Honda

Co-op in Quality Services Department Product Engineering Block Team

January - August 2024 • Anna, OH

What I liked

I really liked the independence I had as a co-op. I operated both independently and in teams, but my effort was self-driven and was given the freedom push forward objectives as I saw fit. I also really love the community that the Product Engineering group is. Everyone is friendly and welcoming. You may ask anyone if you are confused or need assistance. In addition, I got to solve different problems every day, making my experience very interesting, and this is one of the main things I look for in a job.

What I wish was different

I wish I didn't have to leave. I have truly settled into the company. One of my co-workers remarked that "it is like I've always been here," and I too feel this way. I love my workplace and I love working with the people around me. I certainly hope I can return to this company or perhaps a work environment similar to it.

Advice

One piece of advice I have is to get to know the people around you. It completely changes the working experience when you have friendly faces around you. Also, don't just stay in your little bubble. If you have finished your tasks, ask around and look for work. Your co-op experience is what you make it, and your coworkers will appreciate the help. Next time, you need help, they will have your back.

Be the first to mark this as helpful

Line Support Engineer

January - April 2024 • Sidney, OH

What I liked

During my co-op term at Honda's Anna Engine Plant, I was located on the engine assembly engineering team. My focus was improving the machines and tools on the assembly line. The best part of the job was getting to see my improvements actually make an impact on production. Instead of just having a pre-made test or homework assignment, my role was watching the day to day production rates and making improvements in real time.

What I wish was different

The primary thing I wish was different was the location. In order to have a plant of this magnitude, it is located about a half hour north of Troy, which is already rather far from Dayton, and my home. Driving as much as I did for the job was annoying, and being away from home was difficult. Had I been closer to home and not had as much driving, I may have been more likely to accept the summer extension.

Advice

My main advice for this experience, and any internship in general, is ask questions. My mentor told me many times that I was far ahead of other co-ops he had seen just because of how many times I asked for help. I would stand by when something was wrong and watch the more experienced engineers problem solve, just so I could understand their process and gain some of their knowledge. Asking questions and watching people smarter than you will always put you ahead.

Be the first to mark this as helpful

Mechanical Engineering Intern

May - August 2022 • East Liberty, OH

What I liked

I enjoyed the freedom that was given to me to work on my own projects and learn from my struggles that I went through

What I wish was different

That I had started doing internships there sooner

Advice

Advocate for yourself. People there are busy so you need to be willing to put yourself out there

2 ${count} people found this helpful

Chassis Design Co-op

June 2023 • Marysville, OH

What I liked

Great and generous employer. Amazing benefits and pay. Treated me very well like a full time hire and provided a friendly and fun work environment while still getting me tons of experience and projects to do during my time with them. They also found me housing in the area and helped pay the majority of rent for me as well.

What I wish was different

I wish I had been able to try out a few different roles and rotate around the company a little more.

Advice

Do a few quick hours of professionalism research and learning. The majority of what you need to survive in a professional setting is given by common sense, but if you want to thrive and exceed expectations come prepared and with a killer work ethic.

Be the first to mark this as helpful

Supplier Quality Engineer

June - August 2023 • Lincoln, AL

What I liked

I really like the consistent hours and my manager gave me the space to learn and they also were patient in teaching me.

What I wish was different

Waking up at 4am was a killer, but eventually my body got used to it.

Advice

No advice.

1 One person found this helpful

service runner

June - August 2023 • Bloomington, MN

What I liked

The culture over at honda was very friendly and accepting.

What I wish was different

I wish I had asked to move up in the company sooner.

Advice

Make sure to always ask questions.

Be the first to mark this as helpful

Quality Engineer

May - August 2023 • Lincoln, AL

What I liked

I enjoyed working with experienced Mechanical Engineers learning how to perform root cause analysis and tackling real ongoing problems in the Manufacturing process.

What I wish was different

I wish I had more time with my mentor to discuss ways to improve my Project Management, thinking process, and complete certifications for Manufacturing Engineering.

Advice

Always look to network with other, because you never know how much experience or knowledge an individual may have. In any situation you should be open minded and ready to listen before tackling a problem. Moreover, it’s okay to not know something and tell your colleagues that you will gather further information on the subject.

Be the first to mark this as helpful

Electrical Engineering Co-op

May - August 2022 • Russells Point, OH

What I liked

I greatly enjoyed the variety of projects I was assigned and the fact that I almost never sat at my desk all day. The expectation in my department was to understand the problems we were presented with by observing and addressing them live on the factory floor. When it came to working on the projects, the work environment was generally hands-off, which allowed me to explore the problems at hand at my own pace. Also I was able to learn about important technologies and software that are used across the EE field and automotive industry without being under constant supervision. However, if I needed help, my mentor was always more than willing to point me in the right direction and provide valuable advice. Overall, it was an excellent and realistic look into the life of a full-time engineer.

What I wish was different

If I could change one thing about my experience as a co-op, I wish I had some more time at the beginning of my term with my mentor. I believe it would be beneficial to the co-ops' productivity to get a more thorough walk-through of the software/other technology we would be using during the term. Personally, I feel like I would have needed even less help from my mentor if I had some more training at the beginning of my term, especially because this was my first co-op term. Also, I think that the general speed of communication between associates AND between associates/admin can be improved. This would have prevented some delays I encountered while working on particular projects. Faster responses to emails/teams messages would have allowed me to make more time-efficient decisions regarding the courses of action I took.

Advice

One of the most important lessons I learned was the value of keeping extremely organized as a co-op. Throughout the semester, I kept track of my clock in/clock out times on a daily basis and recorded my activity/progress on projects. This gave me the ability to make sure I was paid the correct amount every time, and making my final presentation for the term was as easy as referring to my daily activity log. Also, I recommend that co-ops always maintain a positive attitude and stay motivated, even when assigned projects that seem too difficult at first. 2ND TERM WORK REFLECTION As I am finishing my second work term with the HPDC department in the Ohio Transmission Mfg. Plant, I am proud to report that I have completed numerous projects that benefitted my personal development as an engineer as well as the functionality of my department. This term, far more of my projects were completed independently and I required little to no assistance on most of them. In addition, more of my projects were immediately implemented into the production environment on equipment as solutions to real-time issues that occurred throughout the term. In other words, I followed my mentor's guide and completed projects in a similar fashion to full-time engineers in the department. In completing these projects and performing other tasks common for full-time associates, I constantly learned new skills and improved on the ones I had. I bounced back and forth between multiple projects at a time and was exposed to various programs and software in a given day. I also spent plenty of time on the floor studying the problems I was tasked with investigating and implementing the solutions I came up with. Spending another summer in the same department allowed me to continue growing my relationships with the other engineers, many of whom are exemplary models of good engineers at Honda and the workforce in general. It was an honor and a privilege to have spent two summer work terms with HPDC!

6 ${count} people found this helpful

Digital Manufacturing Co-op

June - December 2023 • Marysville, OH

What I liked

On my first day in the department I was immediately in a meeting about ongoing projects with our counterparts in Japan. Being in a situation where I could land with my feet running and begin working on projects that will have an impact is an experience that is really unique. In my position, I have been able to work on both upcoming projects and models currently in production. In my division, we work in both preempted and reactive ways, so there is always work to be done.

What I wish was different

One of the biggest challenges that I have faced so far is gaining access to software packages and data. Training and getting certified for the software systems that we use has been an uphill battle. However, these challenges have given me opportunities to interact with my coworkers, learn tips and tricks from them, and aid them in doing projects much quicker. Overall, this term has gone well and I am looking forward to the next one!

Advice

One thing that I have learned so far is that I needed to seek out things to do more often. Then I needed to follow up with asking questions when I get tripped up. Overall, I think people need to be more willing to seek out help, ask question, and be open to being guided. These experiences will help form your future, and can even set you up with a good job for after college.

Be the first to mark this as helpful

Auto Detailer

August 2018 - June 2019 • Indian Land, SC

What I liked

Being to learn how to clean cars and learn how to better care for my car with checking tire pressure and overall health of the car.

What I wish was different

I wish they would not have let me go over something so trivial as we are cleaning house and family members of the previous family are out of here was 5 people including me.

Advice

Listen to your superiors and if it is not clean do it again because the people selling the car will bring it right back to you.

Be the first to mark this as helpful

Infotainment Systems Engineer

May - August 2018 • Torrance, CA

What I liked

I love the willingness that my coworkers had in supporting my decisions on projects.

What I wish was different

I wish that I had more time to work on my project as our vendors were quite slow in communicating.

Advice

Apply to every internship you can as you never know which company is looking for a candidate like you.

Be the first to mark this as helpful

Production Engineering Co-op

May - December 2022 • Marysville, OH

What I liked

Co-oping at Honda has been a great experience. Overall, I think this is one of the best companies you can co-op for as an engineering student. I was part of the virtual factory team. My job mostly entailed doing verification of items in the plant and 3d modeling. Honda has excellent classes that my mentor put me through. Coming into Honda I’ve only had basic experience in 3d cad using solidworks. Honda uses Catia. I took a couple classes on Catia which gave me a good understanding of how everything works. Any time I ran into questions I had a couple people on my team who were very knowledgeable and helpful. My mentor was generally hands off which allowed me to learn things without constantly just having the solution given to me. When I needed help, he was very helpful and always available.

What I wish was different

The actual work I was doing was enjoyable. The only issue I had was with the co-op department. In general, they were very unorganized and did a poor job passing information along. On multiple occasion I did not receive an email that was supposed to be sent to all co-ops. Fortunately my mentor had a good idea of everything going on so this wasn’t a major issue.

Advice

If you co-op at Honda the best thing you can do is actually get out on the plant floor. It’s interesting seeing how a car starts as a roll of steal on a trailer and becomes a completed car. Ask a lot of questions. Most of what I learned outside of my specific Job was because I saw something interesting and wanted to know how it worked. Everyone in the plant is eager to explain how things work. If you’re co-op at one of the Ohio plants try and get an opportunity to tour the other Ohio plants. If you’re at an auto plant make sure you visit the Anna engine plant.

Be the first to mark this as helpful

Quality Engineer

May - August 2022 • Marysville, OH

What I liked

Honda allowed me to use knowledge gained from university throughout my term while simultaneously encouraging me to pursue aspects of my field I am either unfamiliar or not confident in. My team was very inviting and they provided me with projects and daily tasks full time employees would take on. Also, the mentorship program at Honda has been a very pleasing experience.

What I wish was different

I wish, as a computer engineer, that Honda was a bit more catering to ones degree field or desire. It's awesome to work at Honda because they believe anyone can accel in any position there. However, looking back at my first term with them. My first rotation wasn't quite what they described, nor did they share any job description until I got the offer.

Advice

Go in with an open mind and be ready to learn. Honda takes the idea of a well rounded engineer and amplifies it. The co-workers are great. The communication is definitely above average, and the company as a whole wants you to be the best version of you. With no pressure to return or even extend your term.

Be the first to mark this as helpful

Systems and Drivability CO-OP Engineer

January - August 2018 • Columbus, OH

What I liked

Very welcoming team, passionate engineers, diverse (loved the Japanese culture), uniforms, very hands on, challenging and integrated work

What I wish was different

More structure for Co-ops

Advice

Take the opportunity to live somewhere different. After working for Honda, I cared less about location and more about the type of people I work with. Priorities/lifestyles change and internships are a great way to figure that sort of thing out.

Be the first to mark this as helpful

NVH Vehicle Performance Intern

June - August 2018 • Raymond, OH

What I liked

During my internship, I became the “expert” in my group with CFD and StarCCM+ simulation software, and it felt good to be knowledgeable and trusted in a topic. Also, I was able to leave my desk to work on other projects and explore my interests.

What I wish was different

Advice

Be the first to mark this as helpful

Infotainment Software Engineer Intern

May - August 2018 • Marysville, OH

What I liked

Great experience to learn software development on a professional level. Worked with tools that real world developers use in shipping software/programs.

What I wish was different

I would have liked to explore different areas of software development - I worked on one project the whole time.

Advice

Ask for more/different work if you don't like what you are doing!

Be the first to mark this as helpful

Research Analyst Intern

May - August 2018 • Torrance, CA

What I liked

My favorite aspect of the internship though was researching competitor cars of Honda's and testing them out. I was able to drive various vehicles and really understand how they worked from a technical perspective. I definitely learned a lot about the car industry and received insight on how it is to work a full time job in the "real world."

What I wish was different

For this internship the only part I wish had been different is being able to work with more interns. There were only 2 other interns as well as myself, and it was great to collaborate with them but I think it would have been more fulfilling to have more of a team to work with.

Advice

The biggest lesson I took from this summer was learning to manage a 40/hour per week work schedule. Balancing a full work schedule while trying to maintain some social life was definitely an adjustment but I think it was a good learning experience that will help prepare for life after I graduate.

1 One person found this helpful

Mechanical Engineer Interior Designer

May - August 2018 • Columbus, OH

What I liked

I was able to get real projects and get a lot of experience. I had two mentors that helped me when I had questions. I was given responsibility of the glove box of a new car coming out and got flown to LA to work with stylists.

What I wish was different

One thing I wish could've been different is the communication between HR and myself when I was at school and getting ready to move out to Ohio. They took a long time to respond and I felt rushed moving out.

Advice

Don't be afraid to look for jobs outside of Marquette's career fair. Their are a lot of good companies that come here but find a company that you can see yourself working for. Get to know their culture and make sure you would fit in with it.

2 ${count} people found this helpful