Actuary Intern Review

The internship was my first experiences of working in an office. The tasks I was given were challenging, and enabled me to stretch my mind further. The work is very on-the-job oriented, as this is the only way you can learn with this kind of work, from your errors and mistakes. The Corporate Social Responsibility project was very intriguing and it was fantastic to help a school that was in need. All in all, I was very pleased with the internship and it will look great on a CV as there is so much to write about.

My colleagues in the office are welcoming and supportive. At first the work I was doing was completely new to me as I'm working towards a straight mathematics degree with no financial mathematics input. When I had trouble or didn't understand anything, everyone was understanding and were willing to help. A profession atmosphere to work in, and very enjoyable.

Support and guidance were everywhere and anywhere. I felt like I could talk to anyone about the problems I had and they gave excellent advise. All the interns had a manager to report to if we had any serious problems. We also each had a 'buddy' of whom took us through, and introduced us to, the office and procedures.

Tasks are often allocated to you from your colleagues. Sometimes there are moments where you are free, but upon asking around for any tasks you tend to get you desk full again. All in all, a very good balance.

The responsibilities include access to the relevant task files on the company database. Responsibilities also include contacting clients over the phone, and setting up client emails. All of which must done well in order to ensure an excellent image of the company.

I have learnt may new skills of which I can take forward. The key areas which I feel I have improved are my communication, confidence, experience in working within a team, and technical skills. The project was important in building up confidence in yourself and talking to different people. This is something that can improve anyone, and is key in such an interactive career as this.

The general atmosphere is relaxed, but a place where everyone knows what they have to do and will get it done.

The interviews and assessment day were a bit close to the actual start of the internship but all in all a very well organised placement. The plans of any key events were well organised and were made very clear to the interns.

Colleagues hosted a few presentations about the key knowledge we needed to know. Everything else was learnt on-the-job via a small briefing about the task beforehand.

At the end of the internship a decision is made whether to offer you a place for the following year (assuming you will graduate the following summer). I was informed that it was not to be a competition between interns as there was enough room to take everyone, but it was individually whether they thought you were right for the job. So overall, I think if you have appropriate for the job and have the required skills they will take you on.

Colleagues go out for lunch and drinks after work occasionally. Particularly around the times of examination results. There is a social events leader that organises and arranges events for the Epsom office, of which anyone can get involved with. In terms of the students, whenever there is a meeting at the London office the interns get to meet up and sometimes arrange to go out for a meal or for drinks afterwards. So overall it is a fairly relaxed social scene.