Junior Nutritionist Review

I thoroughly enjoyed my placement over the last year and I would recommend it to anyone. The team I was working with were brilliant and were willing to help at any time. The opportunities on offer were endless and I have learnt so much about what future career I want to go on to do.

My main role was to support my team and so all work I was involved with was necessary for the progression of their own tasks and so I knew what I was working on was important and would help make a difference. They were also very welcoming from the start and made me feel like a valued part of the team from the very start.

My line manager was brilliant and would help me whenever. We had weekly update meetings where we discussed my completed work and any issues I was having with my current tasks. She would first leave me to try and solve any problems first and then if I needed help she would provide guidance and help.

None of my days were ever the same, my work was very varied and so naturally some days were busier than others. This balanced out though as Kellogg's offer a flexi system and so if you do over time you can take flexi's off.

The amount of responsibilty ranged during my placement, sometimes I didnt have much but other times I had a lot. Examples of my projects which required most responsibilty were when I organised our attendance at the Nutrition Society Annual Summer meeting and so I was responsible for spending a budget of K to cover the whole event. I was also responisble for writing a publication for the Nutrition Bulletin although I did get a lot of support and guidance from my manager as I had no previous experience in this type of work.

my placement offered me a wide range of opportunities and experiences which have improved my skills set enormously. My communication skills have improved greatley and also how to behave in a business environment and the formalities involved. My knowledge of nutrition has improved as I learnt new things on a daily basis and also my personal skills benefited from my year out.

Kellogg's is quite a serious office and so generally it was very professioal and quite quiet as people get on with their own work. In my department though we were quite lively and fun which for me was more relaxing and made working more enjoyable.

Kellogg's have run a placement in the nutrition department for the last 8 years and so the placement was very well established. Leeds also are used to running placements so it was well organised on both sides. Kellogg's were very accomodating for tailoring the placement to what I wanted to get out of it.

The company spent a lot of time and money on putting me on courses that not only were beneficial for the company, such as courses on legal labelling to ensure Kellogg's is up to date but they also put me on courses such as a presentations course which benefitted me personally.

Kellogg's dont offer a graduate scheme for Nutrition and so this wouldn't be a possibilty. They also don't currently offer any jobs lower than a level 4 and so a minimum of 2 years experience is required to even be considered for the job. Therefore I couldnt return immediately after I graduate but I could potentially in a couple of years if there is an opening.

They had annual social events for the employees which was fun but other than that the social side wasn't great. We occassionally did things a team for events such as birthdays or leaving parties but nothing on a regular basis. This was partly due to where people lived and the fact Kellogg's wasn't in the city centre so it was difficult to organise events.

I lived in the centre of Manchester and so my flat was very expensive which took a large chunk out of my monthly pay cheque. Manchester as a city can be as expensive or a cheap as you want it to be though, there are events for all interests and people.

Manchester has a brilliant night life, again suitable for all types of people and of all ages.

Manchester is a huge city with a wealth of opportunities on offer so if you want to get involved with activities you just need to look for them.