Actuarial Services (formerly AIMS) Associate Review

I have been involved in a good variety of projects working with a very friendly team. I have enjoyed the whole experience and would definitely recommend it. In terms of location, as I am not based in Edinburgh usually I have really enjoyed the city, particularly because my internship coincided with the Edinburgh international festival and Fringe comedy festival periods which meant there was a lot to do both with the team and the other interns.

I feel like I am a useful part of the team and valued accordingly. Since I have not taken any Actuarial exams or courses there was always going to be a limitation to my technical capabilities, however I have still participated in a wide variety of work across the department, ranging from more admin and documentation tasks that are still part of the normal job, to participating in client work.

There is a structure in place so that PwC designate you a buddy and a people manager. This system means that you always have your buddy for help with more informal issues and difficulties and then your people manager who helps guide you through the internship process. In addition, the managers on my various bits of work have always been happy to answer any questions I had and generally everyone has been supportive and helpful.

My working hours have been 9-5.30 and I have always had something to get on with. The internship has been outside of the busy season for the team but I haven't had many times with little to do. PwC nationally ran a Dragons Den style project and some training sessions alongside our individual work which meant that you could still engage in these tasks if you are waiting for developments with other work. If you told others that you were free then people always had something for you to help with.

I was placed into the appropriate place in the team structure so that once I understood a task, I performed it independently without supervision but then my work was subject to the same review process as everyone else, especially for client work. Generally I have been given tasks with deadlines and then given the responsibilty to manage my time and produce the work for other members of the team.

None of the training received has been particularly relevant to my degree with is a relatively pure mathematics course however the work and general working environment has definitely developed my skills which will help function effectively in this sort of role going forwards beyond my degree. I think some of the work methods and attitude I have developed here will help me generally with my final uni year and definitely give me some insight into real world applications of some modules.

The office is a large open plan area with designated sections for different lines of service. Usually there is a pleasant atmosphere with general chatter and people get along well with each other. My internship happened to fall when a lot of the team went on holiday so there were a few days when my particular section of the office was quite quiet but there was always people to talk to and other interns around for lunch.

The internship has felt like a generally smooth process. The only issue that I had was regarding a taxi failing to pick me up from an airport for the national induction training, however PwC were expecting me to be picked up and I think it was probably an issue with the taxi company. The issue was quickly resolved through the expenses policy so I took no financial hit from the experience. Interns are kept well informed of the process thoughout and always know what their next step is.

Every intern from all the offices around the country were brought together to stay for 3 days in a nice hotel set up for business meetings with travel, food, drinks and accomodation all paid for. There was specific line of service relevant training for most of the 3 days which was very good help and preparation for joining our teams. After that point, there were some weekly sessions that aimed to help us with things like networking and presentations. There is also a good feedback culture which allows us find out how you have been performing and give you development points to work on.

There is quite a clear career path of progression through the organisation which is highly appealing and through a lot of my work and attending team meetings I have been able to gain an insight into how Actuarial Services in PwC plans to change and adapt going forwards which was extremely useful considering the possible length of career with PwC or in the industry in general. In my final week, I will find out if I am to be offered a job. During the induction they made it clear that 90% of interns will be offered a graduate place as a result of the internship.

Since I have been based in the Edinburgh office, there are only 7 interns here and most days 4/5 of these have been at client sites with their teams rather than based at the office. PwC encouraged us to get in contact with each other before joining the office and we ended up often eating lunch together and doing something outside of work once a week. The resendential induction was a good place to socialise with all the interns around the country.

Getting accomodation in Edinburgh was quite tricky and expensive during the Fringe period and considering I had no ties to the place. It cost me about £1000 for 6 weeks of accomodation through AirBnB but his was factoring in visits from others. Being a city centre and during the festival I found drinks to be quite expensive, regularly it was more than £4 a pint which to me seems extortionate but I don't live in a city! If you are looking to maximise your financial gain then choose an office where you can already commute to but that wasn't something I considered.

The Fringe festival and Edinburgh generally was really really good. It meant that there was always something on and a wide range of free shows in addition to ones you could pay for (no more than £20). There is pubs and places to eat everywhere but I am not one for clubbing so couldn't tell you anything about that but there does seem to be a range of places that you could go.

There are monthly office drinks, promotion/qualification celebrations and a team festival night out all organisations while I was here as well as a welcome lunch specfically for me.