European Technical Sales Leadership Support Review

Overall, I very much enjoyed my placement with IBM. I liked my role and there was a very good intern community in the Southbank offices, which helped when I first moved down to London.

For the majority of the time, I felt that my work was valued by senior colleagues as they took the time to say thank you. Of course there were times when my contribution to tasks was overlooked, but I think this was due to it being a busy time of year.

Management were always willing to support and guide me with any queries I had. The internal chat messenger meant that people were always only 'one message away' if you needed help.

It fluctuated throughout the year; there were times when I was very busy and times when I had little to do. However, when I was quiet I participated in online education courses (provided by IBM) and got involved with 'giveback' opportunities.

Compared to other other interns I know (at IBM and other companies), I felt like I was given lots of responsibility - such as producing material and representing my team in senior management meetings. I have come away from my role craving more opportunities to be given more responsibility.

I felt that the skills I learned did not specifically apply to my degree, however they will definitely be useful later in my career. From hard skills, such as excel document analysis, to soft skills such as teamwork and presenting to large audiences.

The general atmosphere in my team was great. There was a good mix of age demographics and backgrounds in my team which I always believe can help in team situations. Having a large intern community was also very useful in social situations outside work.

From my handover period to the end of my placement, I felt that my placement was very well organised. The company has had interns for many years and as a result, the 'placement scheme' has been very finely tuned.

Informally, I feel like the firm put a lot of effort and training to me as I was given responsibility and a clear handover from day one. Formally, I did not receive any qualifications from the year, but that is due to the nature of my job - eg. not being based around financial services.

Future employment prospects are very appealing within the company. There is a clear and guided pathway on how to go from an intern role to a graduate role, something which I am planning to do.

I have mentioned this in a previous answer, the social scene within interns has been great. It really helped when I first moved down to London and it has meant I have made a lot of friends who I meet up with outside of work.

I work in the centre of London, naturally, this means that drinks prices around the office are very expensive. However, there are places nearby that have happy hours which make it more affordable and being paid a 'London salary' makes it appear less expensive.

Going 'out out' near work isn't great, there are places but they are expensive. However, for going to bars and pubs after work, the area is great. There are lots of good places (especially in the summer) to visit after work.

Officially, there are not many opportunities to get involved with activities outside work. However, I have joined two football teams made up of interns I met at work and have really enjoyed playing in them both!