Spring Intern Review

There were a number of skills sessions, which helped you realise a lot about how you are in the workplace and out of it. The bank was driven to make sure you realised if you were a perfect fit for the company. So not only did you realise what your skills were, but also if these were aligned with the company's values.

You had the chance to be exposed to two lines of business. Also, through networking it was possible to be exposed to other lines of business the bank offered. Work shadowing allowed me to see a day in the life of how my chosen sectors operated. I was shown around the offices and the type of work offered in each division. Overall, I feel if I am offered the summer internship then I'd be be confident in what to expect from the role.

As mentioned above, the bank didn't just state their company culture, but there was a lot of opportunity to get involved in tasks allowing you to understand it. The company also showed how their culture was invested in each of the divisions they operated in. Overall, I feel after the experience I understand the company culture.

Not only did the firm affirm the career choice by helping me understand what it entailed, but also why other career paths I once had in mind weren't right- this was done by allowing me to participate in work shadowing. So the decision that a particular division wasn't for me was left for me to decide- but there was a lot of information given to influence this decision, which was useful.

I didn't get paid for participating in the insight week. The company offered a scheme whereby travel is reimbursed within certain constraints. It was helpful that the bank offered an expense reimbursement scheme, especially since the travel can get expensive depending on where you are departing from. The reimbursement amount offered is adequate for me.

There were a lot of opportunities for networking. And each was emphasised in a different way, so each networking event was different. Also, the work shadowing allowed you to meet employees and engage in discussions with them. I found this particularly useful as all employees were present to meet me, from all sorts of career levels.

As mentioned above, the networking events were plentiful- they were fun as the employees were particularly engaging. The planned social opportunities were somewhat restricted, but enjoyable nonetheless. However, saying this, other social opportunities were plentiful- you could talk to the other students taking part nearly all the time allowing student networking!

Yes, there was a big emphasis on corporate social responsibility (CSR) and the work-life balance of an employee. I found it interesting, through networking, what types of hobbies and interests employees had and furthermore, it was encouraged that the employees participate in CSR. Through presentations, we learnt the daily life of an employee, including out of work activities.

Yes definitely, I would recommend it for a number of reasons. Firstly, it really helps confirm if the financial services industry is for you, or even if it isn't through the thorough planning of each day. Secondly, it is a week long, which in my opinion, is long enough to experience the industry in the divisions you're interested in to a good extent, whilst not too long which would make it somewhat tedious- especially seeing this is just an insight. Lastly, the employees are great to talk to!