Tag Archives: Cardiff

Student Case Study:  Asbri Planning  

Name of Student:  Alec Stevens 

Degree Subject: BA/BSC Geography – Cornwall 

Job Title:  Graduate Planner

Company Name: Asbri Planning

Type of Internship:  Access to Internships (A2I)

Description of Company: Asbri Planning is a planning and development consultancy, which has offices based in Cardiff and Swansea. We work in the development industry with the main aim to see our clients obtain planning consent for development. At Asbri Planning, we pride ourselves on offering honest and forthright planning advice and we only promote projects that we are confident will result in a successful planning outcome. Central to our approach are the client’s business needs and commercial objectives.

What were your key duties and responsibilities during your internship?

Research of planning policy and procedure of relevant planning acts and regulations in relation to potential developments; completing initial planning applications for potential developments; aid in the completion of site appraisals and design and access statements and to observe and make relevant minutes for offsite meetings.           

What outputs and outcomes did you deliver for your employer?

I delivered several design and access statements where I documented information for the client and relevant governing bodies such as Powys County Council. I was also involved with pre-applications and appraisals where the viability of proposed developments were investigated.

What was your biggest achievement on your internship?

Completing a full design and access statement individually.

  • Situation – Client (Powys County Council) needs a design and access statement which includes all relevant information and debate over a proposed development in LLanidloes.
  • Task – Complete the full DAS for the client in time bound conditions.
  • Actions – Acquiring the relevant data and information from a variety of sources and then compiling an attractive document that is also effective for all parties involved.
  • Results – The DAS was officially confirmed and sent to the client and the governing body and will be accepted subject to pre-commencement conditions.

What did not go so well on your internship? How did you overcome any challenges?

In hindsight I felt as though I was reluctant to ask questions during office hours due to the intensity of the office environment. All of my colleagues were busy at almost all times and I felt questions would have hindered or slowed their progress on other jobs. In the future I will most definitely address this by not being afraid to interrupt others if its for the overall benefit of the company I am working for.

Skills Learnt 

  • Communication
  • Teamwork
  • Time and Work Load Management
  • Strategic Planning
  • Ability to work under pressure

Attributes Developed 

  • Researching
  • Networking
  • Independence
  • Confidence
  • Professionalism

Your message to other students considering a similar job role, organisation or sector?

“My internship was career specific and enjoyable and thus given me that extra boost of motivation going into my third year to continue on my current path to achieve what I want out of my career. I would thoroughly recommend any student going into a career specific internship as it gives you experience that just is not acquirable in the University Library.”

 

Vacation Scheme Student – Eversheds

law

What were your main duties and responsibilities during the course of your internship?

I was a Vacation Scheme Student at Eversheds’ largest UK office outside of London where I sat in the Real Estate and Company Commercial practice groups and within the Commercial Real Estate and Banking teams respectively.
My duties were similar to those of a Trainee Solicitor and the work I was involved with in the REPG included analysing leases, calculating and completing a SDLT return as well as drafting various documents to complement a lease such as a Lease Report and a Rent Review Memorandum. In my second week in the CCPG, my work was in the most part vastly different, although there was some crossover with Real Estate in the form of the property securities that banks would take on their loan agreements. During my Banking seat, I aided the completion of multiple transactions by creating and updating the supporting documents required such as the Completion Checklist, Shareholder Review and Completion Statement as well as drafting vital transaction documents including various Deed of Confirmations for both Borrowers and Guarantors, Fee Letters and a Legal Opinion.

What would you say was your biggest achievement over the course of your internship?

My biggest achievement over the course of the internship would be noticing and pointing out a mistake in a contract that would have made it unenforceable and thus preventing the firm from issuing a bad contract on behalf of their clients.

What benefits did your internship bring to your employer?

During my second week, there were multiple transactions that were due to be completed that week and as a result of my presence, I was able to share the workload with the team and therefore relieve pressure on them and get the deal through the door with plenty of time to spare.

Did you encounter any problems during the course of your internship and if so, how did you overcome them?

There were some initial problems with my understanding of particular legal terms used within the practice groups as I had never come across them before in my studies which are far less practical. By finding a glossary of terms and constantly taking notes throughout the scheme, I managed to overcome this barrier by being pro-active and seeking to learn the new terms so that I was then comfortable using them in an everyday work sense.

Audit Intern – PwC

What were your main duties and responsibilities during the course of your internship?

As an intern in the audit line of service I  was thrown straight to assist with the auditing of some of the firms that are clients of the Cardiff office. For example, I assisted with the audit of Lloyds Banking group. This was done after some brief training but mostly I was to learn on the job by doing, and by asking questions of my colleagues. This involved either working in the Cardiff office or travelling around to work in the client office. I was responsible for ensuring that financial information was correctly reported, and thus compliant with regulation, and simultaneously providing confidence to investors.

What would you say was your biggest achievement over the course of your internship?

I improved my interpersonal skills, making lots of valuable contacts and new friends.

What benefits did your internship bring to your employer?

I was able to do some of the less complicated tasks, reducing the workload for my colleagues; even completing an entire project on my own.

Did you encounter any problems during the course of your internship and if so, how did you overcome them?

It was initially very scary to have to go and ask the client face-to-face for financial information. However I asked my colleagues to help me prepare what I would say and rehearsed it, and eventually it became much easier as i developed a rapport and a relationship with the client.