My first two weeks working for Thomson as a Graduate Ecologist have genuinely exceeded my expectations. The hands-on approach to our inductions has made the whole experience thoroughly enjoyable. Right from the very start, we were warmly welcomed into the office. Everyone has been so friendly and happy to help us find our feet, which has made settling in to our new roles easy and stress-free.
The induction was dedicated to training us to a standard where we could start our journey to becoming competent ecologists. As well as general introductions, getting to know each other, our line manager and the rest of our teams, we took part in bat, GCN and reptile familiarisation sessions where we learned about the ecology and identification of key species and appropriate survey techniques to use on site. We were also shown how to use some of the more complicated equipment ahead of going out into the field so we are now fully prepared to undertake surveys. The induction included a first aid refresher – involving practicing CPR and doing chest compressions to the sound of ‘Staying Alive’ by the BeeGees! To top off a great week of training, we spent a day learning how to drive the Land Rovers that are used for transporting kit and navigating difficult terrain when on site. We spent the afternoon putting the morning sessions’ theory into practice and driving off-road on a local track through woodland.
Now that I’ve had that experience, I can’t wait to get stuck into the field work for the busy season ahead. The prospect of working for a company that provides such a broad range of services is really exciting and I’m looking forward to working on a lot of different projects. From working as part of such a large team of ecologists I hope to learn lots of new skills from the wealth of knowledge and experience that my colleagues have, both in the office and out in the field!
