Finance Intern Review

I've really enjoyed my 10 weeks at Tesco - the atmosphere is great as everyone is really friendly. At first I was less confident about setting up meetings with other people that work here as I'm 'just an intern' but now I've realised that people love a catch up regardless of your position, so I was able to speak to people from across the business about my project but also to find out more about their roles and to ask for advice about working at Tesco.

I definitely feel valued as an employee of Tesco as I can see the effects my project can have and where it is relevant to the business. Everyone here is always willing to help which I think helps with this as they don't make you feel like you're wasting their time. Also, as most people on my team didn't know much about the project I was looking into, it meant that when I went through it with them they were really interested and wanted to know more about it which made me feel like they valued the project I produced.

I sat next to my manager every day so it was really easy for me to ask for help when I needed it. He pointed me in the right direction of people to speak to about my project, and came to most meetings with me as he was really involved with my project which I think was great as it meant I was never confused about where I was going with it or what the information I produced meant for the business. He was also really helpful when I wanted to set up meetings with people from elsewhere in the business as he was so supportive in making sure that I had exposure to all parts of the business and getting to know the graduates as I had loads of questions for them about the grad scheme here at Tesco.

We were given a project to work on over the 10 weeks so there was never a time when I had nothing to do but I was also never so busy that I had to work really long hours. We had side projects as well such as raising money for charity which was great as it meant we got to collaborate with people from different teams/departments and if we were waiting on people to reply to emails to give us data for our projects we still had other things we could be working on.

My project will have a direct impact on the business so I think I've been given a lot of responsibility, although as I've been given a lot of support so I haven't felt overwhelmed by it at all. I've been given a project that is going to be continued when I leave so it isn't just a special project designed for an intern which is great as it means I've had the same responsibilities as other employees such as contacting people from all over the business to find information, including people in Tesco's Hong Kong and Thailand offices.

I think I've made the biggest improvements to my Excel skills which will be useful in any company I work for in the future, even if I work in a different department than finance. There were 'master classes' that we could opt into throughout the internship where we could develop our skills in things like networking as well which is a great skill to have.

There is a great atmosphere here at Tesco - everyone is very friendly and always willing to speak to you. There are always fun things that you can get involved in if you want to, for example I played in a netball tournament with the finance department which was loads of fun. We were given laptops which meant that we could move around and work in different places so you didn't feel like you were stuck in the same place all the time which was great.

I think the internship was very well organised - there were activities organised with all of the other interns in all departments, and also activities within the finance department, and we had a specific project to work on which meant that we were never unsure about what we were supposed to be doing with our time.

There were master classes which we could opt into to work on things like our excel and networking skills, and also my manager made sure that I was able to talk to people on the finance graduate scheme so that I could ask any questions I had for them. Everyone was really supportive, and there was a real emphasis on making sure that we were able to achieve whatever we wanted to get out of this internship.

There is an opportunity to get onto the graduate scheme without going through the whole application process if they like you and you want to progress onto it. We find out a few weeks after the internship has ended whether or not we're being offered a place on the graduate scheme.

There were events organised by the people who run the internship with the other interns and also with the grads, and we also had lunch together and went out after work which was great. We went to events together like the Tesco race for life, and I also got to go on a team day with the rest of the department where we had a treasure hunt across London which was a lot of fun.

London is always going to be more expensive than the rest of the country, but Tesco has subsidised canteens and a gym which is good which really helps. Tesco Head Office is also based in Welwyn Garden City which is slightly north of London so is a bit less expensive than living in the centre of London - I lived in a friend's flat in the centre of London and commuted every day so there was also the cost of transport to think about, but if you live in Welwyn you wouldn't have that. There are also things like Spoons everywhere so you don't have to spend loads of money socialising if you don't want to.

There are places to go in Welwyn but if you want to go to London its only a half an hour train journey and London has an amazing nightlife. I went out with the interns in London as I lived there and there are loads of places to choose from, but I know that other interns who lived around Welwyn went to the pub often too.

There were loads of opportunities to get involved in activities outside of work. For example, I went along to the Tesco race for life and there was also a department team day that I went on which was a lot of fun, and I was involved in a department netball tournament too.