Civil Service Fast Stream Summer Diversity Intern Review
by HM Revenue & Customs
This review was submitted over 4 years ago, so some of the information it contains may no longer be relevant.
Rating
-
The Role
3.7
-
The Company
3.8
-
The Culture
3.9
- 1. To what extent did you enjoy your work placement or internship?
- 2. To what extent did you feel valued by your colleagues?
- 3. To what extent were you given support and guidance by management/your supervisor(s)?
- 4. How busy were you on a daily basis?
- 5. How much responsibility were you given during your placement?
- 6. To what extent did/will the skills you developed, and training you received, assist you in your degree studies and beyond?
- 7. What was the general atmosphere in your office?
- 8. How well organised was the overall work placement or internship set up?
- 9. In terms of personal training and development, to what extent did the company or firm invest in you?
- 10. What were the perks on your work placement?
- 11. How appealing are future employment prospects within the organisation?
- 12. Was there a good social scene amongst any fellow placement students/colleagues?
- 13. What was the cost of living and socialising in the area you worked in?
- 14. What was the Nightlife like in the area you worked?
- 15. Were there many opportunities to get involved in activities outside of work?
The Role
Thoroughly enjoyed my experience, definitely exceeded my expectations in terms of how enjoyable full time work could be compared to student life.
My close work colleagues were extremely welcoming and supportive. They made sure to offer honest feedback on my work, and made sure any valuable contributions were acknowledged - one of the directors even sent me a personal email of thanks after one of my projects.
Whilst I was given excellent support by the work colleagues around me, my actual line manager was noticeably absent during my internship, which was a shame.
On the whole it was a standard 9 - 5 schedule which meant plenty of time for a social life. There was no pressure for me to stay on late to do work - in fact it was frowned upon. During the days it varied - sometimes I had little to do and other days I was working frantically.
Nearly all the work I did added value to my group's work - I was doing work that would otherwise be done by a full-time employee. Some of my work was quite pertinent for senior board meetings, and some other work was more geared towards personal development.
Most of the development I gained from this was personal and professional, rather than academic. Skills that were developed included teamworking, presenting, delegating, working to deadlines and professionalism
The Company
Very relaxed atmosphere, with quite a bit of banter and laughs. Senior management readily socialised and worked with the rest of us.
More could have been done to ensure the line manager's suitability for hosting an intern, as well as ensuring the interns were given challenging work (not for me personally, but for another intern). Apart from that, it was quite well structured, though a lot of what you get out of it is how proactive you are in grabbing opportunities.
A lot of emphasis is placed on training/development - the Fast Stream has enrolled nearly everyone in an extensive coaching programme to help people through the Fast Stream application process.
Flexi Time
Subsidised/Company Gym
Company Parties/Events
Fast Stream graduates are very well received (and well paid) at HMRC - they are seen as the future leaders of this ageing organisation.
The Culture
Everyone was always up for eating together and we organised a few after work events too.
Whitehall is in central London. Enough said.
Central London offers everybody everything they could possibly want.
The organisers actively encouraged us to seek opportunities outside of our home departments and experience others - I visited the FCO, DFID, HMT, Parliament, Heathrow Border Force, BIS and the MoJ. Social events were also organised.
Details
Internship (1 Month+)
London
September 2013