Ollie Sidaway joined Genr8 in December 2021 as a Work Placement student. One year in, we’ve caught up with him to see how he’s been finding his time with us so far, what he’s learnt, and how it’s helping his studies.
Who are you:
I am an under-graduate student in my second year, currently halfway through my course that is due to finish in May 2024.
What do you do outside studies / work:
I enjoy music and football regularly attending gigs and football matches as often as I can.
Tell us about your course:
I began my studies at Salford University in September of 2021; not only was the learning a big change but moving away from Shrewsbury to Manchester meant that I had to quickly adapt to the independent living in a big city.
The course that I chose was Real Estate Development and Management; I spent two and half months at university before starting at Genr8 in December 2021, which gave me a flavour of what I would be involved with in a working environment.
What did you expect when starting at Genr8, and what do you enjoy most?
I thought working at Genr8 would enhance my learning experience and it exceeded that expectation as I could see what I was learning in the lecture hall in working practice.
Working part-time alongside the full-time university course definitely took some getting used to but I believe it has helped me understand the course content more thoroughly. I started taking notes and preparing meeting minutes which gave me some understanding to move on to more challenging work.
I really enjoy attending site visits and witnessing first-hand how a project progresses and develops through various challenges and milestones.
What have you learned so far at Genr8:
Prior to joining Genr8, I was unsure of what career path I would like to pursue but I believe that since spending just over a year here now I would like to go down the project management route because I enjoy the organisation, coordination, and close involvement in projects.
I have very much enjoyed my time at Genr8 so far and appreciate the opportunity they have given me.