Intern at Marketing Risk Management & Assurance Review

I was involved with BAU tasks that made me take ownership of the team's tasks. On top of that I was assigned a variety of long-term projects that were extremely engaging, made me feel useful and helped me learn a lot along the way about the business, the industry, and the software used on a daily basis.

I felt I was fully integrated in the team, the outcomes of my projects and my ideas were always given constructive feedback and then were passed on to people in higher positions, so I really felt like I was helping. I felt valued for the work I brought in and how I helped reducing the workload. My opinion and suggestions were always valued and taken into consideration.

My buddy was always there to assist me, answer my questions and talk to me if I was in doubt. She was always happy to give an answer and when she did not know, she directed me to the right person. My line manager was very helpful too, she reviewed some of my projects and assessed their suitability.

There were busier and quieter times. I had some tasks to do every morning but how busy later on, varied depending on how many projects I had running at that time. Usually meetings and projects would give me little free time but not to the point I needed to stay over time. It was perfectly balanced.

I was given quite a lot of responsibility, given that the projects I was developing were supposed to benefit the entire stream, but also the wider business. My projects were passed on to people in higher positions and hopefully, they will be implemented and used. I was also entrusted to fully manage my day and time.

The courses that I undertook during the internship and the character profiling sessions I attended will definitely help me in my future life in general as they allowed me to develop soft skills such as presentation skills, effective communication, networking among others. Everything I have learnt from my tem should help me with my degree in Marketing as I will be aware of rules and regulations governing marketing in the financial sector.

Everyone was helpful and nice, always happy to make time to help or just to chat. Atmosphere was brilliant, and although there were not many people my age, everyone helped me to feel good. There were frequent chats, people were brining cakes to work, people were joking around and I felt fully integrated.

It was very well organised. At the start I was given my objectives and list of projects and as I was progressing I could always consult my buddy or my manager to discuss organisation of the work. I always knew what I was doing, what is the deadline and how to complete it or who to ask for help.

I was allowed time to go to networking events, talks, character profiling sessions and attend volunteering sessions that all helped my personal development and growth. Pretty much every week there was something happening- either organised by the company or organised by myself. We also had wide access to some soft skills training available online.

I would really like to get a grad scheme with the organisation, however I will only find out later this week. The prospects are very appealing- it is a placement of four rotations in different teams, with good pay and possibility for self-development and growth. It also seems that grads in this company are assigned pretty responsible tasks which makes me even more keen to work with them.

Yes, the social scene was quite good. We had some integration events organised by the HR but, as we all lived in the same accommodation, people were meeting on regular basis to watch TV, go out, get food/drinks. Everyone knew each other and we spent a fair bit together outside work and on the weekends.

It was not too expensive, but I felt the prices have risen just before Fringe, which is understandable. Compared to where I leave normally, it was a bit more expensive, however the fact that the company provided us with accommodation and it was not too far from work, helped a lot.

I cannot really comment on that because I am not really a party-person and I rarely go out, but we were in Edinburgh during the Fringe Festival which is a fantastic time of the year with a lot of stuff happening and I know other interns had a lot of fun.

Again, I cannot really speak for myself, as I was based basically at home, but I know that fringe festival provided opportunities to get involved with. I was attending gym on a regular basis and I know some other interns got involved in sporting activities such as rugby or pole dancing.