My university experience

In 2018 I began studying for an integrated master’s degree in Mechanical and Electrical Engineering. The first three years of my degree were transformative in building my confidence and passion for engineering.

One of the best extra-curricular activities I did during my time at university was being a Course Representative as this helped me to get to know both my cohort and my lecturers. During my second year I also completed the Bristol PLUS Award, a programme organised by the Careers Service. The best thing I gained from this programme was learning how to articulate the value I had gained from my extra curricular experiences in my CV and in job interviews.

In the summer of 2021, I also completed an internship at Leonardo as a Systems Engineer. This internship was entirely remote due to covid but still gave me a good experience of what day to day life in an engineering career is like.

Finishing my degree and taking a gap year

In 2022 I began the final year of my integrated masters degree. However, I have suffered with anxiety for my whole life and at this time, due to personal circumstances it was at an all time low. The university health and wellbeing services were incredibly helpful and helped me to get onto medication and to find a therapist, both of which I can say have truly changed my life. Unfortunately, despite this support, I was unable to keep up with my academic studies and in the spring I chose to suspend my studies and eventually decided to graduate with a bachelor’s degree rather than completing the master’s degree.

I wanted to include this difficult part of my story to highlight firstly the support that was available to me. Although I was unable to complete part of my degree I was always surrounded by support from my family, my friends, my lecturers and health professionals. And secondly to show that I was able to bounce back from this set back and to still thrive in my engineering career.

Ocado graduate scheme

During my gap year I began applying for graduate schemes for the following September. I applied for a number of these, but there was one graduate scheme that I had my eye on.

I had heard about the technology behind Ocado’s Grocery business thanks to an industry talk at the university and was immediately intrigued. Ocado have used robotics and automation to revolutionise efficiency in the online grocery sector by reimagining the way that warehouses work. As someone who is passionate about sustainability, the challenge of meeting the world population’s growing food demand is very interesting to me and the idea of using robotics to do so excited me greatly.

I was also drawn to the Ocado Graduate Scheme because it is rotational, allowing you to experience 4 different roles in different departments of the company during your first 2 years. Luckily thanks to my genuine interest in the industry and my ability to articulate the value I had gained throughout all of my experiences during the interview process, I was offered a place on the scheme.

As well as the nature of the work here at Ocado, I also love the workplace culture. Everyone is very passionate about their work, we prioritise getting things done quickly and efficiently and everyone I have worked with has been extremely friendly and supportive. There is also a thriving social community with many social events in and out of the office including regular socials, quiz nights, an annual sports day and even creative lunchtime workshops.

As well as the nature of the work here at Ocado, I also love the workplace culture. Everyone is very passionate about their work, we prioritise getting things done quickly and efficiently and everyone I have worked with has been extremely friendly and supportive. There is also a thriving social community with many social events in and out of the office including regular socials, quiz nights, an annual sports day and even creative lunchtime workshops.

To find out more about Ocado Technology visit Ocado Group Careers.