Actuarial & Benefits Summer Intern Review

The placement was very well ran. With lots of opportunities to get involved in different types of work and a strong social community, there is never a boring day at Hymans Robertson. They have many elements that go towards looking after their employees including the company wide ethos of sharing workloads to ensure that deadlines are met and one person isn't over worked.

Everyone was very patient and understanding if I didn't get things correct first time, however made a point on commenting when I had done something well. They were all very grateful whenever I offered to help and even took on board points I had made about inefficiencies from my intern project.

My intern lead would discuss with me each week what I wanted to do next in the firm and if there was any type of work I wanted to see more of. This gave me the free to move towards reports from hand calculations; I was able to gain an insight into our client and what we provided for them.

Most of the time you have plenty to get on with and not too much that is urgent however on one or two moments I ended up with urgent tasks coming in and other times nothing to do, which is the nature of client based work. When I had nothing particular to do I would work on my project so it wasn't a big deal.

After a couple of weeks in the firm, I had the responsibility for drafting documents that would be given the trustees of pension funds; after you've gained even the smallest experience the company start to push you to learn more things and get involved in different schemes and document types.

I have never learned so much relevant skills to becoming an actuary from three years in a degree course - specifically actuarial science. You gain a lot of soft skills and develop your communication abilities. Completing a learning log over my time at the company and discussing it with my intern lead has highlighted areas I want to develop in future.

Everyone is very friendly and open; this is owed to the people they hire and the open plan office space (not a single private office, even for senior partners). From the team away day with archery and an assault course to end of month drinks, the company ensures that you have a social life, have fun and make friends. There are stressful days, however hey are worth it for the community and hospitality at Hymans Robertson.

I had been put in my main team and helped out in two other teams over the course of the two months, meaning I got to see other sides to the business and gained scope to pick up work. There was a comfortable amount of time to complete and practice my project presentation before the date came around. The interns are present for the team away day and get to join in a good amount of activities.

The company allowed to me to go to any training session that was in the office which allowed me to gain insight to certain programs we use and clients that have been run well over the years. Day to day, training on new tasks amounts to a lot of time and money that has been spent on aiding me improve and learn how to be a valuable employee at Hymans.

The company have enough space to take each and every intern on; the decision comes down to a post internship meeting between intern leads and humans resources. The company had a fairly high intake of graduates that were interns last year, so it looks like it is promising.

The company had a few drinks sessions and the interns organised to meet up after work a couple of times. There was a leaving/joining event for myself and others at the beginning of the placement which was a good chance to get to know the team better. The Actuarial and Benefits away day was followed by drinks with a good mix of interns and trainees.

Glasgow is a mid-range prices city with some cheaper options to live. As there was a supply of alcohol purchased for the end of month drinks and other events you would only end up buying a couple yourself , making it much more affordable.

Glasgow city centre where the office is located is a hot spot for pubs, bars and nightclubs depending on your mood. You will be able to find something that is to your taste, however the company tends to frequent the most local choices to the office.

There were events organised by the social committee such as hill-walking and a golf day. There are lots of volunteering opportunities advertised as well to get involved with local charities.