Updating Results

BAE Systems Australia

3.9
  • 50,000 - 100,000 employees

BAE Systems Australia Reviews

Based on 38 surveyed graduates working at BAE Systems Australia. Read on to get an insider’s view on life as a graduate.
3.9
Based on 38 reviews

Pros & Cons

  • "The structure of the graduate program which provides support from different levels of management and different project areas, as well as our peers. The conference put on for graduates is a really excellent opportunity to meet fellow graduates as well as hear from senior and executive leadership about the current and future direction of the company (bonus that it's fun!). Plenty of training opportunities to shape your career as well. The one thing that has really sold me is the positive work culture, where I'm actively supported by a friendly and knowledgeable team, as well as the flexible working arrangements."
  • The work. I've got the rare opportunity to see a project throughout it's lifecycle, from developing requirements to production in a relatively short time frame of 2 - 3 years. This fast-paced work has kept me on my feet, and has me learning new things every day.
  • The workplace culture is really great. So many opportunities to learn and grow professionally and not too much pressure is placed on me having to know everything. As a grad I am allowed to learn, make a few mistakes but grow and understand the ways of the company by working on tasks both collaboratively with people across different parts of the business and also by working independently.
  • Learning from the best of the best, and everyone is super nice and willing to take others along for the journey, rather than just doing "busy work"
  • "Working environment: Everyone is willing to always help with any questions you may have or help you understand some concepts better. Growth opportunities: Company is willing to go the extra mile to provide any relevant training that may be required for your role, even willing to fly us to the locations the trainings take place if they are not available in person."
  • Project planning work can be tedious as an engineer and there can be times where external bureaucracy can result in "hurry up and wait" scenarios.
  • Probably the complexity of various teams and management structures
  • The nature of working in defence can make things difficult. For instance, the hold ups you have when obtaining the correct security clearance, continually needing to request access to things and not being able to share a lot of aspects of you job with your family/friends due to the sensitive nature of the work.
  • Nothing really. My commute is a poor part of my role. But with BAE systems flexible work policy - the commute doesn't effect me to much.
  • The pace of work and projects is a lot slower compared to what I'm used to.

What Insiders Say

7.6
Career Prospects
7.6
Career Prospects
There are so many opportunities to grow and develop your career at BAE, including changing functions. This is a company you can stay at for life, as even if you get bored or need a change of jobs you can move functions without leaving the company. As a graduate, I am getting a wide exposure to various types of jobs and have the ability to move around and to an extent chose what work I am interested in and pursue further. At the end of my graduate program I am guaranteed an exit role. Furthermore, senior leadership are very local about the opportunities available for career growth at BAE and are pro giving people more challenging work where they can further develop, rather than just giving someone the job because they are qualified and experienced in that area.
7.5
Corporate Social Responsibility
7.5
Corporate Social Responsibility
We have an entire team who ate dedicated to CSR to ensure we are doing our bit for community and environment. As mentioned we have a strong culture focusing on health and safety of our people and the wider community.
8.2
Culture
8.2
Culture
The company culture at BAE is great. While at work I feel I have the freedom to manage my time and complete the tasks given to me without someone looking over my shoulder or micromanaging me. In saying that, I have always felt comfortable approaching people to ask for help when needed. I have felt included and quite comfortable from day one. Right from the junior people in the company through to senior management, everyone has been friendly and approachable. For the most part everyone works well as a team, with some minor issues here and there. Outside of work, I am able to fully switch off because I know people at BAE respect your personal time and that you are not at work. We also have a social club which means we can catch up with colleagues without being at work.
7.8
Diversity
7.8
Diversity
We have a DE&I team who are responsible for implementing employee resource groups. BAE Systems thoroughly believe in DE&I and is implemented into everything we do. We have a goal to reach 26% female representation by 2026 and 30% by 2030. We have a strong focus on supporting indigenous Australia's through RAP and initiatives with local communities we also focus attention to disability and neurodiversity, culture and nationality, sexual and gender diversity as well as veterans as we have quite a few in our business.
7.5
Satisfaction
7.5
Satisfaction
My role has managed to push me to thrive and develop on my interpersonal skills in a very effective manner. Working at BAE, I feel like I am learning something new every week. My colleagues have established a decent amount of trust within me based on my responsibilities.
8.2
Management
8.2
Management
I have a line manager and a graduate career mentor. Both these people have been incredibly supportive throughout my transition from university to full time work. I am able to discuss career pathways with them and how to get there. My line manager has great internal communication and provides consistent feedback and recognition. In addition to my line manager and mentor, I also get to work alongside more experienced bid managers and assist them with their tasks, where I get frequent feedback and recognition for the work I do to help them.
7.3
Office Work Environment
7.3
Office Work Environment
Has everything you would need in a workplace. Location is central and easy to get to. Facilities are well maintained and easy to access and use. The office space is open and uses "hot desks" for all employees, which is good because it allows you to sit near people you otherwise wouldn't. The dress code is office attire (i.e. collared shirt and pants), however this is not strict and you can wear more casual attire if you would prefer.
7.5
Recruitment
7.5
Recruitment
The recruitment process was quite easy and quick. First I submitted my cover letter, CV and academic transcript. Soon after I submitted my application I received an email with a link to complete some filmed interview questions. This involved having the question pop up on the screen and filming my response to it. I was given as many attempts as I wanted to get my answers right before I submitted them. After this I got an invitation to attend a virtual job interview via web ex. Soon after my interview I received the job offer. I found the whole process very easy and had a job offer in my first semester of my final year of my university degree. This felt great as I was able to relax and just focus on my studies because I knew I had a job lined up ready for once I completed my degree.
5.7
Salary
5.7
Salary
Overall the pay is quite good. It starts off lower (although still high compared to other employers) and you get salary increases throughout the graduate program which is good. 9-day Fortnight Generous leave policies with various opportunities - wedding leave, give blood leave, volunteering leave, study leave. flexible working
7.6
Training
7.6
Training
Our company provides a training portal that is integrated with our internal company run training as well as linkedIn learning courses. Through this portal you can enroll in any courses you feel would be beneficial to your role and see what future trainings are coming up. There are also resources available outlining the expected competencies at each role level. Using this you can build a training plan to meet those competencies as you go along your career journey. With any training that is not provided online, there is also a budget set aside by the projects to fly members to the locations of the training and provide accommodation for the period. BAE systems also offers a mentoring program where experienced members can volunteer to be a mentor for new starters, allowing them to provide guidance while also building their professional skillsets. In my time at BAE systems I have built upon my soft skills such as communication, organisation, team work, problem solving, technical writing. There have been modules I have attended as part of the graduate program here which have focused on each of these individually which have been good. These involved group exercises and were facilitated by an external training organisation. I have also gained some job specific skills such as getting a better understanding of systems engineering as well as gaining more knowledge on the specific ship I am working on supporting.
8.6
Work Hours
8.6
Work Hours
BAE are very flexible when it comes to hours. I am currently on a 9 day fortnight, which means I work 9 hour days and get every second Friday off. I find this works well for me, and I am able to reshuffle my hours to suit me e.g. work 9.5 hours one day if I need a shorter day another time. The company is also very flexible with when I work my hours, for instance, I like to start earlier so I can finish earlier and get activities into my evenings that I would not be able to if I worked a standard 9 - 5.
7.1
Sustainability
7.1
Sustainability
BAE systems are a business that operates responsibility and sustainability. Sustainability is fundamental to business performance and the delivery of our sustainability agenda is how we address our material Environment, Social and Governance (ESG) risks and opportunities.