Summer Student Review

I enjoyed the whole eight weeks and I really like every aspect of working at Barnett Waddingham. Some of the highlights would be the broad range of work I was given as well as the high level of support for each piece of work. I received quick and constructive feedback that I used to learn and progress.

I felt like a valued member of the team with my input being recognised and appreciated, however small the task was. The staff were all very welcoming and there are a lot of socials which always gave the opportunity to interact with members of staff on other teams as well as the chance to get to know everyone outside the work environment.

My supervisor was very helpful from the start with frequent check ins to make sure I was settling in well. The review meetings, half way through the internship and at the end, were incredibly useful as I gained constructive feedback and felt comfortable to ask any questions that I had. He was very friendly and approachable and was always more than happy to help.

In general, I always had something that I could work on, usually two or three tasks from different people giving me a feel on how to manage work without being overwhelmed by it. There were very few times when I ran out work and even when I did it wasn't for long.

I was given a fair amount of responsibility during my time at Barnett Waddingham. I was usually given a task and an explanation of it before I was left to complete it with the offer to ask if I had any questions. I liked that I had the choice as to how much help I wanted with each task.

The various tests interspaced within the internship really developed my soft skills. We had to complete three presentations in different situations which helped me become a more confident speaker as well as honed the skill to change my presentation style to suit the situation. The letter writing exercise gave an insight into actuarial exams and the data checking exercise really refined my excel skills.

The atmosphere tends to be quite calm and quiet with light general chatter. It is very comfortable to work in and the hot-desking allows you to sit with new people everyday. It was definitely more lively during the socials, such as the weekly Friday pub outing, where everyone is very relaxed and fun.

The internship was very well set-up with training at the start to make sure we were all well integrated into the systems. I liked how the training was spread out over the first two weeks allowing you to use some of the things learnt in training without having an overload of information.

There was a lot of training at the start of the internship in all the different aspects that we would be working on. This was really useful as it allowed you to ask questions and understand the activity clearly before going into it. Even when we were given tasks, the staff member always made sure to go through it with us at the start.

The future employment prospects are very positive as it is rare to find a place where you have important client work that is balanced by a good work environment that doesn't require you to stay for very long hours. The study days per week are also incredibly valuable as well as the support for exams, where you can go at your own pace and there is no pressure if you fail exams.

The placement students all got on really well and we tended to eat lunch together at BW and ventured out into London as well during our lunch breaks. We also organised a social to "Bounce" and the Great British Beer Festival. They were all great and friendly and it was nice to have someone who was at the same stage as you.

As can be expected, central London is quite expensive, however the prices seem quite reasonable in general and there are always cheaper places dotted around. There is a huge range of restaurants and pubs around that means that there is plenty of choice and always something for everyone, and allows you to try out something new.

The nightlife was pretty good considering the office is located in the centre of the city. The pubs are usually open quite late and there are always clubs around. As it is the centre of London it is always lively and there are always people around so it feels quite safe in comparison.

There were a lot of socials and this ranged from pub nights to darts and treasure hunts. There were also a lot of sports socials such as badminton, football and table tennis, all of which usually ended at the pub too. The interns were also asked to organise two social between us which turned out very well.