Ben Burton, Summer Intern
Hi, I’m Ben and this summer I was given the opportunity to complete a summer internship with the team at Merlin Energy Resources. As a geologist going into my third year at the University of Bristol, my time at Merlin has allowed me to fully appreciate and understand how the theory I am learning at university applies to industry. It has also allowed me to gain an insight into the processes and workflows behind subsurface energy resources. This has included the exploration of oil and gas, a topic that is unfortunately no longer covered in my geological education. Covering a varied range of workflows puts me in a much stronger position as I enter my most important, final year of university.
The team at Merlin have been very welcoming and I have enjoyed my time working with them. As someone who has never worked in an office environment, I was anxious at first, but the friendly demeanour, and care the whole team gave me from the start, allowed my anxiety to quickly subside. The coaching I have received through unfamiliar tasks has been similarly supportive, allowing me to expand my geological knowledge while also feeling like I have contributed towards the projects that Merlin works on globally.
I think internships are incredibly important, allowing for students like me to gain the valuable knowledge and experience necessary to start our careers. By working with the Merlin team, I have not only improved my geology, research and GIS skills, but have also gained confidence, learnt how to properly present, and, most importantly, learnt how to work in a team. As well as improving my transferrable working skills, these are also valuable life experiences that I will take on board and put into practise in my role as president of the University of Bristol’s geology society over the next year.
This has been an incredibly valuable opportunity and I would like to thank all the team at Merlin for the time, energy and commitment they have given to me over the last ten weeks. I will take the skills and knowledge I have learnt into my future career.
