Analyst - Risk, Collections - Loans Review

I've really enjoyed my placement. They team I've worked with have been very friendly and supportive. However, I think that the team I've been with is not the best for ten week internships. Their work involves a lot of coding on quite slow systems, so there have been times when I've struggled to find things to occupy myself with. Also, the team always features a number of IPs, so it was difficult to establish myself given that those here for a year are prioritised.

Owing to the shortness of my internship and the nature of the work that the team undertake, there was often times that my colleagues failed to appreciate my eagerness to complete tasks, and my ability to do so. This perhaps stems from a lack of experience of how to approach an intern who is here for less than a year. However, I have been entrusted with designing an important piece of code for future team use, my efforts have been appreciated and commended, particularly given the chaotic nature of the datasets I've been told to use.

My line manager was very supportive of me, despite being incredibly busy for the entirety of my internship. He set me a series of manageable projects to complete, and offered me guidance when required. Furthermore, his senior analyst was fantastic throughout, willing to answer any queries that I encountered. However, I was a bit frustrated at times with the way my large coding project was handled. Despite agreement on what was expected, it felt as if extra things were continuously being asked of me. I found this quite unfair, and has caused me to worry about how that section of my scorecard will be assessed.

It very much varied depending on the day. Sometimes I found myself constantly busy with a variety of different tasks, but other times, I was left a little bored, especially while long pieces of code were running. This may in part be due to the speed at which I am able to complete tasks and learn new things, and to the work undertaken by my team, work that very rarely increases in size or difficulty. Having said that, having free time has allowed me to learn more about other aspects of the bank and helped me organise an insight day towards the end of August in Gresham Street.

I was given a considerable amount of responsibility with regards to my major project and other pieces of code that I was asked to run. However, I found that most tasks had already been assigned to specific individuals who were too inflexible to pass on part of their workload to a ten week intern. This certainly is owing to their lack of experience with short term interns.

I think I will return to university a more confident, organised, and analytical individual, with a far greater understanding of the inner workings of a modern bank. It has also helped me realise what sort of position I would like to hold in an organisation like this, primarily concerned with studying how the macroeconomic picture affects the internal decision making process of the Group. Although I am capable of holding an analytical job, similar to the one I have had during my ten weeks, I cannot see myself in a role like this in the future.

The atmosphere was really great in the office. Despite many people being very busy on a daily basis, they were still very friendly and helpful, and eager to get me involved in the social side of the team, by inviting me on trips to the cricket and pub crawls around Cardiff. I felt my fellow interns (IPs) were initially perhaps less laid back and more reluctant to slip so easily into the relaxed atmosphere, but as time went on, this changed.

I thought my placement was, on the whole, well organised. When I first arrived, a desk had been sorted out for me and the majority of things that I needed for my internship were set up. There were however, a few technical difficulties in the initial stages. I was allowed to operate very independently, which I found reassuring, and allowed me to attend 'Down to make a difference' days and insight days with various teams across the bank, but led to some of the problems I've previously mentioned i.e. completing tasks in a very short space of time and then struggling for things to do.

I found a lot of the resources provided by the Emerging Talent team very useful in understanding my role within the bank, and helped me learn more about different roles and about myself. Furthermore, the flexibility of allowing me to spend time with other teams and to travel to London has proven to be incredibly beneficial and shows the firms willingness to allow individuals to learn and grow in a way they wish.

Lloyds would be a fantastic place to work in the future, but perhaps not in the role that I am currently fulfilling. To come straight out of university into an organisation of Lloyds' standing would be fantastic, especially given how the Group allows you to progress at a quick and appropriate pace, something that would perhaps be more challenging in other similar places.

Previously mentioned.

Not really applicable because I lived at home. But the cost of socialising in Cardiff and the surrounding area is relatively good compared to a number of other British cities, especially London. However, this depends on what sort of activities one is planning on participating in. A ticket to see Glamorgan in the Twenty 20 cost between £16-£20, while a pint of beer was £3 approx. If this sounds like you're cup of tea, then Cardiff is a perfect place!

Not really applicable because I lived at home.

Previously mentioned.