Scribd
Upload
526 views

Work Experience Reflection Example

The student completed a 12 week work experience at a civil engineering company where they learned about various aspects of engineering projects and the responsibilities of different roles. They gained hands-on experience working on tenders, became more comfortable through guidance from supervisors, and enjoyed applying their university knowledge. The diverse workplace and varying daily tasks provided exposure to different areas of the business and industry. The experience confirmed the student's interest in civil engineering and they were offered a full-time position after graduating.

Uploaded by

irfan
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
526 views

Work Experience Reflection Example

The student completed a 12 week work experience at a civil engineering company where they learned about various aspects of engineering projects and the responsibilities of different roles. They gained hands-on experience working on tenders, became more comfortable through guidance from supervisors, and enjoyed applying their university knowledge. The diverse workplace and varying daily tasks provided exposure to different areas of the business and industry. The experience confirmed the student's interest in civil engineering and they were offered a full-time position after graduating.

Uploaded by

irfan
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
You are on page 1/ 2

Work

Experience: My Reflection

By <Student >

Duringmyworkexperienceat<company>,Iwasfortunateenoughtohaveexperienced
firsthandandlearned,manydifferentsidesofwhatgoesintoaproject,thegeneralprocess
ofhowaprojectisinitiallyplanned,developedandcompleted;aswellashowmuchwork
anddetailgoesintoeverystage.AnothervaluablelessonIhavelearnedduringthese12
weeks,werethemanydifferenttypesofworkanEngineerhastoperform,whichinturn,
haveprovidedmewithmoreinsightintothedifferenttypesofrolesandresponsibilities
thatIcouldperform,asaCivilEngineer.

Reflectingbacktomyfirstdayat<company>,itwasoneofthemostmemorabledaysofmy
timeatwork.Afterbeingintroducedtoeveryone,Iwashandedatendertoworkon,in
whichtheyhadaskedmeforrecommendationstoimprovecertainaspectsoftheproject
whereverIseefit,aswellasmyopinionsontheprojectasanentirety.Theywereveryopen
andhappyformetocontributeasmuchasIwantedto,andwereopentoanysuggestions
andideas.ThisinstantlymademefeelcomfortableanddefinitelymademefeelasthoughI
waspartoftheteam.

Duringthefirstweekofworkcompletingthetender,Iwasoverwhelmedbytheworkand
theresponsibilitiesthatwereplacedonme,butwiththehelpofmysupervisorsandthe
directors,whohavehadyearsofexperienceintheindustry,Ifeltmoreconfidentand
supportedasIknewmyworkwouldbedoublecheckedandanyuncertaintieswere
explained.Byobservingandlearningfromthem,Imanagedtopickuptipsandlearned
differenttypesofskills,fromlearningtocommunicateanddealwithothercompanies,to
readinganddecipheringmanydifferenttypesofplans.

Workingontendersforthefirstfewweekswasenjoyableformeasitdidmakemeuseall
thetechniquesIlearnedatUniversityineverystreamofCivilEngineeringthathadbeen
taughttous,namely;Geotechnical,Structural,HydrologyandTransport.Irealisethismight
notbethesameeverywhereandusuallyCivilEngineersmightfocusononetypeofstream,
butIwashappythatIhadtheopportunitytouseallofmytheoreticalknowledgeand
appliedthemtoreallifesituations.

Throughexperienceandobservation,anothervaluablelessonthatIlearnedwhileworking
at<company>wasthatinprojects,especiallywhenworkinginprimarystagesofcertain
project,thingscanchangeveryquicklyanddramatically.AnotherlessonIlearnedthrough
thiswasthatifthereareanyuncertainties,fromwhetherasurveywasoffbyafew
millimetres,toifmaterialschosenforacertainaspectofaprojectwereunsuitable,italways
hastobecheckednumeroustimesandfromseniorlevelsourcesbeforeanyconclusionscan
bemade,especiallyiftheyaretobepresentedtoaclient.
IfoundthattheworkplaceitselfwasrelativelydiversefromwhatIhadobservedworkingat
<company>.Therearesurveyors,projectsupervisors/managerstocivilengineersall
workingintheoneoffice.Thislargerangeofpeoplehavedifferentstrengthsand
qualificationsandtheyworktogetherandorganisetheirworkinsyncwithoneanotherso
thatworkflowsandtheyareabletocompletetheirworkefficientlyinordertopresentitto
theclientontime.Thisinturn,managestohelptheworkplacebecomebetterasteamand
thereforecreatesagoodatmosphereintheworkingenvironment.

TheworkthatIhadtocompletevarieddaytodaydependingonwhatprojectwasaboutto
begin,orwhattenderwasdue.Somedayswerequiet,andduringthesedaysIwouldusually
creategeneraldocumentsthatthecompanyneededtoupdate,suchasforms(workingat
heights,workinginconfinedspacesetc)andmadesurethateverythingelseinthedatabase
wasuptodate(Whitecards,PlantOperatorCardsandMedicalchecks).Thishelpedme
learnmoreaboutthecompanyasabusinessitselfandIfeltlikeIhadaninputintothe
developmentofthegrowingcompany.

Thereweremanydaysthatwerebusywhereatenderdeadlinehadtometoraclientmight
needsomethingcompletedurgently,andthesedayswerestressfultothepointwherethere
weretimesIdidhavetostaybacktogettheworkdone.Thisinsomewaysremindedmea
lotofmylatenightstudysessionsatuniversityandhowevenintheworkplace,itdidnot
change.

ThroughoutthefewweeksIalsohadtheopportunitytoobtainawhitecard(or
constructioninductioncard)inordertobeallowedonsite.ThisisanotheraspectofCivil
EngineeringwhichIwasgladIhadtheopportunitytoexperience.Ihadtheopportunityto
goonsiteontotheM80RingRoadwithseniorcivilengineersandlabourers.My
responsibilitiesweretolocateundergroundservicesandensurethatanyareathatwasto
beexcavatedwerefreeofanyopticfibrecables,networks,pipes,etc.Thiswasprobablythe
mostenjoyablepartofmyentireworkexperienceat<company>becauseIfeltupliftedto
getoutoftheofficeafterweeksofcrunchingnumbersatadesk,andtoactuallyseethe
workthatIwasworkingonintheory,broughttoreallife.Thishelpedmetounderstandjust
howimportanteachstageofaprojectreallyis.

Overall,myworkexperienceat<company>waspositive.Iwasveryhappywiththeamount
ofthingsthatIhavelearnedandexperiencedinthe12weeksofbeingaStudentEngineer
withthecompany.IbelievethatVictoriaUniversityshouldkeepthisaspectofthe
Engineeringcourseasitdoesprovidestudentswiththeexperienceneededinordertofinda
joblateron(eveniftheexperienceisoverashortamountoftime).Also,itcanbevery
beneficialasitcouldleadtoamorepermanentposition,whichiswhathappenedwithme.I
endeduplearningalotmorethanIthoughtIwouldbeabletointhetimespan,andmy
hardworkpaidoffastheyofferedmeajobattheendofit.Iamsohappy,andproudthatI
havecompletedmycourse,andIcannowgraduateandcallmyselfaGraduateEngineer.

You might also like