Engineers in the R&D departments in the companies within the Demant Group work every day to develop state-of-the-art technologies and break technological boundaries within software, hardware, electrical engineering and many more areas. Furthermore, we have an equally large Quality department that ensures our medical products are tried, tested, and safe for all users. The significant number of departments and different areas of engineering leave our engineering graduates with the difficult choice of choosing only four rotations throughout their Graduate Programme. We have asked this year's new Engineering Graduate, Teresa Cabella, how she navigates in the abundance of opportunities and how she pulls on her colleagues' experiences and advice to build the perfect programme.

What opportunities are there as an Engineering Graduate?
Many engineering graduates start the programs with a rotation in the department of Quality. This is an excellent way to get a comprehensive overview of both the company's product portfolio and the requirements associated with being a medical company. Overall, R&D is certainly where most opportunities are for an engineering graduate. This is the largest department in the company and includes divisions such as Software, Hardware, Embedded Systems and Silicon Engines. Nevertheless, graduates in the past have also explored other areas of the business including Oticon Medical, EPOS and Intellectual Properties.
Networking is also a useful tool to scout for new opportunities. As a graduate you will collaborate with many different teams within the company. Hence, if you find yourself being interested in a specific function, I recommend you reach out and create your own opportunity.

What do you need to consider before choosing your rotation?
My advice is to first consider what are the skills you would like to develop in your forthcoming rotation. The next step would then be to meet with a manager from the department you are interested in to align your expectations. If previous graduates have also been in a department you are considering for a rotation, it would be a good idea to meet with them to gain a more detailed insight on what their experience was like.
Lastly, remember that this is an opportunity to gain a broad understanding of the organization, so diversifying your rotations is also important to consider.

Facing many opportunities and considerations, how do you then decide on your rotations as an Engineering Graduate?
You may want to consider thinking strategically about your rotations. Make sure to build up the hard and soft skills relevant to the career path you intend to pursue, while also taking advantage of this experience to explore your capabilities outside your comfort zone.
As a graduate at Demant, you will be assigned a host-manager and will also have the opportunity to be part of the mentoring programme. Both your manager and mentor will be individuals with many years of working experience in engineering and human resources, respectively. If you are not sure which department or role would be the best fit for your rotation, your manager and mentor are key resources to guide you and support you take the best decision.

Teresa Cabella, Engineering Graduate

tecb@demant.com