Financial Analyst Review

I enjoyed my placement with IBM a great deal. I was given responsibilities from day 1 and continuously acquired new responsibilities throughout my year at IBM.

I felt extremely valued by my colleagues. My task manager always ensured I was doing OK and was enjoying my placement at IBM. My colleagues always expressed appreciation for my efforts, which helped me feel valued within my team. The fact that I was given responsibilities and tasks from the first day also helped me feel valued as I knew my team were counting on me.

I was given consistent support by my task manager throughout my year at IBM. He made sure we had a one to one meeting every month to make sure I was happy in my role. It was also good to learn from my manager and other colleague's experience from working at a company like IBM - they taught me a lot! Having an Early Professional Manager was also very helpful as they supported me especially when trying to look into new areas of the business.

My job role varied in business throughout the calendar month. I was at my most busy during the financial month, quarter and year end period. Overall, I was kept reasonably busy between 9am and 5pm. If I found myself not very busy there was always things I could help my team with! Even though, I was kept busy there was always opportunities to do activities outside my job role such as running assessment centers and student recruitment events for IBM.

I was very surprised at the amount of responsibility I was given from an early date. This was a very positive thing as it helped me feel valued by my team and that I was adding value to the business. Even though it was daunting taking on responsibility at such an early stage, it was definitely a positive thing.

The skills I have developed during my placement year will undoubtedly assist me in my degree studies and beyond. By working in a large, multinational business I now have more context to base my studies on in my degree in International Business. My main use of the skills I have developed will be in employability. I now understand what is required to work in teams and problem solve in a professional context, which will enable me to add value in any future job.

In my personal experience, the office tended to be quiet as I worked in a European team with most of my colleagues based around the continent. However, there was always a good and lively atmosphere in the canteen at lunchtime as there was plenty of other interns like myself.

The placement was very well set up in my opinion. The two day induction was very helpful for me to get a feel for IBM. I also think it was beneficial to get straight into the job role as straight after the induction to help advance my learning and development.

There was plenty of opportunity for personal development through the foundation community. Days like "Careers Academy", which was organised by IBM, were very helpful and useful for me. There was also plenty of educational material to attend from the finance community, as well as regular newsletters regarding the company's strategy.

Future employment prospects are very appealing within IBM as there is a vast array of opportunities. The graduate scheme appears to be very well organised and there appears to be plenty of opportunity for personal development. The high levels of potential opportunities is perhaps the biggest pull factor to me wanting to come back to work to this organisation.

There was a very good social scene amongst fellow students at IBM. At the office I worked at in Portsmouth there were around 40 other placement students who would socialise and go out regularly.

Portsmouth was reasonably priced in terms of socialising, however rent costs were relatively high. However, it was a lot cheaper than London.

The nightlife was lively with many bars and clubs in the Portsmouth area. Student nights were also very popular.

There were lots of opportunities to get involved in activities outside of work. Many of us interns lived in the same area so we could always do activities together after work and at the weekend.