Valuations Summer Internship Review

I thoroughly enjoyed my internship for various reasons, from the friendliness and helpful attitude of everyone around the office to the challenge of the tasks I was given. There isn't a single complaint I would give about my experience and because I was given the chance to move around a variety of teams I was able to gain a huge amount of information about the industry which I was unaware of, especially coming from a non-property background.

From the moment I arrived my team, and the entire office, were welcoming and friendly. My line manager made it easy for me to settle in quickly, inviting me to the office races evening, and going for lunches to meet other members of the office in a more informal atmosphere. I was given adequate and challenging work that made me feel valued and that, although I was only an intern for a month, I was playing a part in helping the team and the business.

In the first couple of days I was shown, in depth, how to use many of the key systems that the valuation team used regularly. By being taken aside and shown properly how to use it I was able to grasp a keen idea how things worked quickly. There was never an issue if I did struggle to find something or was stuck on something either my line manager or another member of my team would come and help me out, in fact they encouraged questions to make sure that I was comfortable with the work I was doing and not finding things too hard.

Just like in everything there are slower and quicker days but there was never a time where I was too swamped or had too little to do. My line manager made sure he didn't pile too much on my plate at once but if I had finished a certain task, it was just a case of using my initiative to ask other members of the team whether they had any tasks for me to complete or to help them with something.

I was really pleased with the amount of responsibility I was given by my managers and other team members. As an intern I wasn't expecting to be taking on too much but when they could see how well I was doing and how I was picking things up they would give me more challenging work to do to suite my level. They saw that I wanted to work harder and was capable of doing so so they had no issue in letting me take more control over projects and allow me to put my stamp on things which made me feel like my work was really worthwhile.

As I am not doing a property degree there will not be necessarily any skills developed there but I will be going on to complete a masters in real estate which means that gaining a basic understanding of the industry will help a lot. This was my first job in a more formal role so being around the office with friendly colleagues there to help built my confidence in a lot of areas that are often under valued, such as my confidence on the phone, how to talk to clients and senior people around the office for example. When I was given the chance to move around teams I was able to gain a greater understanding of my skills and where they could be best applied, as well as what areas of real estate really interest me for the future.

The atmosphere was great, you could immediately tell everyone enjoyed working there and working alongside each other. It was positive and rubbed off on me straight away letting me settle in and build relationships. We went on an office evening to the races which was a brilliant way to meet my colleagues in a more informal setting, it showed me what a fun place it would be to work. There was also other times when we went for a meal/few drinks after work on a friday which showed how much people in the office got on.

The placement was well organised and there was a number of people I could contact if I needed any help with anything or had any queries. Although I was predominantly in one team for 3/4 weeks for the last week I was given the chance to take one day in a variety of the other teams around the office which worked very well. The first day of the internship was in London and because I am based in Leeds, they were able to subsidise my journey and also pay for a hotel for the night which was brilliant.

They were brilliant in taking the time to thoroughly show me through different systems and real estate jargon that I had never come across before. Because they took the time at the start to show me properly it meant I was then able to carry that through to the rest of my internship with no issue. Allowing me to spend time in different teams helped me understand where exactly I see myself going and what paths I wanted to take in the future. I managed to speak to other graduates that were working there and how they were finding it, how it worked, and their own advice.

Thankfully for myself, I must have impressed enough and made the right impressions because they offered me a place on their graduate scheme for when I graduate. Not only this but they are partly sponsoring me to complete a masters in Real Estate investment while I work there 4 days a week which is perfect and everything which I could have asked for. Even if i wasn't offered the place straight away I would have certainly applied for the grad scheme myself as I really feel that Cushman & Wakefield is somewhere that I can really develop into the future.

Unfortunately at the Leeds office where I was based there was only two interns so there wasn't especially great 'intern' social events but we managed to socialise with the other colleagues nonetheless which was good. On the first day in London the other interns from around the country, like myself where put up in the same hotel, so we managed to communicate and arrange for us to arrive around the same time and went for a meal and drinks before our first day. There is plenty of potential for socialising with everyone.

I lived at home during my internship so costs where minimal.

Leeds is one of the best cities in the UK for nights out so there was no issue there, although I did try keep this to a minimal while I was doing my internship as I wanted to make sure I was working at 100% for the month I was there.

As mentioned before I was able to attend a races evening with the entire office. I was also invited to a fancy dress cricket day after my internship had ended, which showed how well I got on with everyone. I heard that there was an office 5-a-side football team which I would have joined but unfortunately at the time of my internship the season was over. But around the office you could hear people talking about a variety of charity events/ bike rides/ sports events etc which you could get involved with.