Actuarial Summer Student Review

I thoroughly enjoyed the internship. I applied to gain a better understanding of an actuarial career and I can definitely say that I have achieved this. The work was incredibly varied and interesting and everyone at the company were very friendly and personable.

Right from the start all interns were given a lot of responsibility, we were treated just as a grad would be treated. We were given a lot of support and guidance, but at the same people had confidence in us to deliver the work and get it done. Everyone was very grateful for the work we produced.

I was given a buddy and people's manager. My buddy was my first point of contact to get work from and to just ask general questions in terms of getting settled and even throughout I would still go to my buddy for help sometimes even if I was doing work with someone else. In fact you could ask anyone for help or ask a question and they would always be happy to explain and help you. My people's manager was responsible for my overall development through the internship. We had weekly meetings (but again I could go and talk to her whenever) where we would discuss how I was finding the work and how I was settling in. She would answer all my questions and help out if I had any issues. She also gave my feedback half way through my internship and at the end.

For the first 2 weeks I did have some quieter moments so I would go and ask people for work quite regularly. After this I got a lot busier and also had some regular bits of work that I would do on a weekly basis. If you ever do have a quieter moment you can always ask for more work and people are happy to help you get more work and at the same time if you get too busy it is good to flag this up early to the person you are working with. Each intern is also given a project which you do throughout the internship so there isn't really any time where you should have a quiet period - there is always something to keep you occupied.

Right from the go we were given responsibility. Every piece of work you do though gets checked twice after you have done it so there is no need of being afraid about getting things wrong, people are very understandable and no one expects you to be perfect. The work you are doing is real and actually affects the company.

I learnt real actuarial skills that will help me in the future as I want to pursue a career as an actuary. I also developed a lot of softer skills that are applicable for future work and general life such as communication, running meetings, presentation, data analysis, time management.

People in the office are very friendly. Always happy and willing to have a conversation with you. In your bank of tables people offer each other drinks, and bringing food back from holiday or for your birthday is very common!

Everything was very well though out and planned for us interns. Right from the start including our induction, to the actual work that given to us and training, through to setting us a project.

The company did a lot to invest in us. On the first day we had an induction to get to know the com nay and given a bit of background about pensions. We were also given IT training. Most learning was through doing work and on the job through the level of responsibility we were given.

If you do a good job throughout the internship there are high chances that you would be offered a job. You get told 1 to 2 weeks after the internship what the outcome is.

Very sociable office! All the interns got along very well, we would have lunch together nearly every day. There were end of month drinks at the office. Whilst I was there, there was also a boat party, rounders/ picnic in hyde park, and a team social of cocktail making.

The internship was in central London, so inevitably the cost of living was high. I live in London for uni anyway so it has become something I have got used to in terms of budgeting.

Great, the office is based in central London so there is a lot around!

There were not many out of work activities that I was aware of.