Tag Archives: Cornwall

Graduate Researcher – University of Exeter

Education, Teaching and Research, Geography, Graduate Business Partnership (GBP), Health Care, Internship Schemes,

hospital

What were your main duties and responsibilities during the course of your internship?

Using NVivo software ( a qualitative data analysis tool) I analysed the NHS and Cornwall Council’s recent public, community network, and stakeholder survey data for the STP plan in Cornwall. I then produced reports and presented these back to the NHS who will use the results in their publications.

What would you say was your biggest achievement over the course of your internship?

I taught myself how to use NVivo software, which was completely new to everyone in the department, and quite sophisticated. Originally I looked to go on a course to learn the software. However I decided to self-teach which was challenging but very rewarding.

What benefits did your internship bring to your employer?

I lightened the workload for both my managers. I also provided reports that the NHS will use to improve the NHS in Cornwall.

“Philippa made a highly significant contribution to my research project with the NHS” – Line Manager.

 

Energy Intern – Wattstor Energy Storage Systems

Access to Internships (A2I), Energy Engineering, Environmental Work, Science,

light

What were your main duties and responsibilities during the course of your internship?

I carried out a variety of tasks over my internship, including creating case studies from the data of existing customers, analysing data to gain an understanding of charging cycles, blog posts for the website, and basic organisation and “tidying up” of the company dropbox account.  I also worked on several excel spreadsheets that are in use with the company, to fix any errors and improve usability and appearance.

What would you say was your biggest achievement over the course of your internship?

I worked well under pressure, and during days when a lot was going on and others were getting stressed, I was able to remain calm and help lighten the workload for my colleagues.  I have also largely improved my excel skills, and I am proud that I successfully solved any problems I was faced with when working on the spreadsheets.  In addition, I am pleased with my independence and ability to get on with a task, but equally I felt comfortable asking for help when I needed it.

What benefits did your internship bring to your employer?

The work I carried out was to a high standard and will help the company keep track of the work they do, saving them time and problems in the future.  I was also able to carry out tasks for my colleagues that reduced their workload during busy periods.

Did you encounter any problems during the course of your internship and if so, how did you overcome them?

There were some research tasks that I was unable to find complete information on, so I collated all that I could find and presented that.

Outreach Assistant – University of Exeter, CEMPS

Access to Internships (A2I), Education, Teaching and Research, Employer Feedback, Mining and Minerals Engineering, Science, Student Campus Partnership (SCP),

creative-desk-pens-school

What were your main duties and responsibilities during the course of your internship?

During my placement I spent a good proportion of my time out of the office as well as in. When I was in the office I was helping to create educational resources as well as lessons in a box, in order to send out into local schools next academic year. When I was out of the office I was helping with a variety of outreach activities in order to promote CEMPS subjects to possible future students. In general I was trying to spread the idea that CEMPS subjects are fun and show that learning them will help everyone with their future career prospects.

What would you say was your biggest achievement over the course of your internship?

I have definitely become much more confident when sharing my ideas and opinions. I have also done a fair amount of presentation speaking and these experiences have definitely prepared me to go into my final year.

What benefits did your internship bring to your employer?

I was able to add a number of resources to the current pool of activities used for outreach in the department, and have also come up with more ideas that could be developed in the future.

Did you encounter any problems during the course of your internship and if so, how did you overcome them?

The only problem  was waiting for purchased resources to arrive. This wasn’t the end of the world though as there was always plenty more to be getting on with.

“Eloise was able to provide a different perspective on the planned activities for sessions and worked well within the team. It has been extremely helpful to have an intern helping through this busy time in the year and has made a great contribution to our efforts” – Line Manager

Bee Surveyor – Buglife, The Invertebrate Conservation Trust

Access to Internships (A2I), Animal Care, Biosciences, Charity and Development Work, Education, Teaching and Research, Environmental Work,

bee

What were your main duties and responsibilities during the course of your internship?

Surveying the status of the Andrena Hattorfiana bee across Cornwall and deciding upon the best course of action for its conservation.

What would you say was your biggest achievement over the course of your internship?

I was able to work independently and make important decisions by myself which will benefit the species. Also, finding completely new and previously unknown sites for this bee in Cornwall was a real thrill!

What benefits did your internship bring to your employer?

Helped to ensure the protection and continual survival of one of the UK’s most impressive bee species. As a charity, Bug Life is committed to saving species from extinction and so my work helped them work out the best course of action for the conservation of Andrena Hattorfiana in Cornwall.

Did you encounter any problems during the course of your internship and if so, how did you overcome them?

Living alone for a long period of time was hard but just forced me to become more productive. Th e only other problem I faced was working out what was the best course of action for the bee,  as things like Golf Courses and Holiday Parks wanted potentially different things to the bee.

Research Assistant (Ecology and Conservation) – University of Exeter

Biosciences, Education, Teaching and Research, Environmental Work, Graduate Business Partnership (GBP), Mining, Environment and Natural Resources,

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What were your main duties and responsibilities during the course of your internship?
I assisted in a variety of laboratory tasks, including the organisation and curation of field samples and preparation of samples for analysis. I also had to provide research support in the form of literature reviews, collation and curation of data sets. I provided general administrative support within the group. This included organising and timetabling meetings, processing of expense claims, Booking travel and accommodation for field trips and conferences.

What would you say was your biggest achievement over the course of your internship?

Learning and putting to use new lab skills and successfully managing my workload priorities.

What benefits did your internship bring to your employer?

I supported the research group by organising group meetings, collating data and taking on lab tasks such as processing field samples. I also reconciled Professor Bearhop’s expenses and organised his travel to and from work engagements and field trips in the UK and abroad.

Did you encounter any problems during the course of your internship and if so, how did you overcome them?

Whenever I had a problem I asked the supportive people in my office for advice and when I had issues with miscommunication I had a meeting with my line manager to clear up the misunderstanding.

Project Leader – BizDef Ltd

Economics, Employer Feedback, Politics and Government,

Cornwall, UoE Internships, University of Exeter Internships, SCP, SBP, GBP, A2I

What were your main duties and responsibilities during the course of your internship?

My role was to carry out background research needed to support an application for Government funding into a new project.

BizDef is a South East Cornwall based research and development consultancy specialising in new forms of energy. A small privately funded business, it aimed to grow and expand its staff base. As part of its business growth strategy, I was taken on to carry out market research, and review literature into renewable energy, supply markets and the economics of climate change. The results of the research formed part of a Proof of Concept report which was used to apply for a vital research and development grant application for a new product.

“Sara’s enthusiasm to make a difference in her work appealed to the company’s own ethos and her research has taken us closer to achieving funding and beginning Phase 2 in the product’s development” – Line Manager

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Graduate Project Officer – Student Engagement and Academic Success, University of Exeter

Advertising, Marketing and PR, Biosciences,

Universtiy of Exeter Internships, UoE Internships, SCP, SBP, GBP, A2I

What were your main duties and responsibilities during the course of your internship?

I was responsible for a project to map the current provision available for student entrepreneurs at the Penryn campus, and to develop an implementation plan in order to increase the parity of provision between the Penryn and Streatham campuses. This involved making contacts in the local business community, researching both the internal and external agencies offering support and mentoring to student start-ups, and to organise the Penryn campus’ first enterprise ideas competition, Launch.

What would you say was your biggest achievement over the course of your internship?

I believe the biggest achievement of the internship was the contacts I made with Crowdfunder. Having brought the results of this contact to the FXU’s Director of Student Voice, the prospect of introducing a joint crowdfunding platform between Falmouth and Exeter universities, to be hosted by the FXU, was met with a very positive reception and we hope that this may be the first step in introducing a parity of provision between the FXU and the Student Guild.

What benefits did your internship bring to your employer?

I was able to invest my time in an area which requires improvement, and also to provide a contact for students and agencies alike to ask questions and share ideas with. The implementation plan by its nature may increase expenditure in this particular area, but due to the extensive research behind the recommendations contained within it, hopefully the money will be purposefully spent on initiatives that will most directly meet student demand.

Research Support Officer – Environment & Sustainability Institute, University of Exeter

Biosciences, Computer Science, Mining, Environment and Natural Resources,

Universtiy of Exeter Internships, UoE Internships, SCP, SBP, GBP, A2I

What were your main duties and responsibilities during the course of your internship?

I was assigned a single large research project, which loosely interlinked with a broader initiative being built and managed by four other GBP interns, however I was very much trusted to work independently. The outline of the idea – which involved prototyping new environmental monitoring methods to be used by the Institute as well as agencies like the Environment Agency – was presented to me by my supervisor, and I was essentially just told to try and make the project work and get a full working example system up and running which we could showcase to potential stakeholders. This meant a large amount of self-teaching of new practical skills – especially computer engineering at all levels – in order to make progress with the project.

What would you say was your biggest achievement over the course of your internship?

I rapidly taught myself a variety of new programming languages as well as some moderately complex electronics, which given my background as an evolutionary biologist / ecologist was very much out of my comfort zone.

What benefits did your internship bring to your employer?

I extensively explored the potential of the new hardware we were experimenting with, and certainly stirred up interest in potential collaborators such as the Environment Agency, however I was not able to complete the project to anything like the level we initially envisaged, and have had to leave the work half-way through completion.

Did you encounter any problems during the course of your internship and if so, how did you overcome them?

The core problem was trying to do what amounts to electrical and software engineering in an institute which is both very young and has no background in this work. As such, there was not the necessary space and equipment necessary for this type of creative prototyping, where rapid access to components was available in order to test what would work and could then be ordered in bulk. Unfortunately despite my best efforts, setting up something of that ilk was outside the control of a temporary intern.

Project Co-ordinator – Camborne School of Mines

Energy Engineering, Mining, Environment and Natural Resources,

SCP, SBP, GBP, A2I

What were your main duties and responsibilities during the course of your internship?

During my internship I assisted with planning applications, undertook research tasks and updated the website’s renewable energy section. I also fulfilled an administrative role in sending emails and making phone calls.

What would you say was your biggest achievement over the course of your internship?

I improved the quality of my written reports and gained confidence in my abilities.

What benefits did your internship bring to your employer?

I worked with colleagues on planning applications, therefore lightening their workload.
I was also able to suggest new renewable energy income streams.

Countryside Policy Intern – South West Lakes Trust

Biosciences, Mining, Environment and Natural Resources, ,

Universtiy of Exeter Internships, UoE Internships, SCP, SBP, GBP, A2I

What were your main duties and responsibilities during the course of your internship?

I devised a successful management plan to collate agri-environmental scheme land features of the Trust’s reserves. This included surveying sites throughout Cornwall and Devon to identify potential future applicable land and ensure adherence to Natural England cross compliances.

What would you say was your biggest achievement over the course of your internship?

I gained insight knowledge into how government environmental schemes run financially, and I also learnt the eligible and ineligible features that dictate potential income for land owners.

What benefits did your internship bring to your employer?

I was able to devise a workable and functioning system to collate the organisations reserve features – 5 sites I completed myself which has reduced a large workload and made future land development and information details faster to acquire.