CRUK Summer Intern Review

I really enjoyed my time at CRUK as an intern. Over the three months, I was involved in very varied projects, which meant working closely with a variety of people within my team. This meant that I was never bored, gave me a great insight into the work different team members do, and ensured I gained and developed a variety of skills.

My team made me feel very welcome, and I was treated as a proper team member, rather than just an intern. For example, I felt like my views and opinions were really taken on board and valued, and not just ignored. I found CRUK as a whole a very warm and friendly environment; everyone I met was very welcoming!

My manager was great at providing support throughout the internship, in the form of both formal meetings and informal chats. He was constantly on hand if required, and ensured that my work was both in an area of interest to me and also gave me the opportunity to learn new skills. He helped me with my personal development, suggesting skills that I could work to develop during my internship.

I would say that I was always the perfect level of busy! I was never sat bored during the day with nothing to do, however I was never too stressed due to my workload. I was always working on multiple tasks, and this gave me the opportunity to prioritise tasks and develop my time management skills.

I was given genuine responsibility whilst at CRUK. Support from team members was available at all times if required, but I worked alone on my projects, and my findings and recommendations were often put in place after I presented them to my team. I was able to direct my own projects, and was really able to put my own stamp on them.

Due to the fact that I was given genuine responsibility during my internship, I developed real skills (for example analysis and strategic thinking), that I will take with me into my next role. My manager also played a crucial part in this by identifying the skills that I could develop, and giving me tips on how best to develop them.

The atmosphere with the Angel office was great; very warm and welcoming. The actual office itself is very bright, modern and clean, and the open plan environment meant that all of the teams mingled. There was often fundraising events going on in the office, which were fun to get involved in!

The internship was organised really well. There was lots of communication from the organiser both before and during the internship, so I felt really well informed at all stages. When we started at CRUK, the interns had lots of induction activities and an introduction day, which were very helpful and well organised. The internship organiser was really approachable, and was very efficient at responding to our problems or queries.

During my three months at CRUK, I was provided with lots of personal development training. We had CV, interview, LinkedIn, presentation skills and innovation workshops, all of which were well run and useful. CRUK inters are also provided the opportunity to apply for a mentor, which I did. My mentor and I had half hourly sessions during which we often talked about personal development, and worked together to develop my skills.

I have already secured a job in a different company for after my internship, however the internship opened my eyes to the charity sector, and returning to CRUK in the future is very appealing to me. Talking to my colleagues during my internship made me aware that most CRUK employees are happy with their job and working environment, which is important to consider when applying for a job!

The interns organised weekly drinks in the Angel area on a Thursday evening, which was great way to get to know everyone better. There was also one off socials, such as pub quizzes, which were really fun. My team also held lots of social events, for example summer drinks, and often did trips to the pub after work.

CRUK's office is in Angel, which is quite expensive. Most people commuted from further afield, so the cost of living wasn't that high, although still London prices! Because of this, the pubs and restaurants around the office were quite expensive, but there were some affordable places if you took the time to explore a little bit.

Angel is a very lively area of London, and there are plenty of clubs, bars and pubs within walking distance of CRUK's office. I didn't try out the clubs during my internship, but all of the bars, pubs and restaurants I went to were great, and there are some nice independent places rather than just being all big chains.

The interns organised intern fundraising events to raise money for CRUK, which were really great to get involved in. There was many other organisation-wide events, and there was lots of opportunity to volunteer and get involved in fundraisers, such as the race for life, or other fundraisers all across the country.