Data Analyst Review

I have thoroughly enjoyed my internship, with plenty of opportunities to explore the variety of departments, not only relating to my BAU activities, but also the wider business. From day one, I have felt the work environment to be very inclusive and welcoming, with colleagues and supervisors offering support whenever needed. The work was very engaging and allowed further insight into other teams that I would not have previously been exposed to, if it wasn't for the projects I was involved in.

Every colleague that I met made the time to talk to me about their work and experiences and were more than happy to assist me in any way that they could; regardless of how busy their own workload was. Because of their willingness to ensure I had an enjoyable experience, it allowed me to come in and leave the office each day feeling valued and motivated me to see how I could offer my support to various projects and colleagues.

I was impressed by the level of commitment my manager had in assisting me to achieve what I wanted to get from this internship, from the limited spare time he had available. Though I had previous experience of many concepts in the cyber security domain, he ensured that my knowledge and skills were challenged and supported me in understanding new areas and concepts of cyber security and provided networking opportunities in order for me to further pursue questions I had in those areas.

The work I was assigned to was challenging and interesting, with areas that were relevant to my degree. There would moments when I completed the work assigned to me before the deadline; however I didn't have a single day of nothing to do, as there were an abundant of opportunities to get involved in projects, inside or outside my immediate team.

As an intern the level of responsibility is understandably lower compared to full time employees; however this did not stop me or any other intern from voluntarily gaining additional responsibilities. In the team I was working with, there were periods where I had responsibilities to deliver critical components of projects. It was reassuring to know that whenever I needed assistance, my supervisor and my team members would more than happy to help me resolve any blockers I had from achieving actions from those responsibilities.

The work I have done has given me knowledge in an area I had not known existed, previous to starting the internship. As a result, what I have learnt during my time on the internship will be used as part of my dissertation for the final year of university. In addition to this the training that National Grid has provided has allowed me to learn new skills, which have contributed towards my own personal development.

The overall atmosphere in the office was very welcoming and friendly. There were different areas in the office for collaboration, quiet working and formal boardroom meetings, which slightly contributed to how meetings ran. The office is set up for hot desking, allowing the opportunity for colleagues to sit anywhere they would like. This was beneficial at times where it allowed me to be introduced to different teams in the building.

The internship was set up very well. The first week included offsite training, which was hugely valuable. The assessment was documented well and review meetings were planned at appropriate times and were lead to be friendly and constructive. I especially like how (for the first time in the programme) they included all the Interns, Power Academy and Industrial Placement people together in the first week of training. I hugely appreciate this and hope they continue to do so! One thing I would like to see improved is better collaboration of events from the different groups, allowing for increased awareness of how the wider company operates.

The National Grid invested in a large amount of my personal development during my internship. This was shown immediately in the first week, where we had a dedicated week of personal training and development at their specialised training academy. It was apparent that this was done so we could get the most out of our experience and time at National Grid. Towards the end of the internship we had an additional 2 days of personal development and training to leverage on what we had learnt since we first started the internship and areas of our personal development that we could improve on.

Extremely appealing. Through speaking to the current graduates at the organisation it was apparent that the company invests a lot of time and money into them and their development. The opportunities and qualifications and perks that National Grid offer make their graduate scheme a tremendously appealing graduate scheme to join.

Because the Power Academy, Interns and Placement programmes were mixed together at the very first week, it made for a solid bond to be formed among all of us. There were plenty of times that I met with my fellow colleagues both at lunch and after work. Even if you’re not into clubbing (which I for one am not) there is still plenty of things to do. If you ever feel bored of Warwick, then Birmingham was only a 25-minute train away, which made for some fun evenings out.

I was surprised at how expensive the Leamington Spa area is. You’re going to have to be prepared to house share due to the rent being quite expensive (~£500 mark). The town has its typical standard chain restaurants and high street names, such as Wagamama, Turtle Bay, etc., Although there are some cheaper places too, such as your typical Wetherspoons.

There are a very limited number of clubs in the Warwick and Leamington Spa area. I would suggest catching the 25-minute train to Birmingham if you want to have an awesome night out. There are a few bars that are good to drink at and you’ll find a number of places that sell a good cocktail.

There were many clubs to get involved, which is posted on the noticeboard at work, these included (and not limited to): netball, cricket, squash, kayaking, etc. There were also occasions when our team went out for dinners and nights out. National Grid also has many activities and groups you can get involved with if you desire such as exercise classes at the gym or discounts to shows at theatres.