Karim

Year of Study: Third
Course: Materials Science and Engineering BEng

Karim spent his placement year at Volkswagen Group UK's head office, an experience which helped him to develop key skills and allowed him to use those learned in lectures in an industry setting. Karim was also able to travel and was given key responsibilities as part of his role. 

Why did you choose to study your course at Loughborough University?

I wanted to learn something interesting as well as practical, which ensured that I could relate my knowledge to innovative advancements in the industry. Choosing materials was a natural progression for me after attending Imperial College’s Material Science and Engineering work experience programme during my A levels. I also wanted to study a degree which had a diverse range of exit opportunities so that my career options were open. The course does this by offering technical engineering modules, as well as modules such as marketing and accounting. These factors combined with Loughborough’s world-leading sports facilities resulted in me choosing to come here.

What kind of support have you had finding a placement from the department and from the University?

I received some great guidance from the department, which equipped me with the understanding of the expectations which firms have when recruiting students. The careers department was incredibly helpful, I regularly used their services to revise job-specific resumes and cover letters.

Where did you go for your placement? What was your role and what department were you part of? 

I was on placement at Volkswagen Group UK’s head office in Milton Keynes, working within Operations as a Sales Operations Executive.

What benefits did your placement have? Did you learn new skills? Did you get the chance to put skills you'd learned in lectures to the test?

I was able to further develop many skills I picked up at university, such as data analysis, which I utilised to summarise national sales performance statistics to senior management. The information I was able to extract from datasets directly contributed to critical business decisions made by senior management and reflects the level of responsibility I was trusted with.

I also improved my communication skills when liaising with different departments across the business and working on major projects, helping increase my commercial awareness.

I travelled to the Volkswagen production plant in Wolfsburg, Germany where I was able to speak with the designers of the unreleased Golf 8 about production methods and innovative technologies used in the manufacturing of the vehicle, which I had previously learnt about during my course.

What tasks did you do on your placement? What did a typical day look like?

• I led and delivered the 2020 retailer car requirement strategy, working closely with the sales support department to successfully dictate the number of cars displayed at every dealership in the UK while, adopting a low emissions approach.
• Owned and created complex business critical sales performance reports, regularly distributing them to all Volkswagen UK retailers using advanced MS Excel VBA, saving my team two hours daily.
• Analysed key retailer performance statistics, updating area managers on dynamic market situations to discuss potential solutions on how to achieve the brands volume and customer satisfaction objectives.
• Criticized arguments using performance data to actively participate in negotiations with investors when formulating quarter-end deals to ensure sales volume numbers were achieved. This strengthened my ability to work under pressure while being proactive in validating arguments with figures.

My typical day consisted of regular reporting, conversations with key stakeholders in my reports, meetings discussing how to efficiently achieve both sales and customer satisfaction objectives, and working on project proposals using key business statistics.

What would you say to someone considering studying this course with a placement year?

I would highly recommend going for it! Although you do have modules at university that require group work, a placement really helps you to further develop key teamwork, interpersonal and communication skills in a professional environment which contribute to making you a well-rounded individual.

What has been your greatest achievement during your time at University?

Leading and delivering the Volkswagen 2020 retailer car requirement strategy.