Technical Industrial Placement Review

I work as a Software Engineer on a large UK-based project. My day-to-day tasks include:
* Attending daily standups and other agile ceremonies
* Completing various development and testing tasks
* Attending various meetings or catchups
* Writing and reviewing documentation
* Responding to bug questions and code reviews
For my current role, I work primarily in C# and PowerShell and have completed various pieces of work in automation, environment maintenance and application development. Outside of technical tasks I have frequently had to create and review various pieces of internal and external documents, as well as deliver presentations.

From the beginning I have been given lots of responsibility that has increased throughout my placement as my skills and independence improved. Tasks that are assigned to me, while they have a basic design, I am free to implement the solution to what I feel is best. Any issues with my work arise through frequent code reviews, and I am free to voice my ideas and push back on comments if necessary. I have been assigned various major tasks that have sometimes taken months to complete and through frequent support and guidance I have been able to develop how I see fit. Any questions or concerns I have always been happy to raise and my team has been happy to help.

I have both learnt and developed my technical skills within a vast range of languages and tools. I have also learnt strong communication and presentation skills due to various presentations and demos I have given within my team and across CGI. I have also learnt different agile skills, completing work following the SAFe Agile methodology. From this, I have learnt about project planning, estimations and being able to adapt to change quickly. I have also had the chance to work with server and environment maintenance as a new skill.

I have received lots of support and training in different forms. I was given mandatory induction training and have attended early careers sessions throughout the year. CGI has a vast library of courses and resources that helped me develop the technical skills needed for the role. I was also assigned a 'buddy' - a recent graduate to help me get settled in, as well as a placement supervisor who I would catch up with fortnightly for support meetings. I also set objectives for my placement and was supported throughout the year to achieve these.

CGI has a very inclusive culture and a great atmosphere. Immediately upon joining I felt welcome and spent my year working with and getting to know a great group of people. CGI has a strong work culture where everyone strives to follow its values of respect, integrity and innovation. Corporate, Social and Governance events are viewed very highly in the company culture, and I was able to organise my own charity event. You always feel welcome in the office and I was always happy to go to work. CGI also has a sports and social club that is free for Early Careers events, and these were always fun to attend to and meet new people.

I thoroughly enjoyed my placement year. Being able to develop key skills for the industry and gain essential experience was brilliant. I found the project and tasks I was assigned to very enjoyable and the freedom to tackle the problems at my own pace helped me develop my skills throughout the year. Our project also held non-work related events that were free and we were paid to attend, I got to go to multiple meals as well as go-karting as a fun team-building exercise.

Yes