Scholar Profile – Grace

Why did you choose Viper Innovations?

I first heard about the UKESF Scholarship Scheme within the first few weeks of second year, through a lecturer who explained the benefits of the scheme. From here, I decided to try applying and started to look into the companies within the scheme. The initial research included reading through the company profiles to get an overview of what kind of work the company did, and whether it would be compatible with my interests. Viper’s profile stated that students would be able to work on a range of projects in different areas of the business, which greatly intrigued me. The opportunity to experience what different specialties of engineers worked on, on a day-to-day basis, was what motivated me to pursue a placement year initially, especially considering I was unsure on what I wanted my future career to look like. After applying to Viper, I received an interview offer with a technical challenge enclosed, that I was to complete and be able to talk through during my interview.

What was the first week of your placement like?

I was rather nervous for my first week at Viper as I didn’t really know what to expect! My first day was an information overload, which I think is very normal for a first day anywhere. I was first introduced to my line manager, who explained my two-week induction plan, which included meetings with each department to get to know the company better. Soon after, I had a meeting to set up my work laptop and to go over the company IT policies. My first day also included a full office tour, with introductions to everyone who was in the office that day. I was in the office every day for the first week. The rest of the week continued with department and product overview meetings, reading through company policies and the very start of basic training for tools that I would use within my role (e.g. Git and LTSpice).

After the first month of your placement, what had you experienced?

After my induction and training, I still felt rather clueless. I was given plenty of time for training and to settle in, but beginning a project was still really daunting. All the information that you need for a work project isn’t nicely presented to you like in university – you need to heavily research it yourself (especially in a R&D role), which can feel very overwhelming at the beginning. I was working on this project mostly independently, and reporting to my line manager about my progress. My line manager helped to break the task specification down into more manageable chunks, so the project didn’t feel so unattainable. After a month of working on the project, making new progress didn’t feel as difficult anymore, as I had gotten used to the new work style. I was also able to attend a whole company business briefing and had gone out with some coworkers by the end of the first month.

By the end of your placement, what were the key things you learned?

After completing my placement, I had contributed to both the Research and Development and the Software team. In my time with Research, I had helped to create an initial framework for an improvement to one of Viper’s products, using Azure IoT Edge, Python, Raspberry Pi HATs (Hardware Attached on Top) and communication methods, working closely with my line manager. Then, in my time with Software, I helped to alter a preexisting webapp to be more in line to Marketing standards, using HTML, CSS and JavaScript, working together with the whole team. Working on projects independently, with the option to reach out for assistance if I needed to, helped to develop my technical skills and ability to research and troubleshoot. From this placement I have now gained an understanding of how an engineering company operates, as well as the understanding of what it’s like to be an engineer working there. All the work that I had to do on my projects was concluded before I left, however, follow up work is required for some projects.

What advice would you give to future UKESF Scholars joining Viper Innovations?

Starting a work placement in an entirely new city, where you know no one, can be lonely at the beginning. It’s normal to feel homesick, and it is much harder to make friends at work than it is to make them at university or school, but it does get better. Don’t be afraid to have a chat with your coworkers, invite people to have lunch with you, and suggest having a drink outside of work. After a while it won’t seem as lonely anymore.

What are you interests outside of work?

Outside of work I enjoy gaming, playing netball, and fibre arts. So far, I’ve tried crochet, knitting, cross stitch and a bit of sewing.