Eight Months in the Industry: My Placement Experience So Far

When applying for a placement, little did I know about working full-time in a professional setting. Moreover, I did not anticipate that it would be so exciting, challenging and rewarding. 

Exciting 

It has been an exciting few months in the industry. I was given so many opportunities that I was unlikely to experience whilst studying at university. Being onsite with a client was one of the most exciting and invaluable experiences I have had during my placement. 

In this journey, there have been plenty of moments that made my pulse run up. The first time I received a compliment about my work, my first project kick-off meeting and my first correspondence with the client via phone. I am honestly grateful for all these moments which will remain entrenched in my memory. 

Challenging 

I remember my first week in the office quite well, even though it was such a long time ago. This week was an emotional rollercoaster. New place, new people, new environment. It took a bit to get into the routine and find my feet, but it was all good once I settled in. Shout out to my colleagues who made me feel so welcome from the moment I stepped into the office.  

Now when I look back, I see how much I have gone through and accomplished. I remember both the days where I felt very nervous and inexperienced and the productive days when I felt happy and did contribute to the company as my work had a positive impact on its performance. Working towards tight deadlines and on very complex projects was, undeniably, and is still sometimes stressful. In fact, I am sure many developers cannot forget the frustration they have felt when their first pieces of code were not working, and the many hours spent on trying to fix the bugs. But what kept me going through these moments was my passion for my job and determination to succeed. 

Rewarding 

I am halfway through my placement now and have already had many opportunities where I put into practice the knowledge I have gained at university and the skills I have acquired previously. 

One of the things that I enjoy the most about my placement is the fact that I have had the chance to work on a few various projects. I have worked with different people and taken on new technologies while working on each one. I have had several experiences such as delivering a project from start to finish, contributing in the software development of business applications, and helping to deliver the company's .NET and Excel projects to a high quality. 

I have already learnt a lot and gained a wide range of skills that would not have been possible purely to gain from studying. That was one of the main reasons why I decided to do a year in industry and I have not regretted my decision at all. In fact, if I had the choice whether to apply for a placement or not, I would still go for it. 

Knowing that I have come a little way down a long road, I cannot wait to keep discovering and using new software development techniques and technologies. I look forward to all the challenges that lie ahead of me.