Industrial Placement Student Nuclear: Defence and Civil Review

Assisting with tasks for civil engineering in relation to the Nuclear: Civil and Defence discipline. This involves meeting with senior engineers to discuss tasks and working independently to complete work to deadlines. There is also time for personal development of skills with an online training platform provided by the company.

There was a variety of responsibility that was given to me throughout my placement depending on the project which I was working on. Some projects I took part on I was required to communicate with teams directly where as others it was a case of reporting back to a more senior engineer for them to then check what I had worked on and use the work as required.

I have improved my proficiency at using CAD programmes to assist with design including STAAD. I have also developed my understanding of projects and how to correctly communicate between teams effectively, including improving my understanding of making good technical drawings that can be easily interpreted for client and engineers alike. My understanding of key technical principles has also developed throughout my placement as I work on projects.

Support and guidance was available and on hand when needed. It was easy to contact someone if you need help, with somebody always willing to assist if you need help with a task. There is also support provided on Mott MacDonalds training website where you can learn and develop your skills in order to be more proficient at completing your tasks.

Mott MacDonald has a generally friendly and warm company culture with plenty of staff happy to talk and discuss things with me during my placement. The office had a good social culture with local sports and social teams providing opportunities to socialise and relax outside of work hours. Hybrid working meant that some days the office did feel a bit empty if you were not aware that people would be working from home certain days.

I enjoyed my placement to varying degrees throughout the year. It has been difficult at times as a placement student not being busy every week as work comes and goes with projects finishing and starting up. Working on a long term project has also not been too engaging at times when working on the same piece of work for months at a time. Despite this the work culture and people I communicate with have made the placement an enjoyable experience. When the work is available and engaging it is a great company to work within.

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