First Year Summer Internship Review

Overall, I did enjoy the internship as a whole, and enjoyed the retail placement more because I was able to develop stronger relationships with my colleagues (and it was a lot of fun!), and was able to do actual work that contributed to the team. This was less so in the commercial placement although networking with people and exploring key areas of interest was enjoyable.

I was given quite a lot of support by my placement managers, and was able to approach other colleagues/managers for help and guidance. For example, I was given the contacts to talk to people who were in areas of interest. However, (as with most internships) you have to be proactive and demanding to get that support, rather than expecting support to be given to you.

I was busier in my retail placement, in which I had regular shadowing sessions with colleagues and was given several tasks to do, such as the internship project and leading a team meeting (the T3). It was less busy in the commercial placement, and I ran out of things to do very often. Whilst there were busy and hectic days there were of course days when I had very few things to do!

I have definitely gained many professional skills, particularly how to network with colleagues, act professionally and be confident, which I believe would be crucial for my future career path. In terms of assisting my degree studies, because my degree is a social science degree this finance internship was less related.

For retail, the atmosphere was very relaxed and 'fun', with colleagues being very sociable and approachable, and there was many occasions in with I could connect and build rapport with my colleagues. Regular social activities also helped. However, in commercial the atmosphere was more serious and professional, and I felt that I was less able to connect to the team.

The HR team have been very organised and quick in responding to emails and getting everything sorted. One key issue was IT and equipment, with GSRs (getting approval to do basically any IT changes) taking over a week at the start of the internship to be approved, which meant that I lost some valuable time. The HR team could also have organised more social activities or events in the internship to help the interns network and break the ice.

Whilst I have not yet received the outcome of my internship, HSBC as a global organisation offers a huge variety of career paths internationally, as well as in its four business divisions, and I would definitely consider HSBC if offered a place. The graduate scheme with HSBC is also well respected and offers significant career development opportunities.

Whilst I was able to build some good relationships with my fellow interns, which I continue to keep in touch with, I feel that the lack of centrally organised social activities meant that the intern cohort feels very 'cliquely', with many separate groups rather than a larger group - I was very good friends with some people but didn't know the names of others.

As I lived at home, and the internship was based in my hometown, the cost of living for myself was very low, with main costs being meals and some social activities. However, whilst I think having an internship based near home has helped to save costs, I would prefer having an internship in a larger office (i.e. London/Birmingham) as I could get more exposure, despite having higher cost of living.