Summer Intern Review

I really enjoyed my 8 week internship at Hymans. Everyone was very friendly and welcoming, and quickly made me feel like part of the firm. Despite working from home for the duration, colleagues were very helpful in making sure I was settled in. The work given to me was greatly varied, and challenging, and there was lots of opportunity for me to seek more. The variety gave me understanding of wider aspects of the business, beyond the day to day work.

I felt very highly valued by my colleagues. Working with various teams across the firm, all were aware of my skill set and eager for me to put them to use. I was included in working on important projects, and given lots of responsibility, so all of my work was meaningful and valued by my colleagues. This made me feel welcomed immediately, and appreciated, as I was encouraged to use my own strengths and this was accommodated for by the teams.

I was given lots of support and guidance throughout my internship when I needed it. I was always aware of lots of support being available, and whenever I needed help it was very easy to get. This is because all of my colleagues were very friendly and wanted the best for me. I was given the benefits of being able to work independently and uninterrupted when needed, however knowing that there is a large support network should I need it.

My busyness varied on a day-to-day and week-to-week basis, however this is to be expected with any work. I had both long term, and short term projects and work tasks, which allowed me to balance my priorities accordingly. This mix meant that when less immediate work was needed, I could still be busy working on other tasks. Further, I was always encouraged to feel free to ask for more work from colleagues when I felt like I had little to do, and could also say no to work if I was too busy. This meant that I could maintain a challenging, but not overwhelming workload.

I was given more responsibility than I expected to have before starting. It quickly became apparent that lots of trust was put into me, and I had responsibility over managing the Work in Progress log for certain tasks for a client. This meant I was allocating work throughout the team, and I was responsible for making sure I followed up on their progress, and met deadlines for these tasks. This felt like a lot of responsibility to take on, however it was very enjoyable and challenging.

Due to the variety of work I was involved in, across different business units in the firm, I have learnt a lot about a wide range of business areas. This has given me lots of very valuable knowledge about how businesses operate, as well as a lot more information about the work I would be doing in my career path after graduation. Also, doing lots of work with data analysis will definitely help me in my further studies at university.

Due to COVID-19, my internship was done working from home, as were all staff. This meant unfortunately that I did not get to experience the office environment. However, despite this, strong efforts were made by staff to incorporate the interns into virtual social events, regular casual meetings and catch-ups, and all staff were very happy to have quick calls to chat and answer any questions. So, overall given the situation I think this was done very well.

The internship this year had to be changed quite a lot due to all staff working from home. Thus, it was a large undertaking by the firm to still take on all the interns and provide a well organised internship. However, with this considered I think it was done very well. Starting from week 1, I had the same training sessions and meetings that I usually would of, however done online. It was mostly clear what was expected of me, and what I was doing, and anytime there was confusion it was easy to get help.

The firm did an excellent job of giving me everything that I needed, and I felt that they were strongly interested in my development. I was given many training sessions, and had lots of contact with partners, heads of business units etc who were all interested in my time at university, and my career plan, and how they could help. I was offered lots of materials and the opportunity to seek as much information as I wanted to help myself. Lots of staff hours and resources were invested into my internship.

The internship is assessed for the prospect of interns being hired as a graduate the following year (after completing their final year of study). In the final week, I was given lots of opportunities to demonstrate my skills and experiences. It is expected that many interns will get future employment offers. I am writing this review before completely finishing, however have been told I will be informed shortly after its completion on the success of this.

All working from home, so limited. However there were social events online that allowed all of us to meet each other, talk, and take part in online events.

Working from home due to COVID-19, however I would have otherwise been in the London office (central). Thus, accommodation and/or commuting would be expensive, as well as socialising. However, the internship was paid at a good enough rate that this would have been covered, had I needed to commute and/or paid for accommodation.

Worked from home due to COVID-19, so cannot comment. However, with the office being in central London, I imagine there would be lots availible.

Worked from home due to COVID-19, so cannot comment.