GE Finance Intern Review

I enjoyed my placement, I felt it gave me a good insight into what working in Finance would entail in Industry. At times I was required to work on less challenging work, but that was expected. I did get the opportunity to work on more interesting projects though which evened out the more repetitive parts of the job.

During my internship I built good relationships with all of my team, we got along really well. Half way through the internship two members of my team left which caused the team to be restructured, this did affect the closeness of the team but overtime we resettled. Many members of my team made sure I was appreciated by issuing rewards and praise when a project was completed.

I had a mentor in my team who helped me with the initial training, day to day activities/issues and career guidance. She worked with me giving regular feedback on how to improve. She helped me develop my skills and worked with me to strengthen my weaknesses. I feel this was one of the most beneficial parts of my placement and helped me feel valued by the company, and understand the effects of my contribution.

My schedule varied on a weekly and monthly basis. I was particularly busy around quarter and year ends, as well as once a month when an estimate was submitted. At some points during the month I had less busy weeks, I used this time to work on projects and automating reports.

During my Internship I owned many processes and ran projects. I was responsible for the implementation of these projects for the team, I provided training's, ran meetings and troubleshooted issues. I believe my level of responsibility was significant, I was a member of the team not just an Intern. Although I was required at times to do more Intern work.

I had the chance to work with universal software such as Hyperion and SAP. I had the opportunity to develop to the point that I was responsible for issuing training to others. These skills that I have developed and the confidence with these systems will be applicable across many businesses and a useful skill to advertise when it comes to applying for jobs. I also got the opportunity to learn and create Macro's, using VBA a basic programming language. In a world that is becoming increasingly digital, it is becoming more important to understand this aspect of digitization as it is increasingly likely that in the future jobs will require these kind of skills.

The atmosphere in the office was very relaxed, no one wore suits. There are different types of work spaces from traditional desks and meeting rooms to booths and breakout areas. There is also a cafe for more informal discussions. Most people worked a 9-5 day but hours were flexible if you had to leave early or come in late it was fine as long as you let your team know. Working at home was also allowed, particularly on Fridays where most of the office would do this. Each team was different so some team would work in the office everyday whereas others would not. Fridays were causal dress, although many rarely dressed smart.

Several interns were inducted at the same time for my internship, I think in our location there was approximately 60 interns across different functions, there was 6 Finance interns there. We had an induction day where we got to learn about the company, different career paths and participated in bonding activities. I then had a handover period with the previous intern in my role that lasted 2 and a half months (handovers varied from a week to the whole of summer depending on when the previous intern wanted to leave). This gave the previous intern enough time to train me fully in the new job and finish off projects he had to.

Alongside the Handover training I was allowed to attend several training courses throughout my time at GE. Some where GE specific for new employees, others were about efficiency and working well. I didn't get to attend all the training days I wanted as there was a budget for the team. I also attended standards training like health and safety/anti bribery/keeping data secure etc. I worked on a personal level with my mentor to develop my skills in areas like presenting to global teams and using simplistic language to counteract the language barrier.

GE has a graduate scheme for Finance however Interns are not guaranteed a place on it. Interns need to apply in their final year at uni and go through the process like any other individual. The only benefit is that Interns can be sponsored by an Manager or CFO, this will increase their chances if they pass the initial tests and assessment centers. The graduate scheme is very good and provides many opportunities for travel as you do rotations in different departments which are often cross country.

As we had many interns working with us at GE there was a good social scene depending on what you enjoyed you were likely to at least find one other intern who also enjoyed it. Me and one of the other interns used to go and play golf after work once a month. There would also often be nights out both in London and locally. Depending on the intern intake would likely depend on the social scene, as events were organised outside of GE.

I lived at home so this was not an issue for me. Amersham is based outside the M25 but near London, most interns chose to live nearer to London as Amersham is a boring area. Socializing is reasonably expensive we mostly went out in London which is pricey, I am from London so for me there was no real change, but the previous intern before me was from up North and he said he found it very expensive. I believe rent is around £500 a month for a room in a flat in Watford (where most people lived) and travel is via tube (Met line) or Car (one stop round M25), most interns I believe chose to drive.

Nightlife in Amersham doesnt exist. Most people went out in Watford or London. Those who chose to live in Amersham struggled to go on night outs as travel was often difficult although there is a tube it takes a long time. Watford has several clubs of varying size, plenty of pus and bars, bowling alleys, cinemas, golf courses there is a trampoline park in St Albans and great links to London. London as known has about everything you could want to do and more. It is expensive but if you search for it you can find cheap hidden gems.

There were few activities organised by GE to get involved in. The only things they had where activity classes like YOGA and Boxercise which they would run after work in the gym. A group of the guys played football every Thursday after work. During my time there many people moved jobs and moved on so there was often leaving parties of some sort where we would go out to the Pub. Outside the interns many employees had families so they wouldn't stay late after work as they had to go home.