Insider reports from employees
Recruiters who advertise throughout targetjobs.co.uk ask their employees to submit reports on the recruitment process they went through, plus their inductions and training, career development, working life, salaries and benefits. Use these Insider Reports to help search for your chosen employer and research your applications.
I had worked overseas with a company which is part of Davis Langdon and Seah International before I came to continue my study in the UK. The worldwide present of a company shows its prestige and success in the industry. I have chosen again to work with Davis Langdon because of the great Graduate Development Programme. Not a lot of companies are able to provide this.
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I saw them at a careers presentation at uni and was very impressed by the range of projects they've worked on. I completed 2 summer placements with them, which I enjoyed, and everyone seemed very friendly. When it came to choosing my graduate job I went straight to them - the training scheme seemed to give a good base for gaining chartership and the size of the company meant I would get the opportunity to work on high profile and interesting projects and get experience in a variety of areas that I may not get working for a smaller firm.
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They had an excellent reputation and the training scheme was good and well supported.
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Upon deciding a chosen career path post university I felt it was important to find a company that was ambitious as myself and would reward me accordingly. Davis Langdon's staff progression, quality of training and professionalism married up against both these criteria. Their policy of employing non-cognate graduates is exemplary as it allows quality graduates the chance to follow a career path they may not have been able to follow due to their previous degree choices.
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Location, salary, large company with many graduates.
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Good reputation, many locations in the UK, strong process engineering capability, mainly wastewater treatment technologies.
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Atkins are a leading engineering consultancy and they were looking for design engineers. I wanted to become a CAD designer and so applied for the position. As a company they are constantly being nominated as one of the 'best businesses to work for' and have a very good training scheme.
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Having spent six years in Dubai before university, I have witnessed the city develop remarkably in its infrastructure to create incredible structures, most notably Atkins’s world class landmark Burj Al Arab. This first sparked my interest in the large multidisciplinary engineering consultancy and the wide variety of projects it has been involved in from building design, highways and defence, to name a few. Throughout university, Atkins was always represented for being at the forefront of their field by winning numerous awards. For that reason, I believe Atkins stands out amongst other companies due to its continuous growth and development, their history, their graduate training scheme and their involvement opportunities for the future.
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I originally showed an interest when employed in a temporary finance position for British Airport Authority at Terminal 5. I was put forward on an employee recommendation scheme.
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BB was recommended to me as they had a very good training scheme and agreed to put me through my masters part-time in London. They are very pro-active towards your training which I was looking for. The career progression also looked promising.
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I was attracted to a career in the construction industry and applied for the EC Harris graduate scheme because the company was recommended to me by an existing employee. I was very impressed by the calibre of people I met at the assessment day (graduates & associates) and by the information I was given as well as the website. I felt that I would fit in if offered a place & once I found out I had been successful, accepted immediately.
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The job description fitted closely with my career aspirations and seemed to offer a wide variety of interesting and challenging work. The support towards chartership was an important factor, as was the location of the local office in which I would be mainly based.
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I worked in construction for two years following completion of my degree and had come across Davis Langdon during this time. I understood that their training is considered the best in the industry and that the companies reputation for 'Rolls Royce' quality was undisputed.
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I did two summer placements as an undergraduate before being asked to attend the graduate recruitment day. Because of the enjoyable experience, I accepted the job offer.
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Carillion had come to my university fair and their first impression was very good. More research into the company through websites and magazines showed that the company take care of their employees and their projects are varied and all over UK and abroad. The Carillion website was also one of the most attractive and easy to understand. The assessment centre was very focused and there was a lot of screening before they selected the final candidates which made me realise that a lot of thought and effort must have gone into graduate recruitment unlike some other companies that I went for interview with.
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university visit.
brilliant presentation and abundance of work
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The best company in this industry in UK.
Excellent chance of training scheme.
Best people to work with and work for.
Challenging and fantastic projects to work on.
Competitive benefits.
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They offered a wide variety of projects and the opportunity to move about within a large multinational consultancy. The people I met were approachable and friendly - the company itself seemed inclusive and diverse.
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Good training package on graduate scheme. Excellent reputation within industry and potential order book (PFI work etc).
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I had a summer placement with them, and they then sponsored me through university.
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I was approached by a recruitment agency who informed me of a position available with Atkins Nuclear & Power. I accepted the offer for an interview and proceeded to carry out research on the company. I found that the graduate package was very competitive and the opportunities to develop and reach my initial career goal of Chartered status would be encouraged.
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Atkins are the largest civil engineering consultancy in the UK and work on major projects all over the world. The opportunities to develop as an engineer and gain valuable experience through involvement in large scale projects were major factors in my decision to join.
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I was attracted by the fact that DL is the biggest QS company in the UK. Also, the fact that it has international offices all over the world - which would mean that I can easily find a job in another country if I want to.
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I liked the interview process and the people I met during it. The type of work they do appealed, with the potential for a variety of opportunities.
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Gained sponsorship with them at university, did several summer placements and a year in industry.
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Word of mouth, aware of projects completed by Atkins and also the size of the company internationally.
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Presentation from Atkins at University. Seemed to have good opportunities to become chartered.
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The firm is one of the top international leading construction consultancies, and with offices across the UK in main cities such as London, Manchester, Exeter and offices across the globe in quickly developing areas near Dubai it is a company that provides many opportunities. The firm's phrase "delivering better results for clients" is also a refreshing prospect as this suggests that it is a firm that is interested in resolving problems and finding solutions.
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They are an international company, with good career prospects. always at the top of building magazine top 100 consultants and times top 100 people to work for. also I was told by others in the construction industry that they were a good company to work for.
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I studied the Built Environment at university and was looking for an employer with a fantastic reputation and an organisation that was successful in the industry. Balfour Beatty was an obvious choice for me.
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Balfour Beatty is one of the giant contractors of UK, been involved in multi million cost projects in almost every sector of the construction industry, which attracted me a lot. The best reason for my choice of Balfour Beatty is to have open opportunities in gaining experience in different sectors of the industry which I needed in developing my engineering knowledge and professional development. The facilities they provide to their employers were also one of the biggest charms, which include benefits from the CHOICE programme, attractive pension scheme and attractive salaries. During my open day at Balfour Beatty, I met senior graduates of the company and realised how much they were satisfied with all aspects after joining Balfour Beatty.
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The training and experience they could offer were better than others.
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Best graduate scheme around. They offer the best personal development programme.
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In honesty, Balfour Beatty’s Initial attraction was purely its well known name in Civil Engineering. With the name came the knowledge that it would have sufficient resources to train and aid a graduate trainee to achieve chartership status and a large enough range of projects so as to keep the work interesting. Since this was my main goal for the short term, it was important to be in an environment that would allow it to be achieved. In terms of my long term view, I took the view that a company the size of Balfour Beatty would be able to keep me employed and progressing for the foreseeable future.
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Atkins is recognised internationally as a high quality supplier of engineering skills and consultancy. The size and diversity of the company attracted me to them as I could develop my skills across a broad spectrum of disciplines. This combined with the relaxed working enviroment, the quality of training they offer, their staff and the job benefits instantly made it a highly desirable company to work for.
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I applied to Ritchies (a division of Edmund Nuttall Ltd) for a summer placement. Following my experience gained they offered sponsorship for me to finish my final year. The experience gained and people I met made me decide to stay with the company following graduation.
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I applied to a number of PQSs that all had good reputations, both in terms of their business and their graduate development. Probably the stand-out point for EC Harris was the fact that the Chairman started as a graduate - the ultimate career progression!
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Atkins are a very well known company and after attending the graduate assessment I was impressed with what the company had to offer. I found out about Atkins after looking at their website.
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I had previously worked at the orgainsation through an agency on a part-time basis whilst studying. I had seen first hand that they take a pride in investing in people and ensuring people are being used to the best of their ability. They are also a large orgainsation with lots of opportunity for growth both personally and professionally. Due to the variety of projects balfours is involved in it seems very much like a job for life, as most careers are supported in the company.
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I was first drawn to the company following a presentation at my university; the presentation was very informative and included feedback from graduates who at the time were employed by the company. At the time I was seeking an employer to work for during my industrial placement year. The company has a great status in the construction industry and has taken on many placement-year students and graduates in the past. The company was also advertised in the TARGET magazine I received from my university. After my placement year I received sponsorship to complete my final year of study and was offered full-time employment which I happily accepted.
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Atkins gave a presentation in my university and some materials were available in Cardiff University's career centre.
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Large multinational company offering attractive salary and training for graduates. At the recruitment process, the company seemed very keen to develop graduate needs, and train them in skills which they exceeded in. I first applied because of the size of the company and the opportunities overseas which tie in with this. They had also worked on large projects delivering attractive results, and the company was sold to me as a family, of which I wanted to be a part.
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Well known company. Good prospects. Lots of training provided.
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I was attracted to Balfour Beatty as it is a large group of companies so lots of career opportunities both now and in the future. I submitted my application after attending the gradute recruitment event at the NEC. I decided to apply as the lady on the Balfour Beatty stand took more interest in me than any of the other stands at the event - the feeling I had was: "I want to work for a company like that".
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They have an excellent reputation, global, excellent career prospects and the chance to move around both geographically and to different business units.
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Reputation within the industry, the fact that our company makes a positive difference to people's lives as opposed to say a credit card company. They also offered a competitve package at the time.
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Mainly from my student placement year. The company, Balfour Beatty, has a strong engineering background and I could view how other graduates found the graduate scheme.
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A large company who are leaders in their field, innovation forms a large part of my reason to apply for Balfour Beatty, as Balfour are prepared to try different things. Also the customer focus for a B2B company attracted me.
I never saw Balfour Beatty at the University of Liverpool, but I already knew about the company and knew from my own research the chances for development were good.
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I found Davis Langdon in one of the Target magazines and having read through the information on the company there I went to their website and decided to fill out a graduate job application form.
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I was introduced to GallifordTry Construction by a friend who was employed by the company. After hearing of a job oppotunity within GallifordTry Construction I expressed an interest in working for them following good comments I had heard from within the industry. subsequently I attended an interview and was offered a position.
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I joined Mowlem Projects for an Industrial Placement, I was then sponsored for my final year.
As it is most people's dream to work for a successful company with good reputation, I joined Carillion to have good career and contribute to it's great success.
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It has been said by clients that DL are the Rolls Royce of QSing and consulting - which so far has proved bang on. I was initially attracted to the type of jobs DL has in the past been involved in. Per capita we turn over more than our competitors and can bost that we are sustainability experts.... above all the training to grads like my self has been recognised as being just fantastic
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My degree programme was sponsored by consortium of companies. Carillion was one of them. They invited me for an interview and I found them to be an organised and focused company. They sponsored my 4 year degree and provided work placements. I was offered job after graduation and accepted as I knew the organisation and the reward package was favourable.
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