What is your name, and what do you do?
My name is Freddie Paling. I’m a Graduate Surveyor at Dalcour Maclaren. I have schemes with National Grid and Cadent Gas, organising wayleave agreements and compound areas.
When did you start at DM, and what were you doing before that?
I started at DM in March 2021; before that, I was at Oxford Brookes University doing Real Estate Management. I found out about the Graduate role while I was doing applications at my University. DM came up on my LinkedIn, read more about the company, and decided it sounded like an excellent place to apply.
How is life at DM? Is it what you expected?
Life at DM, I think, is slightly different to what people perceive this sort of job role to be; it’s much more like a close-knit family compared to a lot of other businesses. It is serious, everyone gets their work done, but it’s like working with friends rather than colleagues.
What is your favourite thing about coming into the office for work?
My favourite thing about coming into the office is getting to know people; because I am still relatively new, I still feel like there are so many members of the team I am yet to meet. Every time I visit the office I meet new people, which is nice as I enjoy meeting the team.
If you could give some advice when applying for graduate jobs, what would it be?
On interview and assessment days, many people try to be someone they believe the employer wants rather than just being themselves. In contrast, I quickly realised the best way was just to be yourself; if you are yourself, and they want you for being you, that’s the place you will be the happiest, and they’ll get the most out of you as well.
What was the most important thing for you when looking for a graduate job?
The most important thing for me when looking for a company to work for was the culture, and I always wanted a company that really values its staff. I didn’t want to work for a company where you turn into a number rather than a valued team member, and DM does a really good job of making you feel wanted, necessary, and integrated.
When you tell a person what you do, what’s something they always ask you?
Whenever people ask me where I work and what I do, they always have a go and say, “you must just be sat down on your laptop all day”. But, especially being in utilities and infrastructure, it’s really fun because you’re on-site a lot more; meeting clients, meeting engineers, and if you're someone who likes meeting people, it’s a great industry to be in.
Find out more about our graduate scheme here.
Dalcour Maclaren and you – your future delivered. #DMGraduates
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