Spring Intern Review

This was quite clearly the single best Spring Week in any investment bank that any one I knew had attended. Not only was the learning intense and exhilirating, everyone on the programme was incredibly fun and helpful, and the activities were all meaningful and well arranged. I had an amazing time, and whether or not I manage to work here in future, I will definitely remember it fondly. Even the after party events were great, and I will always remember binging, boozing and eating well at Rothschild's expense, including that final champagne party right before we left the building.

Firstly, the fact that the interview process involved a presentation made it immediately clear that they respected our opinions. We were tasked with a group project, and assessed by an experienced team of associates and directors, which showed how much attention they were paying to such a young and inexperienced group. Analysts we were introduced to were more than eager to set aside their work to explain to us what they did and the way they did things, that was probably the most telling.

A whole array of technical, financial and qualitative courses ensured that we were briefed on how to use the Rothschild hardware and software. The project work was especially well prepared, with a compendium of highly relevant statistics and broker reports that ensured we did not have to go out of our way to get the relevant statistics we required. If we did not understand anything, HR was always willing to link us up to somebody who could advise us or offer us some insight. Perhaps best of all, all the other interns were not afraid to swap ideas and technical knowledge.

My degree is in History, so honestly not very much in that field. That being said, the archives were amazing, and I look forward to using that repository to build my thesis in my third year. When it comes to technical knowledge for my career, it is difficult to quantify just how much I learnt. I came on to the programme with perhaps one of the best technical understanding amongst all the other interns, and still I managed to learn an insane amount on a daily basis, speaking about complicated modelling and the intricacies of valuation added a real dimension to what would otherwise be a mere theoretical and book-based understanding.

It's hard to imagine how HR managed to put this together, but not only was the process flow seamless, it seemed as if not a single moment was ever wasted. We never sat around waiting for things to happen, we were never bored or unengaged, and there were almost no perceptible delays in the entire schedule. At every point in time, every body seemed to know what they were doing and where to go. The flow of the programme ensured that we were always equipped with the skills to handle the next part of the programme, and even when I needed to go the embassy for several hours, the programme still accomodated that.

To say it was fun is an understatement. There was almost no stress throughout the programme because everyone was just so thrilled to know each other, to share insight and knowledge, and to help each other out. Nobody was competitive, nobody had any sort of disagreements with anybody else, and nobody said bad things behind other people's backs. If HR was not arranging for us to have after-parties, the fact is that we loved to organise those on our own, whether a cheeky Nandos or a night in the pub. I've made some real friends here, which is incredibly rare on an internship.

For a 5 day programme, we were exposed to the full-brunt of Rothschild's training capabilities. Not only did we have external speakers brought in to teach us the technical knowledge required for valuation and understanding financial theory; there was even a day where HR and several analysts coached us on how to excel at interviews. It was clear that the thought and planning that went into this had come at considerable expense to the time and budget of the company and its employees.

There was nothing hidden about what we would be expected to do if we had joined the company as an analyst. It was remarkably clear what our roles would be expected to be, how much time we would have to put in, and what divisions were available for us to join. Analysts were encouraged to share their personal experiences, and even introduced us to the work they were doing, despite the fact that we would only be there for 5 days.

Company culture was talked about at every moment, and employees were expected to be upfront about it. We heard about some negative sides, but these should be taken relative to the other investment banks where they are much worse. The way we were treated was highly reflective of the company culture as well, and our introduction to the history and operations of the company gave considerable insight to the company's long term view and prospectus.

There is little to say here except that where before I was considering Rothschild's heavily, at this point there is no other place in the world I want to work at. Not only were we exposed to the rationales for working in the company, we were given an idea of how the reward structure would like and what we could reasonably expect anywhere else. This sort of upfront disclosure is rare and absolutely amazing.

We were reimbursed for all travel expenses, even those from abroad, and in and out of London. We were also reimbursed for the Oyster card in London itself. For food, we were reimbursed for £5 a day for lunch, and dinner was settled on our own. For accomodation, we were reimbursed for £100 a night at any place of our choosing.

Definitely at least one networking session each day, and the chance to freely talk to employees everywhere we saw them. Employees were more than happy to share both their technical knowledge and personal experiences, and were delighted to share a coffee or drop us their name cards so we could contact them. Very open experience with friendly people.

To begin with, there was a cocktail party right at the front with free flow alcohol and lots of games. This set the tone for what would be a completely stress-free environment where you always felt liberated to discuss any thing at all with the other interns, whether good or bad. The networking was not fierce, and people did not go around in a faux professional way, and I felt I really got to know the other interns.

There was an entire morning and afternoon of extra curricular volunteer work, which I was unfortunate enough to have to miss. There was also a key presentation about Rothschild's charitable works and employee interaction with the community. This all happened in plain sight, so it was very frequent that people came in to be coached on math or science or whatever subjects they were doing for their GCSEs or A Levels.

If any friend asked me which Spring Week would be the best to join, there is no other one I would recommend. I would say that not only was it the best in terms of culture, it is clearly the best for value in terms of just pure conversion rate. If you join a Spring Week with the intention to convert into a summer, make it Rothschild's, otherwise you would have a terrible time and a lot of stress trying to make that percentage conversion work for you.