Stand Up To Cancer Marketing Intern Review

I really enjoyed my internship at Cancer Research UK; it was great to be part of such an exciting campaign for such a good cause, and know that the tasks I completed were actually meaningful and contributed to the overall delivery of the campaign. I have definitely learnt a lot and developed lots of practical skills that will help me in my future career. The social side of the internship scheme is also really good, as there are about 40 interns in each intake. All the interns worked together on various fundraising activities and I have made some really good friends.

I felt valued by my colleagues most of the time, particularly during the busy campaign season when it was very much 'all hands on deck'. My manager/other colleagues always thanked me when I completed tasks for them and seemed very appreciative of my contributions. However, I felt that the more senior managers did not really interact much with the interns in my department.

I was given a lot of support and guidance by my manager. The scheme is particularly good as each intern has their own manager, as well as the intern coordinator who acts as another point of call and is there to offer any help or assistance and address any issues. Weekly 1-2-1 sessions are held with each intern and their manager, in which you can discuss your current work projects and personal development, as well as help with CV's, job applications etc.

I was fairly busy on a daily basis, particularly at the start of my internship as I joined during the main Stand Up To Cancer campaign. I found that it was good to be really busy at the start, as I learnt a lot very quickly, and got used to managing multiple work tasks/prioritising my time very early on. After the campaign, the workload was significantly less, however I was given an on-going project for my final 4 weeks of the placement, which was much more in-depth than the ad-hoc tasks I did previously.

I was given a fair amount of responsibility during my internship. For example, whilst my manager was off for a week, I was tasked with drafting and designing an email to be sent to supporters, which gave me a lot of responsibility and required me to use my initiative. However, there were also other tasks where I did not have as much responsibility and weren't as exciting (such as general admin tasks), which was to be expected.

As I studied Marketing at university, this internship was ideal for me as I was able to put my knowledge into practice in a real-life campaign. I was able to carry out tasks in a variety of different areas of marketing and event delivery, and developed a lot of practical skills and experienced life in an office environment, which I can take forward into my future career. There was also a CV and interview training workshop included in the scheme, and various talks and workshops were available to enhance your personal development; for example I attended a workshop which explained the basics of Microsoft Excel.

The general atmosphere in the office was very positive - the staff are friendly and very welcoming of the new interns, and as it is a charity organisation, there is a lot of internal fundraising that brings everyone together and creates a great atmosphere.

The overall internship is very organised and structured. As well as weekly 1-2-1's, I also had more formal reviews at the start, middle and end of the placement to see how things were going. All the interns start and finish at the same time, and there are various events that are scheduled at specific times, such as the CV and interview training half way through the scheme, and the leaving event on the last day.

The company invest a lot of time and effort in the personal development of the interns. I had weekly 1-2-1's with my manager to discuss my progress, and there are multiple talks/workshops/training that are available for all staff to participate in, including interns. I was also asked what skills I would like to develop during my time there, and given advice and information on how I could do this.

The future employment prospects within the organisation are very appealing; there are always lots of vacancies available and these were often emailed round to the interns by our intern coordinator. There are lots of entry level jobs that are perfect for people who are looking for the next step after their internship, and previous Cancer Research UK interns definitely have an advantage when applying for these.

Yes, as mentioned there are about 40 interns per intake meaning there are lots of opportunities for social events. The interns organised a lot of their own fundraising activities to raise money for the charity, and we also regularly went out for lunch and drinks after work to socialise.

As the head office is based in London, the cost of living and socialising was very expensive. I was able to live at home and commute to London everyday for my internship, however the travel expenses offered did not cover all of my travel costs, meaning I had to pay a bit extra myself.

The Cancer Research UK office is based in Angel in Central London; there is a lot to do in Angel but also around the whole of London. The office itself is located about a 1 minute walk from Angel tube station and is on the main high street, which includes a variety of bars, pubs, restaurants, shops etc.

Yes - there were lots of opportunities to volunteer at various Cancer Research UK events!