Investment Consultancy Intern Review

The placement and work environment far exceeded any expectations I had going in. I have gotten involved in lots of really exciting and interesting work but at the same time I have seen and worked on a few of the more routine jobs that need doing. It has been good to be given a full representation of the work done.

Everyone has been very very welcoming and supportive, I couldn't have asked for better colleagues overall. The only reason I didn't put 10 is because I am aware that lots of the work we do could have been done much more quickly by someone more experienced. Although we are made to feel valued and given important work it is not as if this work couldn't be done without us.

Never discouraged from asking questions or clarifying what exactly was meant. The hot-desking in the office makes it very very easy to interact with more senior team members and as a result you stop noticing a clear difference between more senior members. Everyone is largely treated the same which makes it easy to ask for help.

Very. First day I was a bit quiet and I got worried that it would be a reflection of the rest of the internship. From there on in I was very very busy every single day. I have had to turn down additional work regularly just because of the workload I already had. It has sometimes been hard to manage time due to never knowing when you might be given something extra to do.

I have had loads of opportunity to work on real client work that was billed just like the work everyone else does. That doesn't mean to say that no one was checking the work I've been doing, but loads of work I have done has been sent out to clients and I even had the opportunity to go to a real client meeting.

Unfortunately this won't be too relevant to my degree directly. Although perceived as being quite a mathematical role, when it comes down to it there is nothing even slightly close to university level maths, especially pure stuff which is mainly where I focus. But at the same time my degree hasn't necessarily prepared me properly for the internship, so I don't really think this is a fair statement to comment on. The skills I have learned will prove invaluable in the future work place but again not to my degree specifically (but I really wouldn't expect it to)

A very casual environment but certainly professional when needed. Everyone has been really really friendly and made a huge effort with the interns. There are always social events big and small going on and you will find yourself socialising with everyone from the new grads to people who have 20 years experience.

Overall quite good I would say. Earlier on I would have liked a little bit more guidance and structure perhaps. Having no set tasks to always be getting on with was, at first, quite hard to get used to and manage but after a while it was no problem at all.

They've made a huge effort to put on regular training sessions with a range of colleagues that were designed to give us exposure to every area of the business. Despite this I have often found some of the more technical knowledge quite inaccessible. I think some kind of basic guide to the LOB would be very beneficial in those earlier weeks.

I could certainly see myself working here and making a career at the firm. This has largely been down to the friendly atmosphere and supportive colleagues I have met in my time here. I wasn't necessarily looking at a career in the financial sector going in but my perceptions have been completely changed.

Yeah, although there is only one other intern in our line of business in Leeds I have gotten on really well with them. We tend to socialise with absolutely anyone and everyone in the office so you could find yourself out with your line manager's line manager's line manager which was a regular occurrence.

Lunches can get quite expensive when you go out because people don't tend to nip to the nearest KFC or Spoons (sometimes they forget we're students and a £15 lunch seems like loads to us) but overall the city is very very cheap in terms of living costs and the internship compensates you very attractively.

It's the same city as where I go to Uni so pretty much as you'd expect from Leeds. We've been out with people from the office a couple of times and they're always up for social events. Overall I would just say it's very good even though this probably wouldn't be a huge factor for me particularly when choosing a placement.

Absolutely. There was a big race night which was the main summer social but every week there are sports or quizzes or charity events going on. I actually got to take a volunteer day off work where a bunch of us went to clean up a public green space that was run down.