Market Risk Summer Analyst Review

I greatly enjoyed all aspects of my 2-month internship. There were several opportunities for me to interact with employees at all levels of seniority, and I felt like the project I was working on was genuinely useful to my team. There were also several events organised, such as intern mini-golf, that were entertaining and boosted the impression of bank life.

Whenever I was struggling with any aspect of the internship, work-related or not, there were always plenty of people to ask for guidance. The mentor and buddy system is a good way of assigning points of contact, but it was just as easy to ask questions to anyone on my team, and they were all happy to help.

On the first day, I had my projects outlined by my manager, which provided work for me to do every day. There were also smaller tasks that I could work on at the same time, in order to introduce some variety. This mix of long and short-term deadlines, as well as an HR-supplied charity project ensured I constantly had things to do, but it was never a burden, and it was comfortable for me to ask my colleagues for help.

I had been told that the results of my project would be used by my team moving forward, which was a considerable amount of responsibility, but good motivation for making the sure everything was correct. Throughout the internship, I had to personally call US traders and interact with employees around the bank, representing my division and my desk. There was no interaction with clients, a wise decision considering my relative inexperience, and I think the internship struck a good balance of responsibility.

There is no amount of academic learning that can replace the on-the-job experience I received during this internship. Now I have a practical understanding of the way various metrics work together, have seen the application of formulas, and have personally tried to develop insights from official data, among other things. These will be of significant help for further studies. The soft skills I learned, including teamwork and presentation, will also be useful for my career, regardless of industry.

The Market Risk department has a professional but relaxed atmosphere, which allowed me to be myself when talking with other employees, and ask questions without fear. I was able to start conversations with colleagues, while also working on the projects I had been given. The team has semi-regular events which allow for meeting people and networking.

From the first day, we were handed a timetable that outlined the entire initial training week. This was very useful for settling in and meeting other interns. From the second week onwards, we were introduced to our teams, and it was obvious they had been briefed, and told to prepare work for interns to do, with clearly marked deadlines and milestones. This allowed us to immediately feel useful and was indicative of the excellent organisation of the internship as a whole.

I would very much hope to receive an offer of future employment at Bank of America Merrill Lynch. The atmosphere and culture is one that I find very appealing, and the work is in an area that requires constant attention, something that I look for in a job. The bank is one of the biggest companies in the world, and there is obvious prestige in being part of it.

Bank of America Merrill Lynch were constantly organising events for interns, both with and without the more senior employees. In fact, there were so many it was impossible to attend all of them. These events were an excellent opportunity to network with interns and employees from divisions all over the bank, and were chances to loosen up after a day of working. It was very apparent that intern satisfaction was a high priority for the company.

Because the Merrill Lynch Financial Centre is situated in Central London, the cost of both living and socialising is higher than it would be in most other parts of the country. However, the locales for such activities are high quality, and it is always possible to take public transport a few minutes away to find places that are considerably cheaper.

During my first week working in the office, I took part in a volunteering day, helping rebuild Stewarts Road Adventure Playground. Bank of America Merrill Lynch has a huge focus on these charitable activities, with a calendar full of volunteering opportunities, containing multiple each day. In addition to volunteering, there were sports events such as touch rugby, minigolf and the JPMorgan Corporate Challenge, in which I took part.