Nomura Operations Structured Credit Middle Office Intern Review

The internship was fulfilling and challenging during busy periods where there was a lot to do. However, during the first few weeks whilst waiting on requested accesses, we were able to do nothing worthwhile which was dissatisfying. However, good overview sessions were organised and the ability to be flexible and network with other areas was good and helpful. The people at Nomura were also lovely so in that aspect, the internship was much enjoyed.

Nomura compared to other investment banks has a lot warmer and friendly atmosphere. It did take a while for everyone to settle in and get very comfortable with each other. As a 10week intern, being in a team with an 1 year industrial placement student meant that at times I did feel undervalued and "not worth training" which was frustrating and upsetting at times but I believe it was just the nature of the complexity of the team.

Nomura has a fantastic mentor and buddy scheme which meant that I had support throughout my time here and HR are also incredibly supportive. Being quite a small firm, everyone is incredibly busy especially the management which meant that at times guidance and support was lacking as other aspects were prioritised.

During weeks where a lot of permanent staff were out I was insanely busy without any time to eat lunch off the desk. However other weeks I would do absolutely nothing until a certain hour where I had independently organised shadowing or if I were on the rota to do a certain task or if I had asked permanent staff members if I could help by taking over some of their tasks. My busy-ness was highly variable but yes there were days where I had literally nothing to do.

I was given very little responsibility within the first few weeks, it was as if I was meant to be there for 10weeks to just shadow everyone else do tasks. However I made it clear that I wanted to take part in the day to day tasks and slowly built up a lot more responsibility by my 5/6th week where I ran morning and end of day tasks independently.

The excel skills I developed have been very helpful and I believe they are important skills which should be carried on beyond my degree and onto my job. Networking skills were also greatly develop through my independently organised shadowing and catch up sessions with different staff members across Nomura. I believe these two skills I will carry with me forever.

The atmosphere was formal and corporate but not overly strict, we were free to go talk to people at other desks and have a brief chat which made it easier to interact with people across the firm. Overall, the atmosphere in the office was generally pleasant with everyone friendly but not overly chatty.

HR had done a very good job in organising the support structure where we had a buddy who we could go to for informal casual day to day questions and a mentor who would help us with our networking across the firm, act as a confidante and help with our career progression. However the internship itself apart from the HR organised overview session felt like it had very little structure and work just got given to you if you pushed hard enough to ask for it. I felt like for my first 5 weeks I didn't know my place and was not sure what I was meant to do.

In terms of development, again referring to the mentor system, the company did a very good job of making sure that you made the most out of your time there and made sure you got the support you needed. Nomura was also helpful in terms of if you weren't sure whether your division was for you the HR team would help arranging for you to speak to someone in the team or division you perhaps were more interested in.

The progression scheme within Nomura for graduates seems amazing where if you work hard and do well you can get very high up in the company very fast. The flat structure also means you can interact with senior management on a weekly basis and also on a more informal level which you would not be able to get in any other renowned investment bank. Therefore it's incredibly appealing

There was a good social scene, despite everyone being from different universities and even different countries we would all interact well by getting lunch together, going for work organised drinks on Thursdays after work and the interns themselves would organise socials on Friday nights. There were also a few good socials organised by HR.

London is ridiculously expensive so the cost is high. However, having lived in London for 15 years and going to university here, it's less of a shock for me than others. However, the ability to save money that you were paid was quite low due to this cost.

London nightlife is fantastic with bars everywhere across London in different areas and the nightlife changing and varying in the different areas of London as well. Also in the Monument/Bank area there were quite a few chain bars with good happy hour deals which helped with cost and made the nightlife better. Nightlife in London in general was definitely good, although pricey.

There were a few but not too many. I attended charity events and social events and also a few public speaking events where speakers would prepare speeches to be evaluated and there would be an impromptu questioner who would ask people to answer questions and speak for 3mins about it. Those opportunities were good.