BSc Mathematics student Anca Curelea completed a summer placement at e-commerce giant Amazon.
Heading into her third and final year at the University of Reading, Anca returns feeling ‘motivated’ by the experience and excited to apply the additional skills she’s developed at Amazon into her studies.
“From networking and working with other professionals to gaining real work experience, my time at Amazon has been extremely beneficial. I am more motivated to learn and develop my skills on returning to Reading, as I’ve been able to see the practical use of them in the workplace.”
Anca was able to get involved in a number of projects and work alongside a wide range of skilled colleagues over the summer.
“One project I worked on focused on the improvement of one of the many metrics Amazon has. It involved collaborating with all types of professionals in different levels across the company, learning the ins and outs of the site I was based at and comparing our site with others from across the world. At the end, I was able to present this project to the general manager. I feel this definitely helped me develop and will continue to be useful throughout my career.”
This network of connections made at Amazon was valuable for Anca, as well as experiencing the working culture of a large business, which she notes as a real ‘highlight’ of the summer.
“I loved working alongside people with the same goals and interests. We were a team of people from very different backgrounds - that had the same principles and core ideas - and were working together to deliver the best final product to our customers. Everyone I worked with was ready to help and solve any issues, and I got to combine working with data with working with people, which was exactly what I was searching for in terms of experience.”
