Investments Intern Review

Spending my summer at M&G has been truly unbelievable. It was my very first experience working in an office in a corporate environment, and I couldn't have asked for a better experience. The team I was in was like a family to me, each of them so invested in my growth, and always happy to help me out whenever I needed it, frequently going above & beyond for me. I was truly given everything I needed to have an excellent experience; from a constant support system, the best resources needed to learn, to the trust in paving my own path. The culture at M&G was unlike anything I had expected, I always used to say throughout my internship that there genuinely wasn't a single 'mean' or 'scary' person in M&G, even those that were higher up were so easy to speak to, and so happy to help you out. I never felt like I was lower than anyone else, I truly felt like a part of the team from day 1.

The team I was put in was full of some of the kindest people I have ever met. Each of them cared so much about my experience here, and we arranged frequent catch-up sessions to ensure I was getting the most out of my experience. I was brought along to lots of meetings, and any ideas and input I had were always valued. I got to spend the day with different teams and had incredibly insightful conversations about the work they did at M&G. I had hundreds of questions throughout the internship, but everyone clarified to me time & time again how happy they were to answer any questions I had. It truly felt like my team & I were like family, both in the closeness of the relationship we'd built within such a short span of time, but also in just how much my growth throughout these 8 weeks mattered to all of them.

Everybody in the team and even outside my direct team was so incredibly supportive throughout my time here. Anyone I'd meet would be so happy to sit down with me and answer any questions I had. There was a period where my manager had to take some time off, but even during his time off, he'd have regular check-in sessions with me to make sure I always had enough to get up to. We always discussed different ideas on how to get involved, different people to reach out to, and ways I can get insight into different areas. When he was gone, it never felt like I was on my own, since the whole team stepped in and took care of me, making sure I could get involved & had someone to turn to in case I had any questions. I was beyond supported during my experience, I genuinely couldn't have asked for a better outcome.

It depends. I was really as busy as I'd let myself be. The entire internship was truly in my hands, and it really was what I made of it. If I had a quieter day, I could arrange sit-downs & sessions with different people, I could choose to work on a certain task or another. If I didn't proactively go out & try to be busy, I'd say it would be a quieter day. It really is what you make of it. In terms of the city, I feel like the work-life balance I got at M&G was incredible and it was very important to them that work stayed at work and that I had time for myself out of working hours.

Just the right amount. I was an intern, coming in with not much (if any) asset management knowledge, understandably, I couldn't help out in much in that aspect, but I still feel like the task I was given to work on across the 8 weeks was an incredibly valuable task to those it was relevant to. Every week, people would ask how it was going, and we'd discuss the interesting insights I had obtained during my research, and I could really feel like my work was adding value. People from all across M&G were truly interested in what I had to say, and would forward me related information that they felt might be helpful in my research. Furthermore, everyone was very happy for me to arrange things throughout my internship that I felt were valuable to myself and to the other interns. I was really given the reigns and allowed to steer these 8 weeks in whichever direction I chose.

Throughout my internship, I always reflected to myself how incredible it was that within these passing weeks, I had learnt more in such a short space of time than I had probably done throughout my entire university experience. Everyday I'd come home in shock at how much I was growing relative to when I first walked into M&G. Sitting in on morning meetings when I first joined, I wasn't able to grasp what was being said, but by making note of what was being said, asking questions, and doing my own research, now as the weeks are coming to an end, I'm starting to understand so much more. Working on my project, having sit-downs with people from across the team, and being invited to meetings has taught me so much about the industry. Being given so much trust and responsibility in setting up the things I wanted to throughout the internship has been incredibly valuable; I learnt how to communicate in a professional manner, and grew so much as a person. This experience has taught me so much, not only theoretically, but also practically. I've learnt so much about myself over these last 8 weeks, and I feel like a completely changed person now, in the best way possible.

Extremely lively, full of energy. A very easy-going yet professional atmosphere. It really does feel like a highly inclusive family, where it's really easy to talk to anyone. The office itself is really relaxing and positive, with yoga and meditation sessions you can join, comfortable and colorful seating areas and you can sit wherever you'd like depending on your mood. It's really communicative between everyone, we use Slack so it's really easy to reach anyone you'd like. As stated earlier, it's really supportive & empowering working at M&G. My manager was extremely understanding and flexible with me as well.

Extremely well organised. Weeks before we arrived we received a very clear email explaining everything we can expect to do, we were given a full 8-week calendar filled with activities, insight sessions, lunches, and dinners, to name a few. I felt like it was extremely well organised, we knew what to expect every step of the way.

I recall contacting my manager at one point to thank him after one of the phone call sessions we had while he was away, after having looked at the list we had made together stating all the different ways I could get involved. I mentioned how grateful I was for the effort that had been put in for me, and he said something that really stuck with me. He said that 'the interns are the future - the future's worth investing some time and effort in.' I found that incredible to hear from him. They really invested highly in us as interns. We had insight sessions almost every day at the beginning of the internship highlighting what work was like within each area of the business, as well.

Extremely appealing. A lot of the people I had met, both in my team & within the wider organisation, had been working for many years at M&G, having started as interns or grads. This to me says a lot about M&Gs culture and their ability to retain their employees. Being able to hopefully come back next year as a grad would be an incredible opportunity, rotating between the different areas of the company and getting a more in-depth view of what work is like within each of them.

Absolutely! In the beginning of the internship, HR arranged lots of events for us to get to know each other better, first day lunch, treasure hunt, bounce ping pong tournament, pub quiz, to name a few. These were excellent ways to get to know each other, since ultimately we were put in different parts of the company and wouldn't have been able to get to know each other well otherwise. We arrange post-work outings, have lunch together a few times during the week, we have a Whatsapp group, and even catch up with each other during the work days to make sure we're doing well.

It's London so as expected, it's quite expensive. Being students, we got access to discounts though and the canteen had amazing food that was highly subsidized. Transport was quite expensive as well, but nothing out of the ordinary for London.

It's great! Studying at university in an extremely small town in the southwest and coming to work in London for the summer is amazing since it has lots of things to do. Not sure if this counts as 'nightlife' per se, but I'd definitely recommend checking out a show in the west end whilst you're here.

Just going to reiterate something I had read on a review here on RateMyPlacement before starting at M&G, there does seem to be clubs in the company such as running or zumba, but it's not very clear how interns can join. At the start though, we were invited to take part in the JP Morgan Corporate Challenge Marathon, which I felt was excellent. Likewise, as stated earlier, HR did arrange lots of activities after work for us which were really fun.