G&W are very proud of our graduate scheme; we believe it gives new recruits a thorough overview of the company and our industry as a whole, whilst also helping them to get up to speed and become a valuable member of the team in a very short space of time. One of our successful graduate hires has been Anna Smaje, who talks through her experience below.

I first started my journey at Ground and Water Limited back in August of 2020, just as we were coming out of the first strict lock down. I had just graduated from The University of Plymouth and was extremely excited to start my career as a Geotechnical Engineer.

I spent my first 10 months of the scheme as a technician, which meant that I spent a large amount of time onsite, driving a van across the southeast. This period of time allowed me to learn the importance of site works and how vital it was to understand the ins and outs of site works. It gave me the knowledge for when I moved to running my own site works and it gave me the skills to organise and lead my own projects, which was unmatched. My time as a technician also allowed me to develop the all-important organisational skills that I needed for this fast-paced working environment that the industry has.

As I moved into the engineering side of the scheme, I was met with new challenges and a new look on projects that I had previously been a part of. This was warmly welcomed by my newly developed skills.

The opportunity to develop and learn at Ground and Water has been a very good experience. The support in development has been something that I believe is unique to the company. Every step has been kindly supported by many members of the team.

The training and knowledge that I have been able to gain from Ground and Water has not been the only factor for my development as an engineer and within the company. I have been given the chance to be a part of the Ground and Water council where different members of staff from across the departments talk and discuss the ways we think we can make the working environment the best it can be. We then collate together council minutes that we discuss with our leadership team. This has been a great way for the employees’ voices to be heard and they do listen! This is something that as a graduate has been something I truly believe is unique to Ground and Water, as you are a part of the company’s development.

Throughout my scheme I have developed a keen interest in the environmental/contamination side of the industry. Ground and Water started a small contamination working group that investigate the ways we can develop in this area, work with the current guidance and make our reporting as cost effective for our clients as possible. Working alongside other likeminded individuals has been a great way to watch the company develop, while furthering my interests and development in this side of the industry.

Being a graduate at Ground and Water has been a truly unique experience that has allowed me to become a fully competent engineer with a vast number of skills that I utilise every day.