1E graduate diary – part one

Since 2012 1E has operated a Graduate Training Scheme within our software engineering department. We all recently joined the company as part of their second intake of graduates. This graduate diary series we hope will allow future graduates to get a feel for life at 1E.

Prior to the graduate day at 1E, we had all visited the webpage, and learned a little about the company’s products and their offering. 1E’s core values are posted on the website, and we wondered whether they’d show through on the day.
Initially we met in the company’s games room which put us at ease. We each introduced ourselves and talked about our backgrounds. This felt more like a conversation, instead of a presentation, which allowed us to learn more about the day and 1E itself.
Next we moved into the lab and went through a few coding exercises. We were mentored through the process by some engineering staff, who were both talented and friendly.
The recruitment panel knew exactly what they wanted, but were very interested in discovering what qualities we had, hence, the day was centered on activities which attempted to match the personalities of each of us with the core values of 1E. It felt strange compared to other interviews which sometimes target the weakness of the interviewee. Another thing that stood out clearly during the process was that just being an expert in the subject matter wouldn’t be enough to win the panel over. They wanted to see what else we had to offer, apart from our technical ability.
We also got a chance to meet the graduates from the year before during the lunch hour. They were really welcoming and they encouraged us to participate, giving us tips as to how to successfully progress to the next stage.
The group exercise in the afternoon was informative and gave us an insight into 1E’s focus on quality and robustness. The interactive nature of the exercise allowed us to get to know the other candidates better. This was followed by a tour of the departments.
On the day itself, we can all honestly say 1E’s employees were friendly not only towards us but each other as well. In the morning, those of us who had turned up a few minutes early noticed a word posted on the wall; ‘Sunshine’. This is certainly an apt description for the culture and environment across 1E. Throughout the day, 1E’s core values came through clearly, and we all felt sure that they cared about what else we had to offer besides technical ability. Each of us left at the end of the graduate day hoping 1E would call us back.