RCS Intern Review

I really enjoyed this internship. The work was interesting and stimulating - far from the image of an intern making the tea and doing everyone's photocopying, we were each assigned a project to work on. Mine was a research project looking to improve methods of modelling risk for property insurance.

My colleagues always showed a real interest in the work I was doing and the progress I was making, so I definitely felt that my work was valued. Work aside, the office made a real effort to include the interns in the social side of office life as well. We were often invited out for lunch and to the various sporting and social activities.

There were always people around willing to help me if I got stuck with anything and, whether they were officially responsible for me or not, everyone was happy to do so. I had regular meetings with my line manager, buddy, and someone in a more senior position in the office so that I could show what I had done so far and they could help me work out what to do next.

Generally the balance was good, but due to the nature of my project there were a few days were I felt I didn't have enough to do and some where I felt a little rushed off my feet.

Within my project I had a lot of freedom to experiment, and had a fair amount of responsibility for the direction of the work I was doing. I did not have any responsibility for anything to do with clients, but this would vary with the work assigned to you.

My work was related to some of the maths I had learnt so far in my degree, so it was good to see how the theory that I had seen at university could be applied in real life situations. I also learnt a lot about a few of the in-house software and more standard programmes like Excel which I'm sure will be very useful in my future.

The atmosphere was always good, but varied in nature as colleagues would often be away visiting clients or having a study day. Some days were very busy and exciting, others much more quiet and calm.

Organisation was generally very good, but with a few hitches due to the recent mergers and acquistions the company has experienced. There wasn't anything too inconvenient or significant, and I'm sure these little things will be sorted out by next time.

For what was a fairly short placement (6 weeks), I spent quite a large proportion of my time being trained. This was so that I could be a part of the more interesting work that needed a certain level of knowledge to do.

You are not competing with the other interns for a limited number of graduate positions. If you gel well with the company and do good work, your chances of a job offer will be high.

There were lots of opportunities for meals and drinks with colleagues, as well as sports activities.

I lived at home so my accomodation was cheap.

There is not a lot of nightlife in Epsom, but it is a short train ride from central London so you don't get bored!

Colleagues regularly played football and badminton in lunch breaks, and there was a summer BBQ as well as an inter-office Rounders tournament.