Mechanical Engineer Intern Review

The placement was overall a very good experience. During my 3 months at WesternGeco in Oslo I experienced a variety if work. Half my time was spent designing and the other half I spent researching. Both jobs I found valuable and both offered different challenges. For example in design I learnt how to work with field engineer input and manufacturer input to obtain the optimal design. Living and working in Norway was very nice and it was good to explore the country.

My manager and team were always very friendly and willing to help and give me ideas. Never did I feel like 'the intern' and I always felt involved and valued as a team member.

At the beginning of the placement my task was discussed with me and objectives were set. Throughout the placement I was given support by both my manager and the rest of my team, this guidance ranged from showing me how to use a particular bit of WesternGeco software to telling me who could answer my question (if they couldnt).

In the first (settling down) week work could be quite slow, but in this week you are expected to be working through the health and safety training. The stream of work after thus week was consistent and there was always something to do.

The tasks I was assigned were my own to work in and complete. I was given a high level of responsibility especially nearer the end of the placement after I had proved my competancy.

Alot of design and research skills were acquired during this placement. These skills will prove useful for the completion of my degree.

The work enviornment was relaxed and everybody was very friendly and willing to help. The work and play balance was good and there were many sports clubs to get involved in.

The employment/interview process was efficient and I heard back after my interview very quickly. The relocation to Norway was well organised and planned by a 3rd party.

At the start of the placement there are numerous online training modules to complete. There are also practical training modules to do but these are tailored to what yoir job requires. Overall WesternGeco invest alot into employees and vigorously train staff to achieve thier potential.

WesternGeco/Schlumberger have a variety of graduate programmes. Successfull interns (to my knowledge) are usually given priority to the graduate jobs but there is usually a graduate recruitment process to complete.

There was a great intern community. We did numerous trips together and most evenings met up. The interns were a mix of many nationalities and the diversity was great. The company even funded an intern event where we went out for a meal and did some paintball.

My placement was in Oslo, Norway. Norway is an expensive place to live, Roughly twice the cost of the UK. Alcohol is extremely expensive and you do not go out drinking as much as in the UK. However Norway is fantastic for the outdoors and if you like hiking, swimming, etc then this is a great country to spend time in.

The place where I lived (and all the other interns lived) during this placement was just outside of Oslo. The nightlife here is pretty much non existant and you have to get a train into oslo to find the clubs. Clubbing and alcohol in general is very expensive (compared to the UK).

There are numerous sports/social clubs at work to get involved with. The work place also had a free gym.