Marketing Assistant Review

I was given real exposure to a wide variety of aspects of the Dyno and British Gas businesses. This meant I could gain experience in a wide variety of marketing activity. I was able to really test where my interests and strengths lie which was really useful in discovering if firstly, marketing was for me, and secondly, whether this company was for me. Overall, I found everyone to be extremely welcoming, friendly and supportive which ultimately made me enjoy the experience a whole lot more!

My team were incredibly welcoming and no person I worked with, from any level of the business, ever made me feel like an intern.What I was working on was very real work and I had to work with a variety of stakeholders. I felt that what I was doing was really adding value to my team and the business. My team always asked me for my opinion on the work they were doing which made me feel like they really valued my input and opinion,

No question was a silly question. I was never sat 'twiddling my thumbs' - I was kept busy and well guided.Not only was my manager incredibly supportive and engaged in my work, but the whole team was too. I never felt like my manager was my only port of contact, I could go to anyone in my team for guidance at any stage of the process.

I was given real tasks so was always busy. Only sometimes was I waiting for emails to come through so had to stop my work briefly - but there was always something to be getting on with. All in all, I managed my own time. So I took on extra work when I had time, and continued with my own projects to my own timescale.

I was given a real level of responsibility. I was tasked with the end to end completion of a whole new suite of collateral - a big project to do in 10 weeks. I was pleased I was trusted with such a task, and I took it in my stride. Anyone who comes on this placement should understand that what you are given will be very real work which will impact the business in a very real way. This is the great thing about it - you are treated as an asset to the business, not as someone who picks up the jobs the full time employees don't want to do.

I have graduated now but the skills I developed will be invaluable. I feel I have fully grasped knowledge of areas of marketing I didn't even know existed as well as seeing how different parts of a business work together to drive commercial growth.

Really friendly - people got on with their own work but did not mind being disturbed for a question. Always room for a friendly chat too! There was a very sociable vibe in office hours with numerous break out areas on the office floor. These were perfect places to make meetings feel more relaxed and to enable you to take 10 minutes to find out what one of your colleagues does. We even did a floor 'Great 'British Gas' Bake Off' competition which was really fun!

Extremely well organised - I always knew where I was going/ what I was doing. My manager got in contact with me 3 weeks before I began to introduce himself and give me an insight into what I'd be working on so I arrived on day 1 feeling reassured that I knew what I was doing and where I should go. HR kept in contact throughout as well with handy tips as to how to develop ourselves during the placement as well as key dates and things to remember - I appreciated these!

Yes, there were some training sessions. There were official training sessions which were useful but I was really impressed with the level of time people took out of their working days to explain things to you. It seemed as though the company genuinely wanted to help you at any cost which was really refreshing to hear.

I would happily take the Graduate scheme. It has a really positive ethos on learning and development. They seem really interested in you as a person which I think is really important when considering a future within any organisation.

We all lived together in university halls so it was nice to be able to really bond with the fellow students through living with them. We endeavoured to do as many social activities as possible during the weekends which was good fun. Also, great to have London on your doorstep!

It cost as much as I expected it to. Greater London prices are always going to be more pricey than the northern prices I am used to but there was no shock in the cost of living. It helped a lot that the canteen was subsidised and that accomodation was provided for us!

There were some good pubs near Holloway, and Windsor was close by which had many bars and clubs. However, all the great nightlife was in London which was only a short train ride away!

I personally didn't see many out of work opportunities - it was a shame. Everyone in the company gets on so well but there is very little out of work culture - probably due to the location. However, we did go for marketing drinks with all the summer placement and graduates which was really fun.