Spring intern Review

It was a very fun, dynamic week with a variety of activities to keep us busy. A particular favourite was the evening networking on the 30th floor overlooking the city! We also had many fun icebreaker activities and leadership activities throughout the duration of the week. However I’d definitely say it was the right combination of learning and fun.

I really felt like Barclays valued you as a potential employee and wanted you to work there. This meant that they tried to make themselves as attractive to us as possible which made me feel valued. Furthermore your opinions were not only respected but encouraged even when different to those who may have asked.

We were allowed to shadow two different function areas of our choice, with an insight from all 7. This provided lots of guidance and support in terms of allowing a deeper understanding of the function and job role but also how best to prepare for interviews not only in barclays but in general.

There was a lot of team activities that worked on both communication and presentation skills. I feel much more confident speaking in front of groups of people now and also in correctly articulating my point. It has also allowed a better analysis of my own skills allowing me to understand where to work on development when I return to my degree.

The structure of the programme was very well planned. There had clearly been a significant amount of effort and thought put in to how we could have the best possible experience. It involves a mix of insights, networking and work shadowingwith graduates and senior colleagues. The interview at the end was also very structured.

Barclays have adopted a ‘dynamic working approach’ allowing employees much more freedom in terms of working hours and environment. This was really reflected in the way in which staff interact in a relaxed and friendly manner with each other and even the interns. The activities organised by the graduate recruiters were never dull but always engaging.

At the start of the week we engaged in an activity which identified what kind of learners we are. This then analyses our weaknesses and gave us ways to improve and even how to interact most efficiently with different types of learners. This was very relevant for the rest of the week and most like my degree and career.

The roles are very technical so a week only gave us limited exposure and understanding. However what was done in terms of a week was to the best of the organiser’s ability. Getting to network with graduates away from groups where they had to remain professional also allowed us a deeper insight.

Barclays values are a very substantial part of the spring week and the business. Every person we met displayed all five values both towards other people and in their work. Although we didn’t really see exactly what people do all day every day it was very insightful to talk at a personal level with these people.

I feel fairly confident that the function I picked at the end of the week to interview for is one that I will pursue even if I am not successful in receiving the summer internship. However the only ambiguity was due to the fact that all functions looked so good!

I was given free accommodation as I lived more than 1 hour 30 minutes away for five nights. We were also given 250 pounds of expensives and reimbursed our travel expenses. On top of this we were even given 7.50 a day to spend in the canteen - which goes a long way!

We met a range of different seniority levels almost every single day. To be in touch with people so high up in the business was a really valuable experience and something I wasn’t expecting. The different contexts in the networking sessions were also very useful in facilitating a range of question types.

These couldn’t have been better. There was the right mix of graduate level, slightly above, senior and very high up speakers who showed an interest in getting to know us. Furthermore we had three separate contexts - one was quite formal during office hours, one relatively formal after office hours with drinks and food and one during work shadowing where you could ask literally anything.

Yes there were various opportunities for employees to get involved in other activities. Some teams had organised tag rugby together, there were charity events that people could get involved in and other events such as the ring fencing party. Staff also have the option of attending the gym situated in the building.

Definitely one who was interested in this area. If you’re not interested it could be perceived as a very intense week as you get the full experience of rush hour and everything! But I think it would be hard for anyone interested to come off the week had having a bad experience.