The Royal Zoological Society of Scotland

Placement organization

Name of organization: The Royal Zoological Society of Scotland
Town/city: Edinburgh
Country: Groot-Brittannië
Website: http://www.edinburghzoo.org.uk/

Name of student: Lisanne Wiendels

Specialist area: ITMC
Placement period: 2014-2015

Information about placement organization

Type of organization: Zoo
Organization’s activities: Edinburgh Zoo is is part of a greater organization called the Royal Zoological Society of Scotland. Edinburgh Zoo is one of Europe’s leading centres of conservation, education and research. The mission of the RZSS is connecting people with nature. Safeguarding species from extinction.
Target group of the organization: Families with young children
Company culture: Compared to other companies in the UK Edinburgh Zoo has an informal company culture. Besides work there is time for laughter however work should always be your number one priority.
Number of employees: 200
Dress code: formal
Did the organization meet the agreements you made beforehand? yes

Information about your placement

In which department(s) are you working? Marketing – Communications and Partnership
Brief description of your daily activities: -Data input
-Managing minor marketing related events
-Ad hock duties

Brief description of your company assignment: Market Research:

the RZSS is currently re-branding and no proper market research has been done in years, The data that was collected was outdated and collected in old fashioned ways.
I was asked to look back at 2013 – 2014 to find out what market data has been collected and how and create a SWOT analysis accordingly.
Comment briefly on your supervision by the organization: The organization appreciates independence but if you require any help or assistance this will be provided.

Requirements for students on placement

What kind of personal skills are required for this placement? Independent, teamplayer, flexible, creative thinking
Additional company requirements for this placement? MS office
English: Advanced
Spanish:
French:
German:
Italian:
Other languages:

The trip

Mode of transport to reach your destination: Airplane

Accommodation

How did you arrange your accommodation? No accomodation is provided by the company, I have found mine through Airbnb
How did you go to work every day? public transport is the most common way of getting around Edinburgh

Visa / work permit / vaccinations

Do you need a visa? No
Do you need a work permit? No
How did you arrange the necessary documents:
How much time did it take to arrange the necessary documents?
Did you need certain vaccinations? No
How long in advance?

Language course

Did you take a language course before you started your placement? No
Would you recommend to have a language course prior to this placement? No, unless your English languages skills need some improvement

The costs in euros

Travelling expenses (e.g. return ticket): € €350 – Ryanair
Accommodation (monthly): € €550
Local transport (monthly): € €70 – if you take a montly buss-pass
General costs of living (monthly): € €200
Costs of visa: €
Costs of work permit: €
What did the company pay for/to you? There is no form of compensation what so ever the ERASMUS scholarship helped me out a lot.

Culture

How did you prepare for the country’s culture?
The Placement Preparation Paper and Plan helped me to get an idea of the company and has helped me a lot.
Did the culture of the country influence your performance during the placement in any way? No

Future students on placement

Future students are free to contact me for further information: Yes
My e-mail address: lisannewiendels@hotmail.com

Other information

Recommendations on what to do and what not to do: DO: Try to find accommodation through AIRBNB as other forms of accommodation in Edinburgh tend to be very expensive.

DO NOT: Expect the weather to be good, because rain, sunshine and snow can all occur at the same time
Leisure possibilities in the city/surroundings of where the placement took place: Scotland is a beautiful country and has lots to offer. I do recommend to take one or two day trips to discover the highlands or the West coast. However Edinburgh has lots to offer as well you will discover something new everything you walk around the city. Public transport is a great way to discover Scotland and Edinburgh.

Media

Youtube link Youtube placement video link