Spring Intern Review

I very much enjoyed my time at Bank of America Merrill Lynch. I selected Global Corporate and Investment Banking, and Risk as my 2 divisions of interest. I gained an invaluable insight into both, and have come out of it with a much clearer idea as to what I wish to pursue in my future.

For me, this was one of the best aspects of the internship. Interns are treated as much more than an intern; they are immediately treated as a valued member of the team. The Bank recognise that interns play a huge role in their future, and thus treat them with respect.

This was one area I believe could be improved upon. Interns tend to either be very knowledgeable about the divisions they want to go in to, or are attending the internship to do exactly that - to find out. This environment makes it harder for the latter to benefit, and I believe more could be done to help them, such as introducing a ‘buddy’ system.

The skills I developed include networking, communication and working in a corporate environment. I believe these will prove to be very valuable not so much during my degree studies, but will be in the workplace. Skills developed such as meeting deadlines and timekeeping etc. will be of benefit during my studies.

The internship was extremely well structured. It was clear that a lot of time had been spent in doing so and ensuring it was kept to. We knew what we would be doing at specific times throughout the whole week in advance. The schedule times were stuck to and the week ran seamlessly.

The general atmosphere was very pleasing in my personal opinion. As you would expect, there was very much a corporate, professional atmosphere, but it also had a more relaxed, genuine aspect to it as well. The combination of the two, in my view, provided the perfect atmosphere during the week.

As this was just a week with the firm, understandably minimal training was provided. It was more a process of introducing us to various parts of the bank, and informing us what working in each would involve. It was highlighted that if we were offered a summer internship, the training given would be of a much higher quality.

In my view, the best way to find out what working at a firm is like is by asking the people who work there. We were given countless opportunities to do so. There were various networking events and panel sessions where we could ask questions such as “what is your average working day like” etc. to gain a clearer understanding of what working there is like.

This was one of the most pleasing parts of the week for me. It was clear that although the bank is a huge, global organisation, they also place a large amount of emphasis on ensuring a genuine, relaxed culture is maintained. This is done effectively without damaging the professional image of the firm.

As someone that was not too sure what each division did, the week was invaluable in providing me knowledge to help decide my future career path. I am a very mathematical person, so I was able to ask questions and seek advice as to what position would best tailor to my quantitative background.

There were countless opportunities to network and meet employees of the firm. The highlight of which was certainly the networking dinner that took place one evening. This allowed us to communicate with employees on a personal level in a relaxed environment, something I personally find much more beneficial than the standard networking sessions.

This question was asked at many of the aforementioned panel events and networking sessions. To my surprise, the social life at the bank seemed very impressive. There seem to be many sports clubs and societies to get involved in, which allow you to get to know people across the bank.

I would certainly recommend this internship to anyone considering it. It is extremely well structured and allows you to gain an insight into what working at the firm would be like. The most valuable aspect of it for me was gaining exposure to different divisions across the bank, rather than just one.