Finance Intern Review

I really enjoyed my placement. My team were very friendly and welcoming and this helped me to get the most out of my 10 weeks. I made good friends with the other interns and I felt like I was part of the organisation after only a few weeks.

My team were friendly from the outset and I really enjoyed working with them. They were really helpful and they also allowed me to do some important work so I felt that they trusted my ability.

My manager gave me great guidance. He helped me to understand my work and what impact it would have for the wider business and he also gave me good guidance regarding my career in the future.

There were a few days where I did not have much work but usually I had tasks to be getting on with. Some days I felt bored as I had no work and other days I had a lot of work and I had to work to deadlines so it was very varied. The CSR project that runs alongside the internship gave me a chance to focus my attentions on that when I was not very busy.

I was the team leader for my teams CSR challenge so that required a lot of organisation and planning. In my work, I was given work that was very interesting and worthwhile. I created graphs and tables on a number of different model changes and these were used in a board paper during my time. I actually produced data that went right to the top of the organisation which was very rewarding.

I study a finance based degree so the skills and knowledge I have gained on this placement will be very helpful as I go back to university for my final year. I have ben able to witness real world finance and I have also experienced life working at a huge international financial institution. The soft skills I gained during the CSR project such as leadership, organisation and teamwork will be very beneficial in my future career.

I was surprised to see that the atmosphere in the office was fun, friendly and relaxed and I genuinely looked forward to coming to work every morning. I was based in the Milton Keynes office at Santander House and the office layout is open plan and lends itself to a sociable working environment.

The programme was very well structured. I had weekly 1 to 1 sessions with my line manager where we discussed my work that week. I was also asked to fill out an interns log on a weekly basis to assess how I had performed in accordance with Santander's corporate behaviours. Throughout the programme I was invited to a number of webinars that covered topics such as Banking Reform, Technology and Santander's Competencies and Behaviours. These were 1 hour training sessions and I found them very useful. I also had a breakfast meeting with the financial controller of Santander UK which was very good opportunity for interns to get their faces known.

I was invited to a few training sessions. These were often run by different departments and covered what their area covered. I attended a session ran by the Risk department and one ran by the Pricing team. I also took part in a session about Personal Brand which was interesting.

The future employment prospects are very appealing. Santander runs a Finance Graduate Scheme and the graduates are chosen from the interns. This process is very competitive and unfortunately there are not places for all successful interns. The Graduate Scheme has fantastic training opportunities and offers great exposure and experience.

The CSR project teams were groups of interns based in the same office and usually within the same department. I made good friends with all the other interns and this made the programme all the more enjoyable. We would often eat lunch together and occasionally go out for a drink after work.

I lived in London and commuted to work in Milton Keynes. The cost of living in London was very expensive but I can not really comment on what it is like in MK. From conversations I have had with colleagues it seems quite reasonable considering its proximity to London.

I did not go on any nights out during my placement so I am not sure. My friends told me that the nightlife in MK is not very good but I am not sure.

Groups of colleagues often played golf together and others played football in a 5 a side team. Some also went for drinks on particular nights (Friday for example). My team and I had a couple of team lunches and did some sports/games together.