rate how meaningful the work you were doing was

    • 5/5

    Support & Guidance

  • 4. How much support and guidance did you receive during your placement / internship?

    • I had a very large support network on placement. My supervisor was very good at communicating and explaining what I needed to do in order to progress onto the next stage. Every member of the team was committed to supporting, guiding, and giving plenty of feedback in a constructive manner.

  • How would you rate the support and guidance from your line manager?

    • 5/5
  • How would you rate the support and guidance from the wider team?

    • 5/5

    Culture

  • 5. What was the company culture and general atmosphere like?

    • The team functions like one big family. Everybody gets along really well and any conflicts are confronted and sorted in a civil and respectful manner. If you ever needed any support or advice, every team member were willing to pass on their advice.

  • How would you rate the inclusiveness of the culture?

    • 5/5
  • How would you rate the social opportunities?

    • 5/5
  • How would you rate the diversity initiatives?

    • 5/5
  • How would you rate the charity, sustainability and corporate social responsibility (CSR) initiatives?

    • 5/5

    Your Impressions

  • 6. To what extent did you enjoy your placement / internship?

    • I really enjoyed my placement and loved every moment of it.

  • Please rate your level of enjoyment on your placement / internship

    • 5/5
  • Please rate how your experience met your expectations

    • 5/5
  • Please rate the future employment prospects at Howletts Wild Animal Park

    • 5/5
  • 7. Would you recommend Howletts Wild Animal Park to a friend?

    • Yes

  • 8. What advice would you give to others applying to Howletts Wild Animal Park

    • Be yourself! Show them that you have a passion for these animals and don't worry about previous experience as they are will to teach you everything.

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Details

Placement (10 Months+)

Voluntary

South East

September 2023