Spring Intern Review

I found the BAML Spring Insight Week to be extremely enjoyable and enlightening. Networking with a diverse range of professionals who all worked in different divisions and came from different backgrounds was very informative, and answered the many questions I had about the bank and industry. The most enjoyable part of the week was the trading game and desk shadowing that I undertook during the Global Markets specific day. Making friends with my fellow internees was also a great bonus.

The huge amount of time and effort put in, particularly by the HR team, was very evident, and certainly made me feel valued during the week. I was hugely surprised by the amount of time that various employees put in, to speak with us and answer our questions. Considering we were only internees at the bank for a week, the fact that we were able to talk to directors and managing directors at the bank for many hours, made us aware of the value that BAML placed on their internees.

Once again, due to the many networking sessions throughout the week, we were able to receive a large amount of guidance from various employees at the bank. The HR team were also always willing to answer our questions - no matter how simple or basic they were. At the end of the week, we also undertook a skills session on how to approach an assessment centre - whilst this was helpful and supportive, I do feel that the advice given was a bit generic, and could've have been far detailed.

I feel that my communication and networking skills strengthened during the week, as we were often put in situations where the only way and the best way to further our knowledge about the bank was by conversing with the bank's employees. I also enhance my presentation skills through the stock pitch that my team did on the Global Markets day. At university, these skills are often needed, so I'm sure that both the exercises I completed, and the information I gathered, will be useful later on in life.

The insight was very well-structured. We received a timetable at the start of the week, detailing the various exercises, talks and networking sessions that we'd be doing throughout the week. Generally, pretty much all the sessions never ran early or later either. It was also structured well in the sense that every internee was given enough time to learn ain depth about the functions of the two divisions that they were interested in.

There was quite a large number of internees on the week - far more than I expected. However, this mean the atmosphere was quite relaxed and friendly, as everyone made friends with at least some people. Despite the usually stressed and intense work that the employees usually undertake, they seemed very calm and relaxed when they talked to us, which meant in turn that the atmosphere of the week was quite relaxed as well. It certainly wasn't as competitive or stressful as I imagined it may be.

I think the main way the bank invested in each person's training and development was during the division specific days. Hence, it most likely differed for everyone. For me, being able to desk shadow a sales-person, with only one fellow internee, was key for my personal development. I think the employee to internee in certain situations was also a key factor in terms of personal training and development. Therefore, the GCIB division wasn't as good at this as others probably were, as there were an extremely high number of internees, and probably not enough employees.

Once again, I believe every internee will have a different opinion on this question, as it depends on which divisions they chose. However, I'm sure for everyone that the many networking sessions meant everyone's understanding of what a full-time role with the bank would be like, increased. The desk-shadowing exercise and the stock pitch in the Global Markets division was also key to helping me to understand what a role at the bank would be like. Overall, due to the many networking sessions, I feel that the insight was hugely successful in helping me to understand what a full-time role at BAML would be like.

The two main ways that the insight helped us understading the company culture was firstly through networking and secondly through speakers coming to talk to us. Networking was very helpful with this, largely due to the fact that we were able to talk to a diverse range of people who differed in age, role, level of responsibility and background. I do feel that the speakers for CSR, for example, could have perhaps made their talks more interesting though - perhaps through greater audience interaction. If this was done, my understanding of the company culture would have increased.

The division-specific days and networking sessions were crucial for this. Overall, the content was very valuable for me. Going into the week, I was very unsure on the functions of each division within the bank, and so didn't have a great idea into what role I'd like to do later in life. However, the division-specific days, and networking with professionals in different divisions answered all my questions, and so was very valuable.

The insight week was not paid, which was understandable as we were essentially being taught a great amount about the bank, and being offered unique opportunitys unobtainable anywhere else. The bank offered to reinburse travel and accomodation expenses for all internees - however as I lived near the bank (student accomodation) and hence walked there each morning, I had no expenses.

There were plenty of opportunities to network every day. On the Monday, we had a networking lunch and then a welcome reception that was attended by many of the employees at the Bank. On the Tuesday and Wednesday, (our division specific days), we were able to talk to employees in the divisions we were most interested in. We also had a careers fair on Tuesday, a networking dinner on the Wednesday, and networking breakfast on the Thursday. Finally, at the end of every talk we had, there were at least 15-20 mins for Q&A.

As mentioned above, the networking and social event opportunities were plentiful and extremely informative. Food and drink was provided at all of them as well. There were a diverse range of employees to talk to, and there was more than enough of time for them to answer all of our questions. The employee to internee ratio was also quite high as well.

We had the opportunity to find out about these firstly through networking, and secondly through a talk by Corporate Social Responsibility on the Thursday. Although this was quite informative, and they answered all the questions that the internees had, I felt that this talk could've been more interesting, if there was a greater audience interaction offered. If there was, I would've taken far more from the talk, and therefore learned about the different activities in greater detail.

I'd absolutely recommend this insight to a friend for a number of reasons. Firstly, the networking opportunities offered all the internees to become far more informed before making a decision about what they'd like to in their future careers. Furthermore, the chance to possibly gain a summer internship next year also makes the insight week extremely valuable - and should you not be successful, it's still a great experience.