Placement Essay (Crisis Averted)

This weekend I finally managed to finish the introduction for my essay. I have made an action plan and now all I need to do is follow the steps and continue writing. I have given myself a deadline of EOM (end of month).

Step one of my action plan is interview employees of Company X on essay topic. Until now everyone has been really helpful so this should be easy enough. I guess this is kind of similar to the interviews I did for The Times 100 Recruiters. At least I will finally have an answer to a question that has been wobbling my head - can you get any useful information from a non-written source?

Bonus, Bonus, Bonus !!!

Placement year is just awesome. I just found out there is another bonus coming up. When I was applying for the placement, I though: "Hugh will pay the bills" but wow I have been paying much more. I have already had three bonuses since I Started work and there are rumours of a third. I am just so impressed how students are taken so seriously and treated as full-time employees. Should keep working hard and get even more (so greedy already).

Placement Essay (Crisis, Crisis!)

My netbook broke down last week and with it all my research is gone for good. Two moths of work are now stuck in an UN-bootable device and as the computer company support people said "there is no guarantee that any of [my] data will survive". As you can imagine been the ignorant positivist that I am, I have not backed up any of the data. It is just sensible that we come to...

TIP NUMBER 11 FOR ASTON (PROSPECTIVE) STUDENTS: Backup all your data!

Coming back to my story. I was doing a recap and action plan of what to do next. First, I have mentioned most of the research in the proposal that I handed in to my tutor and the placement office, that still ought to be in my sent files. Then, I can just start having fun with the most amazing Aston tool ever - the e-library. This has saved me so many times now that I should say: "God bless the kind people from the Library services for creating the e-library!"

The e-library is an add-in to our online uni account that let us access journals, essays, etc. 24-7 no matter where we are in the world. In basic terms the site is like a search engine with all a student needs (especially one that needs to do coursework research).

So I guess this week will be my week of research fun. One of the best thing about Company X is that the let me do uni work while on the job so I can just book one hour in my calendar each they and spend it in the "library". Of course, I will keep you posted.

Moving-In//Moving-Out (continued)

I have completed my application for the uni accomodation for the final 2010-2011 year. Everything seems to have changed already since I started attending Aston. The towers will be gone by the time I graduate and last week I could only apply for Lakeside and Stafford. What is most interesting, though, is that the new dorms will be opened for first tennants. Living in only a five bedroom flat in an en-suit room will change uni experience entirely. A part of me misses the old times when we had to queue for the bathroom in Dalton and when we used to crowd in the kitchen. It looks like the final year will be a totally different experience (a quite posh'er one for sure).

One thing has not changed, though - when you apply for the uni dorms you can just select your preferences but may not be allocated in your first choice. This saves the excitement so familiar from the first year and brings me back to when I was pre-UK'ish. Anywho, I have to get back to work since, even though I am alowed to allocate time for university related matters in the office, I do not want to exploit company resources too much.

Moving-In//Moving-Out

In every student's life there comes a time of the year (and I mean every year) when he/she has to move to a new flat. This is inevitable and here are the reasons why:

• if you live in dorms the first year of uni you need to move out the second (0nly first, final and international students are allowed to live in the dorms)
• if you go on a placement or exchange (and most students do) you will need to move, again, to the town (and/or country) you are going to work/study at
• when you go back to uni in the last year you are bound to not leave on the streets

Thus, my tail begins. For the past three years I have been moving every summer and applying for new flats every February. The first year it was Dalton. (Good old Dalton will be torn down sooner or later so thank God I have photos of it to remember it by.) The second year it was Aston Brook Green (My impeccably dirty house was the coldest place on earth.) This year my Swindon flat in Gordon Gardens. (Finally some comfort and heat.)

So, as you may have already guessed now I need to decide and apply for a new apartment. The more I think about it the more I see that living at uni just seems to be the best offer there is. So, Aston Accommodation office my application is on the way.

Top 20 Placement Companies

Here is something useful for all students applying for or wanting to go on placement. The top 20 Employers for 2010 were determined yesterday. Here I give you the top 10 with ratings:

1. Microsoft 8.35
2. Grant Thornton 8.20
3. BDO 8.19
4. KPMG 8.09
5. Intel 7.96
6. PWC 791
7. BAE 7.91
8. Morgan Stanley 7.87
9. BAE Systems 7.80
10. Pinsent Masons 7.76

It is great that Aston has connections with most (if not all) of those employers. I have friends working in almost all of the top 20 companies. You can see the full list by following the link below:

http://www.ratemyplacement.co.uk/articles/top-20-employers/

Placement Essay (The Proposal)

After a lot of time loss and inefficiency I have managed to spend the time since New Years in writing my Placement Essay proposal, that I handed in last week. Actually (I know it sound fallacious) I have had so much fun writing the proposal. I think that maybe it is the working nine till five routine that has got me missing uni and writing the proposal I felt like I was back in Dalton again trying to finish one of the economics courseworks.

What is to follow now is writing the actual essay and although I have already done all the research there is one last thing I need to take care of - the interviews. As an option for the essay research I can take interviews with employees of company "X"that are connected or working in the field/problem I am writing about. This out to be fun, I mean, I enjoyed the last interviewing job I had so much last year. So, the placement essay adventures must continue...

Working From Home

Our modern world allows us to have a special kind of a working day best known as working from home. Here is how the day starts:

08:03 - Trying to get the wireless on my work laptop to work

08:38 - Wireless finally on, now need to connect to company network

08:42 - Computer not working at all - restarting...

08:51 - Finally connected to work network

...let the working from home start!

... i have managed to read through some of the material. Concentrating has been so hard with all the distractions around me. Anyway, tomorrow is the only day that I will be working from home. More on working from home tomorrow.

... two days later I haven't done much :(

Placement Essay (The Tale Begins)

Beware! The long lost son has returned...

I am now back in Bulgaria having my winter holiday and it would have been weird had was I not doing uni work, yet again. For the past three years I have not had a winter holiday in which I can just sit back, relax and enjoy the winter as I used to do before.

Anyway I should leave those ignorant thoughts behind me. The bright side is that I keep, even while working nine-till-five, diving into the well of knowledge that is the Aston online library (or the e-library). I have spent my day reading (and falling asleep while reading) different articles written by known and unknown scientists. I hope that by Christmas I at least have a vision of my placement essay. The problem is that there are so many topics and so many directions (or chemin as the French say) that I can develop my thoughts in.

So, let's trace how far I can get in one week...

... my final two choices; i wonder which one is better; should i add name tags?

...very unsuccessful first attempt

ww46: Charity Calendar

Today I am not going to be writing a long post because I have concentrated all my attention to Photoshop. I am working on the month February from the Charity Intern Calendar. Expect the end result this weekend :)

WW45: Networking

What I was told from the very first step I made in company X is that I need to develop a network; that is a healthy relationship with various different employees. It is presumed that the wider the network the better. Of course, the corporate logic behind this is that the better the employees know each other, the easier and faster they will work with one another.

Well, this "networking" has turned out to be the funnest most natural thing ever. Basically, what I am asked to do is make friends and be nice to people. There are of course tools to help me - I can set up private meetings with anyone I want, called 1:1 (one on one); I can shadow someone for a day (that is sit with her for a day to see what her job roles is all about); I can do various team building events and trainings, etc.

To be honest, at first I found it a bit awkward, I was meeting people I barely knew and expected (from myself) to talk with them as if we were old time buddies. Every time I had a 1:1 I would apologize and say how sorry I am for losing their time. Every time that is, until my one on one with L.H.. She told me that the most important mistake that I am making is apologizing. She said that I need to be confident and try to squeeze as much as I can from this placement, try to focus not only on my job but also on myself.

I am a bit of a workaholic, always have, so I did not follow L's advise fully. However, I did start approaching people confidently, with a sense of comfort. Now I know that at first all I had was the "new-kid-in-class" syndrome. It is perfectly natural for a person to be nervous when put in a new environment, surrounded by strangers. So to all your future placement students, when you go to your company X, do not hesitate to explore - meet new people, get involved in different projects and activities. What I can say about my placement so far is: "pa-ra-pa-pa-pa I'm lovin' it!"

ww44: GBTTS

what I have discovered this week is that since I have started my placement I have had so many opportunities to Give Back To The Society. I think student life in general is all about surviving; when is the maintenance loan installment going to come in and cover my overdraft?; am i going to meet rent?; how are we going to pay the bill?; will I manage to buy all the books for this year?; can i live on 5 quid for a week after I spent all my money? (etc.)

Well, when you are on a placement the story changes A LOT. You finally have enough money to meet rent and bills, to not worry about surviving the month. Once this time come one should try to give something back. It definitely sounds so cheesy and so world-peacy but it is true. You don't need to win a beauty pagan to do some charity. The greatest thing about being on a placement in a massive corporation is that there are plenty of opportunities. Why? Because it is very important for a company to be supported by the community and charity puts every company in good light. Thus, there are plenty of volunteer work that the employees are urged to do. And this is actually and amazing thing. No matter what reasons may be behind the decision of company X to support charity Y, the end result is positive for both - better image for X and support for Y (and a warm feeling inside for the actual volunteer).

From an employee's perspective it gives me the chance to help someone less fortunate than me with the inner hope that if I ever end up needing help there will be someone else out there to help me; that if a friend of mine ever needs help and I am not there, a volunteer like me will make a change in her life; that by helping each other we will all live better lives (this sound so communisty but again true).

To get to the point there are great charities opportunities for every intern/placement student that will just make your time worthwhile. As a saying goes - "in his life a man should plant at least one tree!" So ask yourself: if I ever need blood transfusion what would I do if there was no volunteer to donate her blood to the hospital?; how would the world have looked like now if there were no volunteers ten years ago to plant trees in my neighborhood?; how would the poor homeless guy on the street survive the winter if there was no shelter to give him some food and protection?; how would we survive if we do not fight illnesses like cancer, leukemia, tuberculosis, AIDS and HIV?

WW43: Open Season

I have now been on my placement for 128 days.

When it all started I was spending my days in training trying to understand the way the company works; the programs that were being used for business activities; the routine that I would need to establish for myself; the way that people interact in a work a environment. Everything seemed so overwhelming and complicated as if I had never worked before.

Four months into the year I find myself somewhat adapted to it all. What I have discovered is that my fears in the beginning were somewhat pointless and that there is always help if I have a problem. See, what I was not realizing when I started my job was that everyone around me has already walked in my shoes, everyone had been a fresh employee once and everyone has had the same fears, troubles and adventures as me.

So, now that I finally feel comfortable in my new flat, new job, new town I have to make some noise. What is the best way - a sequel to last year's Halloween party. What better way to invite my uni mates and my work mates all together? What better way to give the greenheads just starting to apply for placements a taste of the experience? What better way to thank everyone at work who has supported me in the first quarter of my placement?

(when you read this please answer those question with a: "Duh, there is no better way.")

...to be continued

WW34: Post Big Bang

"Big Bang" refers to the operational change that happened in the company last week. In practice it is similar to a change from one operation system to another. The arising question are, how do you train tens of thousands of employees and hundreds of customers? The customers need to understand how their role in the supply chain is changing; the employees need to know what will happen with their job, most supply put.

For me this meant one thing and one thing only - MORE INFORMATION. I have been expecting my system to overload every day in the past one month. First, there is training on the old process; you finally get the idea and start doing so work and BAM! - "forget everything you have learned, there is a new process now". Then there is training on the second process and by the end of it all you are dropped in the deep and need to manage. My high-school teacher had this one story that was supposed to make me feel bad every time I got an F on a dictation - "we are on a beach, and the whole class is swimming in the deep, Vlad, while you are still on the sand". Well, this time Vlad is not going to stay on the sand.

Surprisingly, this past two weeks (the post Big Bang weeks *or BB) have been amazing. My placement has finally started to kick off with some very busy days, some issues that needed sorting and real challenges. Everyone from the Placement Office in Aston used to say last year that this will be a real job; and it is. So, BB or no BB, placement is going great :)

A little message: Fresher's Week 2009 is kicking off in a month and your truly will be back to the Aston campus to capture all the new adventures and meet the new freshers.

WW31: Intro

It is high time I pulled myself together and continued this blog. To get you closer to the "placement scene" I will start writing not in English but in International Corp. language (or ICL for short).

Every multinational company has its ICL and ICC (international corporate culture). In my IC the unique characteristic is acronyms. This week I even found out that some employees use acronyms for their names as well. But I need to give you an update on the scene before I drop you down in the deep. Longs story short here is everything that transpired in the past several weeks in five sentences. Training. Team Building. Training. Work. Now, here is the beginning of my placement posts ... ww(work week) 31.

What amazed me and still amazes me is that everyone who works around me seems to be suspiciously happy. I was extremely wary of this particular gaiety that was noticeable in the air all around the office. I mean seriously is it that ICs are a magical place where poop tastes like tapioca? Three weeks later, I think I am getting used to it. Of course it is not all fun and games but, to go back to the point, why, why, why is everyone so happy with/on their job? I will attempt to find an answer of this question in the upcoming year.

What is a major difference between university term and placement is the regime. I look back and remember the sunny days in Birmingham when I would wake up at noon, have brunch with my flatmate and go shopping until the afternoon because my lectures start at two. Now, there is a perfect routine in my day; I wake up between 7:20 and 7:45, have a shower, shave (something I never used to do), iron my clothes (another thing that would never happen at uni), take out the trash and catch the 08:08 or the 08:25 bus; then at work, get my morning apple and massive tea. Writing it makes it even more routiny. Most, most important, my week passes as quick as a roller coaster ride speeding down the highest peak of the track.

One other thing I need to mention is actually the most important: PERKS! Working for an IC has a lot of perks glued to it: free gym in a luxurious hotel, free drinks and snacks at work, and well, other free stuff (NB! the list continues). But not to bore you, ww 32 will bring the rest of the update :)