Investment Banking Summer Intern Review

The internship has been an amazing experience. I have learnt so much and Citi makes sure that everyone hits the desks with a good footing by having a training week in the first week. I've learnt so much on the job - from using excel efficiently, (which I barely used before), powerpoint formatting and using specific software to my industry sector. I have had so much exposure to different clients, other teams in the bank and a variety of deals at different stages in their lifecycle.

Citi really make you feel part of a community. Each intern is assigned a buddy, who takes you for a lunch/coffee at the beginning of your internship and is there to provide support, advice and tips throughout your internship. Citi also have a variety of diversity initiatives - for example, the female diversity initiative. Each intern who identifies as female is given a senior female mentor who acts as a role model and is happy to answer any questions related to being a senior female in the bank as well as any other questions.

Supervisors are accommodating to the fact that many people do not have a finance background and/or experience of using excel/ powerpoint efficiently. They take the time to explain your tasks to you and give you guidance as to what to do. They are there to answer any questions you may have along the way, ensuring that you never feel lost.

The work balance is just right - you are given a sufficient amount of work to keep you busy and throughout the internship you will become more efficient and complete these tasks much more quickly. There are also several Speaker events throughout your internship, in which you get to hear senior members of the bank talk about their role in the bank, their banking journey and get to know them on a more personal level. During my internship, we were lucky to hear Sir Mervyn King speak about his role as professor, former Governor of the Bank of England, and Senior Advisor at Citi.

The amount of responsibility given during the internship is astounding and I certainly did not imagine the extent of it! You really do hit the ground running - but are given enough support and guidance along the way. It's surreal to think that the pitchbooks, graphs, models and other tasks that you undertake are sent to other team members to use in their own work, sent to other teams in the bank, and are sent to clients!

The skills that you develop during the internship are certainly skills for life, whether you decide to continue with a career in Investment Banking or finance or not. The excel, modelling and pitchbook skills are clearly important in banking, but you also learn how to use these programs properly and efficiently and so they are certainly useful during your degree if you use excel and powerpoint a lot. You also develop team working and communication skills as you work on several projects at a time with a variety of people and learn how to balance your time well.

The Citi office is always buzzing; there is always someone around to chat to and get to know their banking journey. Everyone is welcoming and willing to spend their time chatting to you and sharing their experience at Citi. There is always something to do outside of work - Citi run many speaker events which are open to interns, and these are an excellent way to get to hear about how the bank functions as a whole.

The internship was organised very well. The first week is a training week, which proved extremely valuable to me, coming from a non-finance background. It gives you a firm basis and understanding of financial statements, accounting, and the various pieces of software which you will be using throughout your internship.

Citi really invest in each intern throughout the internship. They ensure that everyone feels welcome and included, and this is clearly shown by the fact that each intern is assigned a buddy with whom they are able to seek advice and support and who gives them tips on working at Citi. The training week is also exemplary of the support given to interns and clearly shows that they are willing to invest in each individual from the ground up. Throughout the internship team members are always on hand to explain various financial models, explain projects and teach and show you how to carry out your own modelling.

Citi are one of the few Investment Banks who hire such that all interns are able to receive an offer if they show potential, a willingness and interest to learn and take advice and comments on board. This ensures that you work collaboratively and together with fellow interns, and you learn as much from them as you do from the team and Citi employees in general. This creates a conducive environment, meaning that you work more efficiently and are able to get as much out of the internship as possible.

Citi organise various social events throughout your internship - there is a Global Community Day in which all interns take a trip to the park and help out with weeding and fence painting. This was fun as you were able to meet interns from other areas of the bank whom you would otherwise would probably not meet. The interns in general organise many events - we went out for dinner and drinks together especially in training week, but also every so often throughout the internship.

There are so many restaurants, cafes and bars in Canary Wharf that you are spoilt for choice! Citi also has several cafes and restaurants inside the office serving both breakfast and lunch and snacks throughout the day at very reasonable prices. Should you need to stay a little longer at work to finish some work off, Citi are very generous and pay for your dinner which is delivered to reception.

As mentioned earlier, there were many events organised outside of work. Citi organised breakfast and lunch networking sessions between senior members of the bank and interns, ensuring that you are exposed a variety of people throughout your internship. Specific teams themselves also organise various social events, including cooking classes and golf trips!