Business Analyst Intern Review

I really enjoyed my internship. The work was interesting and meaningful and everyone at the company was so friendly and helpful- really going above and beyond to help us settle in and make progress with our projects. The internship was 10 weeks long but it genuinely flew by and I've made friends for life.

I definitely felt valued- lots of people were interested in my project and colleagues even asked for my advice when carrying out similar analysis. In my final presentation with my team, a director and senior director I definitley felt like they were trusting my judgement and the work I had put in.

There's a good system in place in that you have your manager, but also a mentor who is less senior who you can ask lots of questions to and they'll make time for you. My manager made expectations clear at the start of the internship, and made sure I was on track for my final presentation. He particularly helped me understand what questions more senior stakeholders may have about my project.

Definitely a good balance overall. In the first few weeks before we had got to grips with the software/data we were less busy, but as we got more into our projects we naturally had more to do. Hours were generally 9-5, I probably only worked beyond these a few times just before my presentation as I was turning around feedback from my manager in time for our next check in.

My project was definitely an important question for the business with potentially big implications, and I had full ownership of it, so I'd say I did have a lot of responsibility. That being said, the training and support in place meant it wasn't overwhelming or too much pressure, but definitely rewarding in the end.

I definitely think the process of delivering a project and the time-management and prioritisation skills involved will be useful when I return to university, particularly for writing my dissertation. Moreover, I think the experience of working in a business and communicating with people on all different levels will be very useful in my future career.

The atmosphere generally at Capital One couldn't be better- everyone is so friendly and helpful and the offices are very open plan which helps that. I was based at the London office which is amazing. There's free hot and soft drinks, cereal, fruit as well pool and table football tables, standing desks and a rooftop bar. The Nottingham office is also great with a subsidised canteen and a gym.

I got the impression this is something they've really been working hard at and it is really paying off. I was invited to meet up events before I started and a meal the night before day 1 with all the other interns. We had a good amount of training and introductions at the start of the internship, and then more social events throughout including a final fun day at Alton Towers. The internship team were also always asking us for feedback throughout the internship so that they can improve it and ensure everyone has a really consistent experience.

We got general training- for example about Capital One as a company, office productivity and presentation skills as well as Business Analyst specific training on SQL and Excel. I think some of the more technical training could be improved (taking more time and going more slowly) but everyone in our teams helped us with figuring it out so we were able to learn on the job.

Most of the business analyst interns were offered grad jobs and I think the grad scheme looks really good at Capital One, especially with the head start of having done the internship. There are many business areas you can be placed in and rotate through to try different things out, and people seem to be able to be promoted quite quickly.

Amazing! I have genuinely made friends for life on this internship. Aside from the organised company events which were very generous and good fun, us London interns travelled up to Nottingham most weeks (this isn't a pain at all- they pay for travel, hotel and dinner) where we went out for food and drinks and always had such a good time.

Being London based, food, drinks and accommodation obviously aren't that cheap, but you can get breakfast in the office. When in Nottingham, most things were paid for and drinks etc were cheaper. For any Capital One events they paid for food and usually had a very generous tab at the bar so we had some really fun nights thanks to that!

The London office is on the Old Street roundabout, so very close to Shoreditch which is full of bars and clubs. Even just going to the rooftop bar at the office for drinks after work was a great way to socialise and there are plenty of places to grab food after work.

There was a 5 Peaks charity hike run by the graduate community which I know some interns took part in on one weekend. Aside from that I think there are Capital One sports things organised which I'm sure you could get involved in for the time you're at Capital One.