This review was submitted over 4 years ago, so some of the information it contains may no longer be relevant.
Rating
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The Role
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The Company
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The Culture
- 1. To what extent did you enjoy your work placement or internship?
- 2. To what extent did you feel valued by your colleagues?
- 3. To what extent were you given support and guidance by management/your supervisor(s)?
- 4. How busy were you on a daily basis?
- 5. How much responsibility were you given during your placement?
- 6. To what extent did/will the skills you developed, and training you received, assist you in your degree studies and beyond?
- 7. What was the general atmosphere in your office?
- 8. How well organised was the overall work placement or internship set up?
- 9. In terms of personal training and development, to what extent did the company or firm invest in you?
- 10. What were the perks on your work placement?
- 11. How appealing are future employment prospects within the organisation?
- 12. Was there a good social scene amongst any fellow placement students/colleagues?
- 13. What was the cost of living and socialising in the area you worked in?
- 14. What was the Nightlife like in the area you worked?
- 15. Were there many opportunities to get involved in activities outside of work?
The Role
The work load was very heavy and due to shrinkage of the team, there wasn't room to delegate. At times this was extremely stressful though I appreciated being treated like a full employee.
I felt highly valued by my colleagues as I had built a solid reputation for myself and this was recognised and appreciated.
My team lead was very approachable when I wanted to discuss issues I might be having or a difficult problem to solve, but in terms of daily work, it was for the most part self-directed.
Generally always busy to the extent that it was extremely difficult to take holiday time.
I was left pretty much to my own devices, it was up to me to prioritize and manage my work load independently of guidance from management.
I believe a lot of what I've learned in the past year will give me a solid foundation for future jobs, but I feel that this experience won't have a significant impact on my degree studies beyond the discipline that working 9-5 brings.
The Company
The mood in the office reflected what part of the finance cycle we were in, mid month when it's a bit slower we had a laugh but during month end everyone's very focused.
I feel that Foundation could have made more of an effort to identify more with our work rather than their own Foundation-based objectives such as giveback etc. I personally did not have a significant amount of time to spend doing giveback and I feel that my regard in Foundation will have suffered from that.
IBM hosts frequent education sessions to take part in during your lunch break which you can use to expand your understanding of business as a whole.
Sports and Social Club
Working from home
IBM's hiring for graduates is limited to Sales and Consulting roles.
The Culture
Due to the large amount of placement students at this location, everybody was very social and there was always people around to go out with.
I was based in Portsmouth which is where I'm also going to Uni, it was very cheap to live here!
I know the nightlife at Portsmouth very well, so I enjoy it immensely!
There are endless opportunities for those who have enough time to get involved in them.
Details
Placement (10 Months+)
South East
July 2012