Business Support Analyst Review

Throughout my time at HP, I thoroughly enjoyed the varied workload as an intern which involved everything from consolidating reporting packages to presenting to very senior management in weekly reviews of the business. I also found the culture in the team I was working in and the company as a whole to be very supportive. My internship helped me to develop numerous vital skills that I can use in any future employment.

I had fantastic support and guidance during my time as an intern. Weekly meetings with my manager allowed me to discuss how to best meet my objectives and goals, as well as learn how to best learn from my mistakes. At HP, many of the interns, myself included, took on a mentoring program - regular meetings with my supportive mentor again helped me to particularly improve my soft skills.

My placement involved a great deal of responsibility right from the star - my job role focused heavily on supporting different areas of the business and I regularly had to produce data models for senior management and communicate this information to them.

The general atmosphere in the office was very welcoming and friendly - with many intern jobs, being able to work in multiple teams with people from different departments in the office is pivotal so having this working atmosphere made the job very pleasurable.

Overall, the work placement was well organised from start to finish - my work load increased gradually throughout the year and there was always a clear plan of what I would be working on at different points in the year.

Over the course of the placement, I attended multiple training events - some of these were at the main Bracknell office whilst others took place in different parts of the country. Each of these turned out to be very valuable and useful for my development in one way or another. I also took on the option of having a mentor for the year - this again helped me to develop greatly.

Future employment prospects depend entirely on the nature of the intern role that you undertake - with some there are possibilities to come back on a graduate scheme but this isn't the case for all departments. Hewlett-Packard will also be splitting into 2 separate companies later in 2015 and with this might come new employment prospects for graduates.

The cost of living varies and highly depends on where you choose to live during the placement. For interns choosing to live at home, costs will be much lower. The vast majority of interns, however, decide to live in different parts of Reading. Rented accommodation can be fairly expensive compared to living in other parts of the country, but I found the general cost of living (food and transport) and socialising to be virtually the same as elsewhere in the UK.

The nightlife in the area that I lived in was good (Reading), but it's not quite on the same level as some other cities in the UK. Having said that, being located close to London gives you opportunities to try out the much more varied nightlife there.

Throughout my time at the company, there were many opportunities to get involved in activities outside of work. There is an active intern committee at HP so there are lots of opportunities to get involved in charity / voluntary work in your own time. Similarly, the committee organises many social get-togethers at different points in the year.