Regional Communications Intern Review

I have enjoyed this year very much as each day has been different and there has been challenges which have allowed me to develop new skills and strengthen my existing skills I had prior to the placement. I have a better understanding of what a work environment will be like after I graduate from University.

I am very grateful that I have been put with such a great team. Everyone was so welcoming when I first joined and I have always felt that I actually am part of the team and not just felt like an intern. I have always felt that I can ask any questions if I needed to and felt overall valued by the team.

My manager and I have weekly catch ups which has always been so helpful as it means I can ask her any questions or get a better understanding of projects and she has a better understanding of my progress. We have also been looking at my development plan every few months where we look at what my strengths are and focus on what I can approve on and what else I would like to get out of my placement.

I always had a good balance of daily admin duties which I would have to do every day and then there were particularly busy days especially during specific campaigns and press trips. I have always had tasks and projects to get on with in my placement and would always ask my manager for tasks if I felt I didnt have as much of a busy day.

Further into my placement, my responsibilities have grown, however I feel I have always been given a lot of responsibilty in my job even from when I initially started.

I believe I had pre exisiting communication skills before I joined, but these have definitely developed over my placement year as I have been working in more situations where I have had to communicate ideas and present with clients and colleagues. I feel also having experience in a work environment has prepared me for what to expect after my degree.

There would never be a dull day in the office. Being a smaller team, everyone is so close and you get to know your colleagues and build friendships which makes it generally a really lovely atmosphere to work in. There is always music on in the office so never feels silent either and we always celebrated peoples birthdays too.

The internship was really organised as prior to when it started you were invited to the Facebook page where you could meet the other interns on your team or alternatively if you needed to find a place to live you could see who else is looking for a place and organise a houseshare through that. I also thought it was really beneficial that we had an intern handover with the previous intern for a week as it eased me into the job better and I felt more confident what to do when I then was on my own.

As mentioned in previous answer, the intern week handover plays a crucial part to training and was very helpful as you had first hand knowledge of what the role includes and were able to ask any questions you have to them. Following the handover, myself and my manager made sure we had a development plan for me and we would look at this every 2-3 months to focus on my progress so far and what I can approve or want to achieve before I leave.

I'd like to hope that in the future after I graduate I can apply for a job for the Communications department as I have really enjoyed working for the company and believe I have more skills that I could develop further here and really get on well with the team.

Yes because of the Facebook group, interns were able to arrange different social activities like drinks after work and there was also an Intern ball organised for all the interns to socialise and meet new people too. As there are also so many interns in each team and you work closely with others you meet a lot of interns in the company and build friendships.

As I didn't live in the area, I commuted from Guildford to Hammersmith, I'm not too sure how much it was to live in the area but I think it was still quite expensive. However there are many pubs and restaurants in the area which you can get money off from Employee discounts so it's good so you can socialise locally after work.

There are many different bars and pubs in the area, especially along the river which is really nice in the summer. However as Hammersmith is on the Piccadilly line, it's so easy to get around London on the tube to other places with a better variety of nightclubs and bars.

Disney offered lots of different activites to get involved outside the office. You can join the Disney choir, take part in any volunteering opportunities, Yoga classes, there was also a triathlon that employees can take part in in the summer. There are also employee discounts for local gyms and classes so you can take part in these too.