Communications and Branding Review

I have enjoyed my placement at UBS so far, as I have been given large amounts of responsibility and I work within a very friendly international team. It will definitely prepare me for whatever I do in my career after University. I would recommend this placement to anyone looking for a year in work.

My colleagues are one of the main perks of working at UBS. Within my team especially, there is not a single person who has ever been unapproachable. From the start, everyone has been extremely helpful and made an effort to meet me. I feel like they really appreciate the work I do, and the respect is mutual.

I have been given lots of support from my manager, and they let me get involved with anything I would like to be a part of. They are always able to answer any questions I may have, and are very helpful in their responses. They are always easy to contact, whether it is in person or through Skype.

There is not too much of a balance in terms of my general workload. This may be down to my own ability to prioritize certain tasks, but I found myself to have lots to do on some days, where as other days the workload may be less. However, I never find myself 'watching the clock', which is good.

I am given lots of responsibility on my placement. I have my own projects to manage independently, and I am parts of other projects where I am given important roles to carry out. This is a very good placement in terms of responsibility and I would recommend it to anyone.

I have learnt some serious skills that I will use for life. My written and verbal communication skills have improved, I am better at time-management and the general experience of working in a realistic environment with real responsibilities will be sure to benefit me in any job in the future.

My office was very good and I can't really fault it. Everyone is extremely friendly and helpful. I am lucky, as I work in a smaller closed area where I can get to know the people I sit around in more depth, but if I worked on the general office floor that would not have been the case.

The placement is extremely well organized, however, there are not too many opportunities to meet other interns other than at the start of the year. The firm is huge, so I was impressed at how well set up each individual role is, and having the person who worked in the role prior to myself stay for a couple of weeks whilst I settled in was a bonus.

I would not say there is much offered in terms of schemes set up to develop me as a person, as a placement student. However, I know that there is a UBS University on site for other employees. Also, I am occupied with the work I have in my role, in which I am learning a great deal more than if I were to have set training and development sessions, as I learn more through experience.

In my specific role, there are no opportunities to get onto a grad scheme, unfortunately. However, I'm sure that if I looked at roles at UBS in the future, it would help to have worked here beforehand. In the majority of other placement roles at UBS, there are opportunities to get onto a grad scheme.

UBS do not really organize much, other than at the start, so it is up to the placement students to organize meet-ups themselves (with some exceptions). I do go for occasional drinks outside of work with colleagues, but it is not too often. I have made some good friends during my team here.

It doesn't really get much more expensive than living and working in London, and the rent and transport are very high. To go out for drinks can be very expensive, but you can find places with happy hours, and there is a Wetherspoons in Liverpool Street station, which is next to UBS.

The nightlife is very good in London, particularly on Thursdays. It is mostly bars which are very good, and a few nightclubs but they are overpriced most of the time. The cost of a night out can set you back quite a lot, but it is often worth it, you just have to find the right places.

There are various opportunities to volunteer outside of work, and there are a few sports you can take part in such as 5-a-side football on Thursday nights.