Business IT Master's Review

A 2 year programme with a year long placement in a different job role. This year I'm working under IT infrastructure working on infrastructure related projects for Siemens in the UK. Next year, I'll be working under user engagement for IT, ensuring people working within Siemens get the most out of their IT.

Lots of new skills developed such as learning work etiquete, experience using Windows software such as Power Automate, experience with servers and cyber security, and experience with social media management.

Team are amazing, friendly and very helpful. Work life/ balance is extremely good, and the culture does not foster over-working and working in personal time. They are also very respecting of study days, and give significant time to study. However, the main negative expereince is the lack of travel in our department. This significantly limits the ability to experience projects within the wider company and network within the organisation, making it hard to broaden experiences and discover differing parts/ people in the organisation. The same can be said for the university which lacks in-person teaching/ events, missing out on both networking opportunities and the university experience.

Very well structured, placements were set out and clear from the beginning. The year rotation provides enough time to settle into the role and develop the skills associated, without changing roles too often. Finally, the study days are predictable and consistently on the same day. However, we haven't had much interaction or external development outside of our department since the travel ban. Our early years programme feels slightly disconnected post-travel ban from other apprentices/ grads who have not had the same restrictions on their travel.

The support is good from the university if you ask for it. However, it can be difficult to build relationships with the lecturers and university staff alike when the content is delivered via an online webpage. Whilst the flexibility of this is good, since you can access this content anytime, some in-person attendance every now and again, even if this was just team building events to get to know the university staff and students better, would be beneficial.

Prior to the travel ban, this category was very good with lots of team-building events, networking opportunities and opportunities to socialise. However, since the travel ban we have been unable to attend any networking/ team events, many have been cancelled such as our team building week in June, or our attendance has been reduced to online only, which is not the same. However, we do have small monthly in-person office events and a weekly social session which are good fun and provides an opportunity to catchup with colleagues.

Yes

Colleagues are very friendly and helpful, projects and job role is interesting and engaging, lots of new skills learnt and plenty of opportunities to develop further, work/ life balance is well maintained.

Research the organisation and try to understand the basics of its structure, research the job role and try to identify exactly what you will be doing (eg: a typical day in the life). Ensure you practise interviewing and your CV is up to date and well-presented.