Placement Student Review
by National Grid
This review was submitted over 4 years ago, so some of the information it contains may no longer be relevant.
Rating
-
The Role
3.9
-
The Company
4.3
-
The Culture
4.1
- 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
I enjoyed my placement because I was able to apply some of what I had learnt on my degree. I was also working in a team with some great people which made it more enjoyable.
The people on the team I was in seemed very aware that I hadn't had any previous work experience so made me feel very welcome. At the end of teh placment I had a thank-you presentation form my manager and a present. So yes, I felt valued!
When I arrived on the first day I had a a lady look after me who was a 'buddy', apparently all students get one. She did have everything ready for me but one a couple of occassions I wasn't sure what to do and she really helped me work out what teh next steps were.
Occassionally the work I was doing relied on inout form other people and because I was only there for a short period I don;t think peopel realised the urgency of teh info I needed
I was expected to deliver a set piece of work which was a bit scary at first but as soon as my buddy helped me break it down it was fine. i had to do a short presentation at the end.
Really valuable
The Company
It was relatively quite - its mostly engineers finding solutions to problems, but people were really nice and there was a fair about of discussion about the office and all teh students went to lunch together which was great
I started with about 15 other students not to mention the graduates and we'd all meet up at lunch, go on training days together, and go out together in the evenings
I got a lot of time from National Grid's employees, but I also went on the student development courses which involved courses on Time Management and Communication skills. But I was also encouraged to go on other courses so I went on a presentation course to help me perform well in my end of placement presentation.
Subsidised Canteen
Sports and Social Club
Subsidised/Company Gym
National Travel
Financial Bonus
Company Parties/Events
Working from home
National Grid do have a relatively secure future given there key role in teh UK and US energy infrstructure. they have a good Graduate Programme and have some interesting projects which are relatively long-term
The Culture
The actual town wasn't as busy as what I'm used to in Bristol but all the students went out togther and had fun times!
Fine
A few clubs, lots of bars and pubs. 30 mins from Birmingham too.
To be honest I didn't really bother with clubns outside of work but teh guy I lived with got involved with a hockey club and was part of a football team so it's fairly easy to find and get involvbed in things.
Details
Internship (1 Month+)
International
August 2009
