Internal Audit Summer Intern Review

I have very much enjoyed the internship. The internship started with a two day induction in Excel London where I got to meet all the UK interns. This was a very good networking opportunity and the training was very interesting. I have also enjoyed the good atmosphere both between the interns and in the wider team. I would definitely recommend this internship to anyone interested in banking and finance!

Right from the start I was put in a team of five people and assigned a project. Thus it was easy to become a part of the team as it was so small. I was given a significant level of responsibility but the team encouraged asking questions and so I was never left on my own. As a result, I believe I was able to contribute to my team's work and they valued the contribution.

During the induction training, we were encouraged to ask as many questions as we have. This set a tone for the rest of the internship and if I had any queries, I always had someone to talk to. My team always welcomed my questions which meant that I could resolve issues and was quite productive.

The first half of the internship was not as busy as I would have hoped for. This was mainly because of the nature of the work in the team which tends to be quite variable. However, work got a lot more busy in the second half. My team ensured that I had a right level of work and that I wasn't overworked.

I was given quite a lot of responsibility right from the start. I attended all the meetings that my team went to, some with people who are very important to the business. I was included in all of the group discussions and my suggestions were addressed at all times. Essentially, I felt more like a full-time colleague and not as an intern which made the experience quite enjoyable. At first I hesitated to ask stakeholders questions as I didn't want to make the team look bad. However, in my feedback I was encouraged to participate in the meetings more which gave me motivation to act like a full member of the team.

As I study a subject completely different from banking or finance, the knowledge that I have gained will not directly help me in my degree. However, I think that I have developed a better work ethic and I can manage my time more effectively. Hence, I believe that these skills will make going back to university quite a bit easier.

This was possibly one of the things I have enjoyed the most about Barclays. Even though everyone was professional, there didn't seem to be a lot of general stress in the office. People were very polite and friendly. I looked forward o coming to the office just because I really enjoyed working with people in the team.

During the first two days I all the interns had a training event at the Excel London. This was organised pretty well and everyone was kept fairly busy. The Internal Audit interns also had about 8 training events spread out during the time of the internship. Most of them were very interesting. The Performance Management process was very well explained as well.

There have been numerous training sessions throughout the internship starting with a massive event at Excel London and smaller events throughout the internship. During this time, I learned a lot about how Barclays functions and what different parts there are. There were also many networking sessions organised for us where we could meet other people which was very useful from the development perspective.

I like the fact that Barclays promotes internal mobility. People tend to move from one department to another fairly frequently and this is encouraged quite widely. This means that the company is attractive even if you are not fully sure you want to work in the area that you did your internship in, long term. However, if you are offered a graduate scheme place, it will be in the same department as your summer internship. It seems like in my department most interns are offered a graduate scheme place, performance-permitting. A point of improvement would be more clarity on MBA sponsorship opportunities as this was not made very clear.

My internship was during the World Cup craze and the department seem to make use of this. My team went to a pub to watch a couple of games and every time I have enjoyed it very much. The internship also includes a final social event in a bar in London.

I worked in the headquarters in Canary Wharf. Of course this is a very expensive region. However, Barclays provided an accommodation allowance. This was enough to rent a room in a nice flat in Kensington so I have no complaints in this area. Overall, I think the good salary justifies the higher cost of living in London.

London has amazing nightlife and I have very much enjoyed this. After this internship, I definitely know that I want to work in London and nowhere else as I have enjoyed the social scene here. The fact that there are so many interns here also makes it easy to make friends.

There were quite a few events organised by Barclays that didn't involve work like picnics and evenings out in a pub. Some other interns made use of the Citizenship scheme which allowed to volunteer in a number of places. Also in 2018 Barclays was one of the main sponsors of Pride events throughout the UK so interns were involved in these events as well.