Partnerships & Business Development Intern Review

British Council improves the lives of people all over the world and this makes the work very rewarding.

The nature of the internship meant we were highly regarded by people in and out of our departments.

Regular meetings with my line manager to review performance was something I had not experienced before and was very valuable. Regular team meetings were also a great way to stay abreast of the work of the entire department

It was left up to me to determine my own workload which was great as there wasn't too much pressure and I had the freedom to explore the work I wanted to do.

I had some very visible projects to complete in a short space of time and was also lucky enough to represent the department at high level meetings and international conferences.

My soft skills such as presenting and communicating with colleagues were tested daily and I picked up completely new experience in developing internal and external websites.

There was a good mix of people around you "hot desking" and you could mix with very senior colleagues. Everybody was approachable and there is a definite buzz with working right on Trafalgar Square.

The recruitment process could be coordinated only slightly better between HR department and external company but once on placement it was better than anything I have experienced. A thorough induction to the organisation as a whole followed by regular review meetings with HR staff. My manager was fully briefed on what to do with me and the whole process ran very smoothly.

We were given in depth talks by all the major business functions to give us a thorough introduction and I was given 1-1 training on Sharepoint and Solas to enable me to improve the department websites.

I was returning to university so couldn't continue working there and the graduate scheme requires fluency in a 2nd language but many of the interns who had already graduated have continued to work at the British Council.

Interns regularly met for lunch and we spent time in Trafalgar Square in the build up to the Olympics. It is expensive to go out in central London but we managed a few very enjoyable nights out.

I had to make a choice between rent in London or train season ticket so a lot of traveling made socialising more difficult. The intern salary won't stretch to regular nights out in central London wine bars but the buzz of the big city for a short stint cannot be beaten.

It's Central London, it has virtually everything within a stones throw of the office. Tourist attractions, Theatre, Street performers, Hotels and Bars.

We were taken to Damon Albarns opera as part of our induction. We saw the Olympic torch pass though Trafalgar Square and got many invites to socialise with other departments.