Associate Review

I enjoyed my role as intern to a great extent, I learned valuable skills and was exposed to a wide-range of tasks. I was given the opportunity to learn about other division in the FCA through work shadowing and desk swaps. I was also able to meet with interns and graduates in divisions which I was interested in learning more about.

I felt extremely valued by my colleagues, they provided me with a lot of support and trusted me worth me tasks. They gave a lot of responsibility, as I often was engaging in case work, which was similar and at times the same as the types of tasks and associate would be carrying out. I was given a lot of ownership of the work I completed, being set an internship project meant I had tangible work to show my development and ability at the end of my internship.

I was given a lot of support by my manager and supervisor. My supervisor guided me through day to day tasks, and ensured I understood my roles and responsibilities an intern. My supervisor also arranged training sessions for me to understand my role better and to gain technical research skills, which made it easier to carry out the tasks I was assigned.

I was fairly busy on a daily basis, I always had tasks to complete, or things to assist others with. At times tasks could become monotonous, but before I could ever eel comfortable in my role, something challenging would be assigned to me and I'd have to begin researching, digesting information and learning new skills.

I was given a lot of responsibility. Most of my tasks were tasks which my colleagues would do as a part of their daily work. Therefore, I was really stretched in a positive way. I was given the team's work to do, but also assigned a long-term internship project, which lasted the duration the internship. This project meant I was always busy, when I was waiting for tasks to be assigned to me.

I think the skills I have learnt will help me to a great extent in the rest of my degree and beyond that. I have developed my ability to draft documents, which was an area I struggled with prior to this internship. I know this will help when writing essay or drafting future documents. I have also developed my communication skills, as I had to talk to senior personnel outside of the FCA, and lead meetings with managers and directors within the FCA.

The atmosphere in my office was very welcoming. It is was generally quiet as people were very engaged with their work, but it was very easy to approach a team member when I needed help. The team also had snacks laid out for everyone, which made the atmosphere in the office very comfortable.

My placement was very well organised, the programme for the internship was really well structured which made it easier to plan my time and coordinate my activities. The structure of the internship, means we had a lot of time do learn about different areas of the FCA and engage with other interns. The HR department responsible for organising the internship also ran a feedback session, where we could offer suggestion and comment on the positives of the internship. This really brought the process together for me, a sit showed how committed the FCA is to the development of the interns and the internship programme.

The company invested a lot in me in terms of personal development. I set my own development targets and some were suggested to by my supervisor. I was given work which directly addressed my areas of development, which meant at the end of my internship I had vastly improved I these areas. I was able to take part in several training sessions, some of which were online or through the phone. This improved my technical skills in different areas.

The future employment prospects within the organisation is very appealing. The grad scheme, that leads on from the internship, offers an amazing opportunity to develop and widen your breadth of experience. From talking to associates and graduates, I have learnt hat the FCA is a place that invest in the development of their staff and really values these qualities. The FCA is also a great place for a good work life balance, as an intern I did not engage with this but many of my colleagues frequently worked from home and took use of the flexi working hours.

There was a fairly good social culture between fellow placement student sand colleagues. They were really interested in hearing about our backgrounds and future aspirations.

Yes, there were many opportunities, the FCA has several sporting and activities teams, which compete fairly regularly. There is also a subsidised company gym.