Marketing Assistant, Customer Loyalty Review

I loved my placement year at Waitrose. I was given real responsibilities from the very first day and my colleagues were so supportive.

I always felt like a valued member of the team and my input was always taken on board. My colleagues became great friends that I have kept in contact with since returning to university.

My manager was brilliant, he always pushed me to try new things to really discover what I was capable of. If I ever needed help, support or advice he always had time to speak to me and we had a one to one session every week. I also felt empowered to say no to additional work if my workload was too high.

I was extremely busy during my placement year with a chance to experience lots of new projects. At times this could feel a little overwhelming, however it gave me a real insight into what working life is really like.

I was given a high level of responsibility and given the opportunity to challenge existing ways of working. My job was a real role within the team, which was great because everything I worked on was live and customer facing.

The John Lewis Partnership has a genuine commitment to your development. My year at Waitrose has given me the confidence in myself that I can accomplish whatever I set my mind to. Since returning to university I have taught first year students in their seminars (something that would have petrified me 18 months ago) and feel I can develop a solution to any obstacle thrown at me this year.

The atmosphere in the office was loud, upbeat and positive. I felt like I could ask anyone for the help I needed and there are strong relationships, both in and out of the office, between different teams.

The placement year was well structured and I met up with the other placement students on a regular basis throughout the year to review our progress so far.

In addition to the placement student development sessions held quarterly throughout the year, I also attended team days within the marketing department. I was always treated as a fully fledged 'Partner' and received the same training and benefits as full time staff. I also utilised my learning allowance from the company to complete a business studies course in my spare time.

I would love to return to Waitrose, it is the kind of company you can see yourself building a lifetime career with.

The other placement students were lovely and although I didn't live with them, we met up regularly to catch up on each others progress. The Marketing Christmas party was definitely a highlight of my year, alongside sailing to the Isle of Wight to buy fish and chips in the summer.

I lived at home during my placement, so I am used to the prices in the area. However returning to the South after attending a university in the North is always a shock to the bank balance. The rate of pay is more than enough to enjoy yourself on though, and it's still a lot cheaper than London!

You can have a good night out in Reading, although very quickly you will learn to keep these for the weekend only!

The John Lewis Partnership has a large number of clubs/societies you can get involved in from Drama to Skiing. If you make the most out of the generous discount card you never need to pay full price for anything again.