Shopper Marketing Executive Review

I really enjoyed my placement, there was never a dull moment and I was given some amazing projects to work on. The people I worked with were fantastic and made me feel so welcome. My year at Mars will be an experience I will never forget.

I felt very valued from all the people I worked with at Mars and built up some really close relationships with members of my team.

I had amazing support from the management at Mars, who really supported me and understood my aspirations. Development is a area that Mars really focuses on, which I think is incredibly important to be successful.

I'd say I was busy everyday, with meetings to attend and deadlines to meet. Like with any jobs some days are less busy than others but you are definitely kept on your toes especially in the job role I was doing.

I was given lots of responsibility whilst on my placement, leading my own projects and being part of major activities. I was making my own decisions on a regular basis which was really motivating. I really enjoy a challenge and I think the responsibilities I was given really allowed me to push myself.

Personally I think you learn much more from first hand experience and I feel like my placement really assisted my studies and future career choices. You get a whole new perspective on the commercial environment and experience things that you can't get from sitting exams. My placement with Mars also helped me decide what I was going to pick for my dissertation topic. I have recently been accepted onto the Mars Graduate Scheme for 2014 which I think is a clear reflection of the development and training from Mars really paying off.

The atmosphere in the office was very friendly and welcoming. The whole office is open plan which allows you to enage with people from all different levels of the company. The office always had a great buzz about it and there was lot's of chocolate!

My role was a new role and only been around for 2 years, therefore my resposibilities did change quite often and I was often split between two teams. Although this turned out to be beneficial, as I had the chance to work with many different people across the business and it really allowed me to challenge myself. I think the initial set up for the placement students should be so it enables them to trasition onto the graduate scheme, which wasn't the case in 2012. However I was lucky enough to have very supportive managers who set me up for success in my graduate panel. I know that from 2013 the intake of placment students will have more of a focus around transitioning them onto the graduate scheme which is great news.

I feel like the company fully invested in my training and development. I went on numerous training events and every period I would meet with mentors to discuss my development.

I secured a place on the Mars Sales Graduate Scheme for 2014 which I am incredibly happy about!

I socialised with the graduates at Mars more than the other placement students. There was always a night out to go on and at corporate events we always had a great time together. I think there could have been more organised socials for the placement students.

The cost of living in the Slough area isn't too bad considering it's close to London. However it is not a nice area and I spent all my time in Windsor which is quite a bit more expesive. I didn't mind the cost of living and my salary seemed to cover my costs.

In the Slough area the nightlife was non exsitent. However 10 minutes away Windsor has quite a good nightlife and then 20 minutes on the train and your in central London, however taxis home are quite expensive!

Mars provided lots of opportunities to volenteer in many different areas from being a reading buddy to painting schools. There was also sport societies to join which was a good way to meet people from around the business.