HR Summer Analyst - Corporate Banking Review

I think that the Barclays internship programme is really well thought out. Pre-Internship they arranged a phone call with the Line Manager that we would be working with, assigned us a buddy and a mentor and invited us to give us an insight into things that we would need to know before we started. They also use a fantastic app - DoubleDutch - that allowed us to contact other interns on the same programme before we started which eased the nerves a bit. Our first couple of days were spent in training and then (for me anyway) setting up tech took a while. After we had a chance to settle into our teams, we had a programme sent to us where we would meet each of the HR ExCo members over the course of the internship as well as opportunities for networking with graduates to gain an insight into the graduate scheme. There was a structured review mid internship as well as one at the end so you know how you are progressing over the course of the internship in accordance with objectives set out at the start. Overall a very positive experience for me.

I was really lucky in that my team were very friendly and welcoming. Each member set aside time in their diaries when I first started to go over their business areas and give me a bit of context about the organisation. They also sent over things to read to help me understand more about the projects I would be working on. Everyone has been so helpful and any questions that I've had have been answered without making me feel totally stupid. I was treated as an equal in the team and I felt like everyone valued my contribution. I have actually enjoyed working in this team so much that I'd consider it as a full time role. It should also be noted that, outwith my direct team, everyone at Barclays that I have been in contact with has been very accommodating and been willing to set aside time in their diaries to meet with me.

As before, in the first week there are 8 objectives set by your line manager in consultation with you and grad recruitment, which gives you a flavour of the projects that will be undertaken over the internship. Between weeks 4 and 5, there is a mid internship review between you and your line manager which gave constructive feedback and ensured that you are ontrack with your objectives. In the final week, there is an end of internship review (I havent had mine yet) but this will just measure how well you took on the feedback given in the first review and to what extent you have achieved the objectives. My line manager was really good in terms of support and was always checking in with me to ensure I wasnt swamped or not understanding things. The only problem was that due to changes in business needs, my objectives changed over the course of the internship so it was difficult to measure my achievements according to that.

I took it upon myself to meet as many people as I could within Barclays so day to day I was generally busy. I'm kind of the impression that you can always be reading up on things to better your understanding so in my downtime, I was usually reading up on different areas of the business or on those ever-important excel skills. I had a variety of projects to work on so work was always interesting and because I had lent myself to my wider team and not just my line manager, I ended up doing a range of different things from ER issues to attending Focus Groups. Also the intern programme meant that every week we had a meeting with a different ExCo member.

I was pleasantly surprised to find that I was treated like I was a permanent employee. I was given sets of data and told what they were looking for from that. In the end one of my projects ended up being around the structural reform going on due to ringfencing requirements, so had a real life tangible impact.

I think a lot of the skills that I have picked up from my degree have helped a lot when coming into a corporate workplace. Presentations, professional emails, time management, etc are all skills that my degree helped me develop. I have definitely expanded my very basic knowledge of Excel which will help for the future. A career in HR means that you are exposed to very senior members of the business very early on in your career so definitely professionalism is a skill that can be taken forward.

Something that really surprised me about Barclays was the culture of the organisation. I have friends and family members who work for other banks so had quite negative preconceptions of what working in a bank would be like. Barclays introduced their "Values" which I had previously thought, would have been something that you'd read about and was more of a ticky box exercise rather than a reality but in all honesty, everyone that I've met takes them very seriously and it definitely shows. Everyone I spoke to was passionate about their job, enthusiastic about the organisation and the opportunities available. Like I mentioned, my team were really great and that also contributed to a great atmosphere.

See my previous comment for more detail but I would say that the internship was much better set up than I'd imagined. There was a clear structure - the meetings with ExCo, the mid and end of term reviews, etc - meant you were never out of touch with graduate recruitment, who also scheduled meetings twice with us to catch up. I think the buddy and mentor scheme was a really good addition and also the call with the line manager to give you an insight into their roles before you start.

The first day that we started, we went through a day of training and background to the organisation which was a good starting ground. There was also mandatory training that needed to be undertaken over the course of the internship. In the first week we also got financial markets training which gave us an insight into the investment banking side of Barclays - I'd say that this was slightly irrelevant for HR as, yes it was interesting, but we will never need to know the timeline of a trade deal. I'd have found it much more beneficial to be given structured Excel training.

I think Barclays is a great company to work for and if their graduate scheme is anything like their internship programme then it would be great start to your career. Its really encouraging that they allow the Group HR Director to sit on the ExCo and shows that they really value HR as a function and its not just seen as hiring and firing people. From a woman's perspective, Barclays has a lot of flexibility regarding working from home, maternity leave, etc which would allow you to be supported further down the line if you choose to have children. They also do a lot of work with diversity which means that the glass ceiling is a lot less prominent for women in the organisation. As far as finding out about whether or not my career continues with them, they let us know on the last day if we have secured a place on the graduate scheme.

Again, I was lucky in that the cohort of HR interns in my year were people that I'd choose to be friends with outside of work. Every Friday night we would all go out to dinner together and I'd regularly meet up with them for lunches at work and during the week. We self-organised outings between us over weekends too. I think this was a really pivotal factor in my enjoyment of the internship, if I'd been in a group that was different, I'd probably have enjoyed the experience less.

Living in London is never cheap, end of story. Barclays does offer a relocation fee which helps but does not cover the entire costs of living in London, however I think they are one of the few companies that offers this to their interns. I can't complain as every little helps and, when contrasted to student living, you are getting paid a lot of money to do the work you're doing. Barclays also tries to help where it can, there is a subsidised canteen in the building where lots of people go to get lunch and there is a subsidised Starbucks too.

Again, its London. There are always places to go. Canary Wharf is buzzing from Thursday onwards and there is plenty of choice there, however you are only 15-20 minutes away from Bank which takes you pretty much anywhere else in London. The only problem, of course, it is not cheap to go out in London.

There were a few intern-initiated events such as football tournaments. I didnt take part in any of these so I cant really comment on what they were like. In the last week of the internship, they have a leaving party as well as drinks with grads so on a social front, there is a few things going on but nothing in the interim weeks between the start and the end of the internship.