Spring Intern Review

It was great, lots of activities of a varied nature which made them even more enjoyable. Days were long and tiring but fun and rewarding. From divisional specific days (the highlight) and also testing (challenging but interesting) I enjoyed the vast majority of what we did. I did find the first day slightly less specific and less helpful.

It was only a short programme but it was clear that BAML had invested time/effort/money in everyone and that was a nice feeling. Shadowing people on their day to day job was a clear indication that the firm felt participants were important and not a nuisance but an asset.

The team were really nice and I would have been comfortable to address them if I had had an issue. There were regular explanations of what was going on and I felt like I had the support and guidance I needed, and that this would have been extended had I wanted it to have been.

N/A - too soon to tell.

It was clearly set out and had a mixture of events which kept interest up. The more specific divisional days were really well structured and having more variety with frequent change made them more interesting. The first day was well structured but did feel slightly generalist and maybe too introductory for too long. Overall though it gave a good insight in the sense that we could experience a lot of different roles.

Professional but relaxed. The HR people maintained a good balance between working reasonably hard but doing so in a casual and not intimidating atmosphere. This meant you felt invested in tasks but not as if your future hung in the balance whenever you said anything.

There were a few skills sessions which covered a variety of areas, much of it concerned personal image and there were helpful if general recommendations on soft skills. Probably due to the nature of a one-week programme, there was limited technical training or especially specific advice.

I think it did give a clear indication of many things, including company culture, working hours, day-to-day activity. However, as with any internship I think the reality of working at BAML would only become clear if you actually worked there full-time and probably for longer. In this respect I thought it was as explained as much as it could be.

This was something that was repeatedly stressed and it felt like this was something BAML was very keen to put across and show that the company was a great environment to work in. I do think that was achieved. Particular emphasises on working (very) hard, looking outward and into the community and on close relation with your team.

It certainly made me think that BAML would be a great place to work and investment banking would be an interesting industry to work in. I do not necessarily think I have suddenly been convinced that this is the only job I would ever be happy to do though, it was more of a solidifying of my existing interest.

I have claimed for travel expenses. Others stayed at a local hotel who lived even further away. I felt this was all adequate/ good.

Yes. There was a heavy emphasis on networking (too much, in my opinion) throughout the week with three dedicated sessions in different forms. I did feel this detracted somewhat from truly learning about the job but am confident others would disagree on that point. I preferred meeting people in less forced environments and especially the shadowing aspect.

Yes, again relatedly, there were 3 networking events including a dinner which was the best as it felt less staged and more casual. There was not any other structured social event really (but then everyone was pretty tired at the end of each day and I'm not exactly sure what that might look like).

Yes, with a heavy emphasis on charity work. Other opportunities included sport and arts groups as well as discussion groups on things like gender inequality and LGBTQ issues.

Definitely. It was a great week and felt very informative. I cannot compare it to other similar programmes but what I experienced at BAML was excellent. The people were friendly and passionate and the tasks well thought through and engaging.