Pension Actuary intern Review

I had a really good experience, I was able to move around a variety of teams and learn about a wide range of services and products that WTW offers to their clients and I was always kept busy with mostly interesting work. I never felt bored or useless on the job as there was always someone I could go to if I needed more work to keep busy and it was made clear how my work was fitting into the overall project at all times which kept me motivated throughout.

All my colleagues, regardless of their level in the company, were always keen to show their appreciation of tasks well done. I was assigned to two client teams, eventually three, and the recent graduates on these teams were always willing to help out with explaining new ideas and concepts, even repeating the same explanation a few times seemed to be no issue as they could appreciate the content could be challenging at first to someone new to the company.

The supervisors at WTW were nothing short of excellent. They provided a ' fundamentals' workbook we could through during times where our client teams were not busy which contained lots of useful information and exercises that would directly help us with our work. They were very open to new interns asking questions and we also had frequent goal setting meetings at which we would receive feedback from people with whom we had worked recently.

During the day I was kept very busy with a wide variety of tasks: client specific and general tasks. I had 3 client teams I was working on helping build Excel spreadsheet models, carrying out actuarial calculations, using various WTW in-house software tools and proofreading/checking other calculations and spreadsheets. That was the client focused work which took up the majority of the day. We also had mathematical exercises to go through, technical topics to research, presentations to work on, social events to plan, the list was endless....

After the training exercises had been completed in the first week, we were immediately given work that would be eventually sent out externally (after a rigorous multi-layer checking process first) So straight away from pretty much the second week our work was useful and of value to our clients so overall the interns were largely involved in the project work.

I believe the broad range of skills I have developed will serve me for a long time to come. Whether that is the advanced Excel tools, the in-house software skills, the mathematical testing and intuition built up from the many calculations I performed I will be able to transfer these over to my personal life and my degree studies with a focused, perfectionist and time managed approach in all areas.

The office atmosphere was both relaxed but professional and hardworking. People of all ages and levels in the company were mixed together to promote discussions and learning across multiple seniority levels which I appreciated a lot as before I was primarily used to talking to people around my age (other students) People were supportive of each other and were willing to help as there was a large focus on team work. Everyone was friendly but knew when to work hard to meet pressing deadlines.

Everything was planned with large precision. From the start we knew what teams we would working on, what training sessions we would be going to (from an online calendar) and what personal learning activities we would be required to complete and in what time frame this would need to be done. There was not a single point in the internship I didn't know what to do or expect next so overall incredibly well organized.

With training sessions everyday for the first almost two weeks, and recent joiners spending literally hours a day at times one on one working with you, I can't see how a company could invest more time and energy into their new interns. We had online training courses, mathematical exercises to work through with solutions, work shadowing placements with senior members of our client teams- The more you would ask, the more you could stretch your current potential.

The company is growing continuously with lots of new projects and products being released each year. It is almost like a hub of start up companies within WTW. The employment prospects are excellent with many fascinating avenues one could explore across actuarial science, insurance, risk solutions, advisory work, data mining. There is something for everyone here.

The social scene was good with people from all teams and levels attending the social events each month. Everyone is welcoming to new joiners.

The cost of living may be slightly higher than average but it is however lower than London prices so that is ideal. The social scene was not that great as the area is quite small.

The nightlife was not that great.

Yes! There were lots of events such as cricket matches to play in or watch, Bingo events, Exam celebration drinks.