The opportunity to work on a multimillion pound contract at a stage where the project was in full flow was definitely of great appeal to me. I felt that a job in industry was going offer a lot more than with a private practice. I’d be working in an environment where my actions had real implications, and I’d be able to see an end product. I was excited to learn from and interact with people from all areas of the business.

Prior to starting the placement, I imagined BAE Systems to have a disciplined, businesslike, hard-nosed environment. Whilst the company upholds a good level of professionalism, it is also a fairly relaxed place to work. You are certainly encouraged to set and meet targets, with a continual level of support from colleagues and managers. As an industrial placement, I have been supported to carry out work outside of the office. This has taken the form of graduate career fairs, the annual two day graduate conference and the IP/1st Year workshop where we were given the opportunity to visit HMS Astute at Barrow in Furness. The graduate conference itself gave us an opportunity to hear from various senior figures within the company.

Perhaps the largest challenge in my Industrial Placement has been adapting to numerous processes and systems set within the business. As a project accountant, it is important to understand how each system operates – and to be able to use your knowledge to extract relevant financial data. I have been able to develop my problem solving and time management skills through the tasks I have had to complete on a monthly reporting basis.

I am currently working as an Industrial Placement on the AJT Hawk project (for the Ministry Of Defence). I am based within a Project Accounting role at Brough, East Yorkshire and currently two years through a BSc Mathematics and Economics degree at the University of Nottingham.

I’m applying to be accepted onto the FLDP scheme within BAE Systems when I graduate and hopefully be offered sponsorship during my final year by BAE Systems.