Case studies : Underwriting assistant: Dishni Payagalage-Don

Dishni has a BSc in Economics from UCL. She is an underwriting assistant at Lloyd's.

I joined the Lloyd's graduate programme after graduating from university. It was an 18-month rotational scheme working for the Lloyd's Corporation and the Lloyd's market.

I thoroughly enjoyed the underwriting placement I undertook in my rotations and decided this was the career path I would like to take after the graduate scheme. I then searched for underwriting vacancies in the Lloyd's market where I managed to secure a position in the specie team at Catlin.

My degree in economics was not directly relevant to underwriting but the analytical and numerical skills it has provided me with is relevant and applicable to the role when assessing risk and identifying performance trends in our accounts.

My understanding for current affairs and economic issues assists in understanding the general insurance market environment and economic and political issues that affect insurance.

As an underwriting assistant, my day will involve attending meetings with brokers with the class underwriter to discuss policies and current issues with the account. I will also maintain and follow up with any admin tasks following the meetings.

The majority of my day is spent at Lloyd's sitting at the box with the class underwriter. The brokers will meet the underwriter at the box with the policies they wish to discuss in order to place the business with us. As an assistant I will ensure all the information provided is on our internal systems and observe and assist the class underwriter in analysing the risk. Further research into the risk may be required and I will assist the underwriter in obtaining a better understanding. This is where my analytical skills are activated and the variety of the job is displayed, as risks can be completely different.

As an underwriting assistant I have been gaining a greater understanding for the types of risks we write in our account and building relationships with the brokers that provide our business. My aim is to continue understanding the business we write and gain underwriting authority to accept risk for the company.

I enjoy the relationship-driven aspect of the role. Relationships are imperative in insurance and being a person that enjoys building these strong links, it suits my personality. It also combines my analytical strengths and ambitious nature.

The most challenging parts of the job can be managing my time effectively as jobs that require immediate action are a regular occurrence whilst there is a constant backdrop of longer-term projects to complete.

One of the best things about working in this sector is the variety in the work. Risks that are presented to the underwriter are so varied due to the fact that Lloyd's is a leading specialist insurer. This means no two days are the same and results in a continual learning curve.

The insurance industry offers many opportunities for graduates, however it would be best to enter the industry with an open mind and keep your options open before specialising and focusing on one aspect of the industry. This will increase options available to you as certain opportunities involve being at the right place at the right time. Therefore being well prepared for when that opportunity does manifest itself is key.