Analyst Review

Was given a variety of pieces of work, was able to build new skills as well as strengthen existing ones, the culture of the organisation is very welcoming and friendly, also a good community of other placement students in the office/around the country so meet a lot of like-minded people.

I was welcomed into the team straight away. From the first month I was given work that was valued by the team, and was able to build up the trust to take on integral pieces of work, with colleagues in other areas of the business coming to me for support and guidance on certain topics.

I was given the right amount of support from my managers from the start - was given a lot of support at the beginning to build up my understanding of the role, then as my confidence and knowledge grew I was able to work independently but always felt as though I could ask my team/managers for any support.

The variety of work and pace of the team meant I was busy on almost daily basis, however it was all work I enjoyed and it would make the time go very quick. Still had the extra time to volunteer for other opportunities or work on other things such as university work.

Over the year as I slowly built up my knowledge and trust within the team I was given more responsibility. By the end of the year I was completely pieces of work independently with no input from my managers and was given the responsibility of managing overseeing the entire Division's supplier base.

I will be a lot more diligent and organised when going back to university. The skills, knowledge and experience I have gained here will be invaluable when finishing university, by helping to differentiate me from the crowd, as well as giving me the confidence and capability to apply for any role that interests me.

Although everyone is busy, the atmosphere is very relaxed and friendly. The dress code is dress down, everyone is happy to offer help, and people will be conversing all the time. Its a very inclusive environment. Although the office isn't as collaborative as Google for example, its a very pleasant place to work.

Never had any issues when starting. Everything was set up for me when I arrived, such as my pass, account details, and laptop. There was a well planned 2 week introduction with training sessions to get to know the bank, other placement students and the office, which then seamlessly transitioned into my job role.

Lloyds offers a range of different online training opportunities, which can include personal development, such as soft skills, training for CV's and Interviews. LiveMeet Sessions are also set up regularly that are optional, aswell as face-to-face skill building sessions with other members of your team. There wasn't external sessions though.

Lloyds offer graduate schemes in a range of different areas in the bank. If you're on the placement year and you do well, your manager can refer you to be on a graduate scheme. It is a much higher likelihood of getting on the grad scheme if referred internally rather than applying externally.

Due to the large size of the placement scheme, you are very likely to be working in an office with a good community of other placement students/graduates. In my experience, the social scene has been very similar to university, I quickly made close friendships and we would always do things outside of work. After we got given our offers, the bank put us in touch with all the other placement students, to enable us to get houses together if we needed to and become familiar with each other before we started our roles.

For a city (Leeds), the living prices and socialising costs were to be expected, and you quickly find the cheaper places to go. Housing is affordable if you live slightly outside the city, and there's plenty of public transport options to easily get into work. Would recommend going outside of the office - the canteen in the office was expensive.

There's something for everyone. Being in the centre of Leeds there is plenty of cheap pubs and wetherspoons to visit if you're on a budget, aswell as lovely bars and restaurants. Weekend events are great and frequent and the student life in Leeds is a great experience, although it is difficult to attend much of the student events considering the work hours.

Although I wasn't part of many a lot of the teams get together to go for dinner outside of work, aswell as sports activities and social clubs. There isn't much advertising of these activities though so it is up to your own devices to go and find them yourself. The placement students would often go rock climbing, golfing or bowling on the weekends.