Spring Intern Review

It was a very useful programme and provided a lot of insight into what actually happened inside the walls of an investment bank. Also it was helpful to be able to network not only with such a wide variety of students from different backgrounds but also employees at the large investment bank.

I felt valued to an extent since Bank of America Merrill Lynch had clearly put a lot of time and money into the programme. However, sometimes when the employees were forced to network with us (as opposed to voluntarily giving up their time) you could tell they were extremely busy and had more important things to do.

We received quite a lot of guidance in terms of information provided about the different sectors of Bank of America Merrill Lynch. Also we were able to speak to employees about their personal experiences working in different areas which I found very useful when deciding in which area I would prefer to work in the future.

I have yet to return to my degree following the insight week however I am sure some of the skills learned will prove very useful. In particular there was a focus on presentations to a large group which greatly improved my confidence and public speaking skills. Also we obtained lots of experience in networking which I am sure will be a valuable skill later in life.

The insight was well structured however we had to select the areas we would like to work shadow in advance. This meant that on the first day after receiving an introduction into all areas, even if we had changed our mind we were still committed to shadowing the previously selected areas. This is an element of the week I think should be changed.

The atmosphere was extremely friendly which I enjoyed. Not just myself but also other participants went out for coffee or met for a drink some of the employees we had networked with throughout the week. This helped us feel valued and like the Bank actually were interested in us as individuals.

Bank of America Merrill Lynch appeared the invest quite a lot in their Spring Insight Week participants. In particular many employees gave up a lot of their time in order to network and assist in certain aspects of the week. This made us feel very valued and like the bank actually had a stake in our futures.

It was the quantity and quality of the networking events that truly highlighted what it would be like to work at Bank of America Merrill Lynch. Understanding the culture at the large investment bank was invaluable and really assisted in determining if this was the career I wanted to pursue and if I wanted to pursue it at this company.

The insight week proved to be a looking glass in to corporate culture at Bank of America Merrill Lynch. This is what made the insight week so useful since it can be so difficult to gage a company's culture simply from looking at their website and researching online. It also highlighted how wrong our preconceptions about what it was like to work in a large investment bank were.

This insight week only served to confirm that this was the career path upon which I wished to embark. However it was very useful in narrowing the field of investment banking in which I was interested. This was due to the quality and quantity of presentations and speeches from different departments in the bank.

Bank of America Merrill Lynch was very generous in the amount of expenses they reimbursed. I live in London so only needed my travel costs reimbursed which was easy and simple. For candidates outside of London they also offered up to £200 in accommodation costs and a certain amount for their flights or trains to the United Kingdom.

There was lots of opportunities to network and meet employees of Bank of America Merrill Lynch. This was my favourite part of the week as it allowed the candidates to truly understand what life would be like if they were to pursue a career at the investment bank. Employees also took the time to take several participants out for coffee or drinks outside of the programme which was very motivating.

There were lots of networking opportunities throughout the insight week at Bank of America Merrill Lynch. They were also of extremely high quality, in particular the dinner on the Wednesday evening of the week was a highlight for me. This was the most useful part of the week for not only just me but also several other of the candidates I spoke to.

During the networking opportunities we were able to speak to employees about initiatives at the bank for workers to become involved in outside of their day to day work. This was very interesting and showed what more Bank of America Merrill Lynch has to offer asides from just a job. We also received several presentations on the extra-curricular activities available.

I would certainly recommend the Spring Insight Week at Bank of America Merrill Lynch to a friend. It was very useful and I learnt a lot throughout the week. It was extremely informative and if you are interested in investment banking as a whole, it will enable you to learn what areas in particular you are most interested in and would like to pursue at internship level.