The first day entering the office can be exhilarating; anyone who has started at a new school might be familiar with the feeling. The anticipation and desire to do your best, and learn as much as you can, and impress your colleagues can be quite a weight on the shoulders. No matter what industry you work in, internships surround you with seasoned people with a wealth of knowledge that you may mine, with the goal of one day standing in their shoes. At the MET institution, my experience has been such.
The task I have been provided here is the analysis and comparison of different hydrological instruments, specifically rain gauges and other precipitation measuring tools. While a deal of the job is comparing the efficiency of newer gauges to older ones, the trunk of the work is cleaning up data. While that might sound less exciting, it is very easy to get caught up in the problem solving, near puzzle like, aspects of it. Furthermore, data cleaning is a profoundly practical task, and no doubt will come in great use later in my career.
Working at the MET office is a rewarding experience. While at first an intern might feel like the odd one out, the friendships and conversations between the others here has demystified the concept of office social etiquette, and I quickly came to see that there’s little difference between people, whether students in university or employees at a government institution. They are casual, yet professional. Our supervisors are open minded, engaged, and their interest in their jobs is contagious. Sitting in the office they provided me, I can hear the heated debates going down on the other side of the hall, arguing which rain gauge sensors are better, which are worth the arm-breaking price! Endearing to say the least.
The guidance I’ve received at MET has filled me with appreciation. Until next time, Sebjørn out!
