Hello! My name is Lana Valentine and I am a Computer Science Student and a Software Development Engineering Intern in London. I love working with people and contributing to projects that have a positive impact on those around me. Before I started at EG, I was very nervous about the change, and I hope that a glimpse into a week of my internship shows you that there’s nothing to be scared of!

Monday

I spent the day testing a new part of my project, which included writing tests and attempting to break the service I am working on to identify any gaps. Thinking like a user is a skill that I have been working on a lot since I started and it has really aided my thought process while writing code. At lunch, I met up with the other interns to play table tennis in the games room – I’m still not great at it but it’s a lovely way to unwind for an hour!

Tuesday

I met new member on my team and had the chance to chat to her lots about her new role and the office. It was really fun to answer the questions that I myself was asking a few weeks ago! I made some massive headway on my project after speaking with my navigator. After lunch I had my weekly 1:1 with my navigator, we spoke a lot about the wider work that the team does and putting it into the context of the user. I have really enjoyed the new perspective I’ve gained from working here, rather than just being a customer, and I have a lot more appreciation for how much goes behind each click and search on our websites!

Wednesday

All of the interns had a volunteering day – we went to King Henry’s walk adventure playground where we did lots of odd jobs – litter picking, weeding, hedge trimming, wood burning, and cleaning up inside (we also took a quick basketball break). It was really nice to spend some time together away from our desks and to help out a local cause – I loved knowing that us organising and tidying would mean the kids would have more fun playing. Afterwards we popped down to the 411 bar (through the secret employee entrance!) for some food and drinks.

Thursday

I picked up where I left off on my project, and made my first proper PR for my internship. It was quite a terrifying moment but I was thrilled to discover I didn’t break anything. My team and I went to the market for lunch, which is something we do pretty regularly – I try to try new things each time, though the Katsu curry often calls out to me! In the evening, EG held their annual summer party! It was crazy to see how many people are based in the office – I had a great time with my team and the other interns.

Friday

I worked from a very quiet office as most people work from home on Monday and Friday. The quiet gave me some time to concentrate (and to take many visits to the M&Ms dispenser). I managed to take some time to do some self directed learning since I am still fairly new to the languages I’m using. I’ve gotten lots of help from my team and other people in the company, everyone here has been really friendly and happy to help me, which makes me feel a lot more confident about my job! 

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