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I thoroughly enjoyed my placement and can't recommend it enough. I've gained so much confidence over the past year and have been provided with an insight into industry standard software development and best practices, which will be helpful both in my final year of uni and when I graduate. Both the other work placements and my team members were really friendly, and we spent time outside of work hours together quite often. I've got one week left of my placement and will be very sad to leave!

I felt really valued by my colleagues - not only did they give me encouragement and positive feedback throughout my placement, but we also spent time outside of work, going bowling, to the cinema, and regular drinks events. By the end of my placement, it was more like working alongside friends than colleagues, which made it a great working environment.

A lot of effort was made to support me throughout my placement. I began the year feeling underconfident and found the first couple of months overwhelming. My manager and I spoke regularly and had weekly catchups. He was really supportive and helped me to gradually improve, gaining confidence and working towards achieving key aims that we set out at the start of my placement. By the end of my placement, I had achieved all of the goals, and had developed much more than I anticipated I would, because of the support and help I had along the way.

It depended on the day, but there was always work to be done. I worked on several projects over the year, but also had time to go to the gym in the day if I wanted to, and finish work at a reasonable time. I was working long hours at the start of my placement (out of choice), and my manager and fellow colleagues advised me to work less hours - after listening to their advice, I felt much more productive, and was able to strike a good work-life balance.

The amount of responsibility I was given grew during my placement. My first project was an individual project, where I set my own goals and worked towards them each week. I then worked on enhancing features in a different project, and had exposure to the business. After this project, I became very knowledgeable in the area, and was one of the first points of contact whenever further information about this project was required. My final project was very large, and I worked as part of an international team. It was a lot of responsibility and gave our team great visibility, with the project and its benefits being discussed in a global team meeting. In the early stages of this project, I performed analysis which was vital to determining the implementation logic, so the team trusted me in being responsible for important pieces of work, just like a full-time employee.

The skills and training I have developed/received are invaluable, and will help me so much when I go back to uni, and eventually begin working full-time. I used a range of technologies during my time at GS, working both on the front-end with web technologies, and also working on the back-end, learning about industrial Java development (the practices of which are very different to the type of Java programming I had done at uni). Another key skill that I improved is my ability to present; my manager encouraged me to present frequently throughout the year, and by the end of my placement, I felt so much more confident. The training was great, with there being lots of training sessions available throughout the summer (for the work placements and summer interns), and we were also able to attend training sessions set up for new graduates joining the firm.

It was a really friendly environment, with a good compromise between work and socialising. Everyone in the team was helpful, and they made you feel comfortable with asking them for assistance when needed. People often brought in cake and snacks, and it was a great, relaxed but also work-focused environment to be in.

The placement was incredibly well-organised. The start date was as specified in my contract, and I received a call from my manager and an email from my mentor a few weeks before joining, to welcome me. From the first day of my placement, I was told about the first project I would work on, and plans for this had been made months in advance. The socials arranged for the work placements and summer interns were also well-organised.

GS invested heavily into my personal training and development. When I was stuck on complex problems, colleagues would sometimes sit with me for an hour or two, dedicating their time to helping me. My manager focused on helping me to develop throughout the year, and everyone around me was incredibly supportive and gave great advice. The formal training sessions were varied and informative, and I was encouraged to attend any that I found relevant/interesting.

I'm really hoping to get a job with them, but I will need to wait until after the summer before I'll find out! Feedback from my team has been great, and I think I stand a good chance at getting an offer, but I'll have to wait a while before I'll know.

I organised some events with other placements, and we spent time outside of work going to the cinema and having placement drinks. I did a lot of social activities with colleagues; we played dodgeball together in a tournament, went to the cinema, went bowling, and attended several drinks events throughout the year.

It was expensive, but I think that in hindsight there would have been cheaper and better options if I had spent more time looking for accommodation. Eating near to work was sometimes expensive, however there are some cheap options if you look for them. I played in a dodgeball team outside of work, and the cost was pretty low. Some cinemas also have good prices if you're willing to go a bit further out.

There are lots of pubs and bars in the area, so there was always somewhere to go. It's also nice to walk towards Leicester Square and Covent Garden, which aren't too far away, and a lot of stuff is going on there at night. I didn't really go to many nightclubs and can't say if nightlife in that respect is good in the area, but there's always something to do.

Definitely! I joined the gym at work and they had a fitness programme, and many of these sessions were after work, so they were great to join in. As mentioned earlier, there were lots of opportunities within my team (bowling, cinema, etc). There are also lots of talks going on around the city if you look for them, and it's really easy to find sports teams to join. As it's central London, you'll always find something to do!