This past summer Steerprop had the opportunity to get to know Ilona Sjöblom and Markus Taulu, two out of many Master’s degree students that worked with us in various summer trainee positions.
Ilona, a 22-year-old Environmental Engineering student from Oulu University, worked as an intern in the QHSE team, and Markus, a 25-year-old from Eurajoki studying Computer Engineering at Lappeenranta University of Technology, landed a trainee position in the IT team. Let’s hear from them what their expectations were at the start of the summer, and how well they were met during their trainee period.
Ilona’s goal for the summer was to get to work with tasks that related to her field of studies: "When I found the QHSE internship opening at Steerprop, I knew immediately it would match my interests and complement my studies. I also wanted to learn more about the marine industry and about manufacturing."
Markus, who worked with the project team at Steerprop last summer, was looking for a deeper dive into the IT field this summer: "This time, I knew what to expect. Unlike last year, I was already familiar with people, places and practices. Last year I gained experience in project teamwork, but I also collaborated extensively with Steerprop's IT team, so I already had some idea of the work involved for this year."
Their summer work at Steerprop has supported Markus’ and Ilona’s studies by giving many practical insights to support their more theoretical studies. The QHSE tasks Ilona worked with were diverse; she became familiar with different standards, carbon footprint calculations, quality documents, occupational safety matters etc.
The best part of the summer was actually getting the opportunity to utilize what I've learned at the university. The tasks were sometimes quite challenging, but rewarding, as that was when I actually learned the most, Ilona says.
Markus, on the other hand, says the most interesting part of the summer job was gaining experience in many different IT-related matters, although he also felt it was just scratching the surface of the complexity of working with IT:
"I worked as a member of the IT team, and even as the sole member when my superior was on summer holiday. My tasks involved a lot of work with devices, creating policies, instructions and guides, and helping other employees with various IT issues. I've always known that IT is somewhat ”mysterious”, but working in IT this summer showed how truly enigmatic it can be. Things break and fix themselves and sometimes when faults are found, fixing them can be extremely challenging. However, it was always gratifying when I managed to fix a colleague's IT problem and received positive feedback. That always brought a smile to my face," Markus says.
At Steerprop Ilona and Markus found a supportive working community that helped them grow and gain practical work experience. Their experiences have supported their studies and have influenced their perspectives on future career choices and aspirations.
The highlight of Ilona’s summer was getting the opportunity to write her Master’s thesis for Steerprop:
"There were many great moments during the summer, but the best one was when I found out I’m going to be able to write my thesis on a subject that genuinely interests me and that I had spent a lot of time on during the summer. I'm also very grateful to my supervisor who has taught me so much and who gave me this opportunity! This past summer taught me a lot about the kind of work I want to do in the future. The trainee period was incredibly beneficial for my studies as the tasks perfectly matched the study modules covered at school," Ilona says.
Markus appreciated the positive atmosphere at Steerprop where work is often done with a twinkle in the eye:
I got to participate in discussions and make suggestions, and it always felt like my input was considered, making the work much more enjoyable and lowering the threshold for proposing ideas, Markus explains.
For the future Markus doesn’t have any concrete plans yet:
"I believe all the IT-related experience I gained will be useful for me in the future, because the subject is extremely vast. However, right now, my only concrete plan for the future is to continue my studies. Perhaps I could do my thesis for Steerprop, but first, I need approval for the topic and an agreement to work on it."
Overall, Ilona and Markus agree they had a rewarding summer with us at Steerprop. They were exposed to diverse challenges and opportunities and were able to apply their theoretical knowledge in practical work. Ilona and Markus concludes:
The past summer was fantastic; it just went by too quickly. We had just the right amount of responsibility, feeling that our work genuinely mattered. Steerprop has a great team with wonderful team spirit. Things are handled as a team and there’s always an effort to improve things. Thank you!
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