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Graduate case studies

Graduate case studies
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Thomas - 
DESG Trainee Engineer

Even though many of our graduates will have progressed in their careers since completing a case study, they are still of interest to students who wish to gain an understanding of the world of work.

About the job

Main responsibilities

As a graduate I do various placements to enhance my technical engineering skills along side my soft skills such as project management.

Typical day

Each day is very different, the tasks I work on range from engineering design to technical research to project management.

What do I enjoy about my job?

The different challenging and new tasks that I am asked to complete that have a real affect on the projects that I am part of, from doing research into nuclear fusion at Culham Centre for Fusion energy to being part of a programme responsible for dismantling the UK's laid up submarines.

Challenging aspects

Being given a problem to solve that you haven't encountered before and having to start from scratch to build knowledge on the subject.

Why did this area of work appeal to me?

The diverse range of opportunities with a host of different placements include placements abroad was a big appeal. The amount of varying knowledge that I can obtain during the placements will mean I have a very good understanding of the nuclear engineering industry.

Skills/qualifications I use in my job?

My physics degree technical knowledge and my people skills such as communication, teamwork and leadership.


Career information

Brief history since leaving University

Time out - 18 months away, including 2 summers in USA teaching astronomy at Camp America

Worked in procurement for the NHS at Royal Preston Hospital for 10 months

Where do I see myself in the future?

To become either a chartered engineer or physicist.


Advice to students

My piece of advice to students

It is a very wide profession with multiple different roles within it. Engineering is a challenging discipline that needs problems solving regularly to come up with new and novel concepts to progress projects as well as understanding how to work with multiple stakeholders to produce a common output.



Send Thomas a question about their career.


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Last updated: 23 Jun 2017