Pros
Some amazing people that were kind and intelligent with amazing backstories. People we worked with were totally invested in our futures, which was awesome. We had laughs and good times and I grew to appreciate most of the people I was around.
Cons
I had an emotionally abusive boss who I think was protected by the fact that in government roles, it actually seems pretty hard to get fired. To this day, I sit with the knowledge that I had to deal with the anxiety that came from her treatment of me (and others). As a new grad in this role, I was young. When no other people speak up against an abusive coworker (perhaps because they were scared), it creates an environment of tolerance and one where people allow a young professional to be bullied and treated poorly. The environment was one where I wasn't allowed to make mistakes without being shamed. I was excellent at my job, but in manager reviews, I was nitpicked for making small mistakes. This isn't the experience of all analysts, actually I was in the minority. However, I'd encourage anyone taking on this role to be more scrupulous than I was in choosing a team that feels right and treats you right. You will find other jobs and don't have to stick around to deal with daily abuse. It was clear to me that we were seen more as "assistants" than intellectual contributors. Management said they valued our input, but many instances, I was there to be a notetaker. Often, I was shut down or told that I was disrupting the flow to the point where I became petrified to even speak at all. Intellectual diversity can be an asset to a team, but it was certainly discouraged in my experience. Truly unfortunate that one abusive person and many tolerant people can really ruin the feeling about what was truly a growing experience.
