I was attracted to the job because of the vast variety of different projects you get to work on. Furthermore you can see the project progress through all the stages which you cannot always do with the larger private companies.
Before going on placement with Dorset County Council (DCC), I had just completed my second year of my Meng Civil Engineering Degree and Loughborough University. The experience I gained by working for DCC has been invaluable and is great on a CV for future job applications.
During my time with DCC I was working in the highways improvements team. I worked on a vast amount of projects from footway design to major earthwork design. I worked really hard over the placement and this gave me more and more responsibility. As a result of this I had my own projects which I designed and took through to construction. Over the time I was here I had the following responsibilities:
- production of topographical surveys
- earthwork design and volume calculations
- attend public consultations meetings
- produce bills of quantities and estimates
- produce health and safety files
- vertical and horizontal carriageway alignment
- design of cycling and pedestrian infrastructure
- communicate with members of the public
As you can see from above my work was quite varied and so you will always have plenty to do. At the start it may be a bit slow but the more and more work you do, the greater your responsibilities will become.
One of the best parts of the job is being able to work in a combined office with all the other sections. This way you have a wealth of knowledge at your disposal for you to progress your understanding. Due to this and the training that is available, I was able to pick up number of skills, including general highway knowledge, CAD design, surveying and report writing. These are all useful skills which you will need in your future career.
In the future I am looking to become a chartered engineer. My placement with DCC has certainly given me the foundations for completing this objective and I would highly recommend it to any civil engineering student.