Finance Intern Review

I loved working at M&G. The hours were reasonable, the people were all incredibly friendly and welcoming and there were lots of training opportunities. They eased me in with the work then gave me things that were challenging and of value to the department.

Everyone was very nice and helpful and would invite me to their meetings and show me what they were doing then give me a chance to work on it myself.

I would have a weekly catch up with my manager and he would regularly check up on what I was up to to make sure I had enough to do. He would also give me heads up on what work was coming and give me context so I understood why I was doing it.

There were times I would stay late to finish the work but I never felt pressured to do so. There were peaks and lulls but if I asked around I could usually get some work to do.

I did some have some responsibilities which was great but if I needed support or someone to check my work, my colleagues would always be happy to - for me personally, it was the right balance.

I learned a lot about accountancy and they gave me lots of advice for accountancy qualifications and career progression. I was also able to participate in some interviews and see it from the other side.

The office could be quiet at times but if it had been loud and buzzing it would have been quite hard to focus on the work. People would have fun and banter at times and most would have lunch together in the canteen. The summer party was great fun and we went out for drinks a few times.

M&G themselves were very well organised from application to interview to my first day. However, the contract agency they used (Randstad) would take weeks to reply to emails or not pick up the phone.

We had two days of training to start with on investment management which was very useful and interesting. They also regularly had lectures on different topics such as fund awareness, health and wellbeing and career progression which you were encouraged to go to.

Hoping to return next year for another internship. Also hopefully when I graduate there will be a grad scheme in the finance department.

We were provided networking drinks near the start and farewell drinks towards the end but in between it was up to us.

I lived at home with my parents and commuted but as for socialising it is London so it isn't cheap but I think it was reasonable.

There were plenty of bars and tube was close to go to clubs.

There were sports events like netball and football but I didn't go to any.