Summer Intern Review

I really enjoyed the internship. It has been a steep learning curve and a great working experience. Everyone is very friendly and helpful; they take time off to explain things to me. Not only did I learn the technical knowledge but also the differences between each role and each asset class. This I find is so invaluable because I would not be able to find such insights on the internet.

Initially I put a lot of pressure on myself as I struggled to find how I can contribute to the team. Everyone in my team is so supportive and they gave me some tasks to do, explaining how my work could benefit the team. This does not only make me feel valued but also driven to do the work.

Even though my manager is very busy, he would always find time for me or direct me to someone I can talk to. I never feel lost that I do not know who to approach. I also get the support from my buddy and people in my team. What I really appreciate is that my manager gave me advice for my career path in Finance beyond this internship.

I do think there is a perfect balance of the work given. This means with time management, I can arrange some work-shadowing with other teams allowing me to broaden my understandings of the trading floor. Project was given in week 5 so the second half of the internship, all interns will be focusing a lot more on the final project but other day-to-day tasks should still be carried out as usual.

Since interns on the trading floor cannot trade or talk to clients, there was limited amount of responsibility given to us. However, this also serves as a good opportunity to learn as you do not get too occupied by all the day-to-day work. Besides, being given responsibility, you can learn a lot about how traders make decisions, how sales talk to clients or manage relationships by sitting with them and observing what they do.

I am really grateful to have been in this internship as it provides me an insight I could never get elsewhere. I am more motivated to learn Python now as I have seen the real applications in the workplace. Also, having been in this internship helps me decide my final year modules as I discover what I am interested in.

The trading floor is noisy and buzzing as everyone expects it to be. However, I was told that this is not exactly representative of how trading floor is like since summer time is quieter than usual. Therefore, I can expect it to be noisier during busy times of the year. It is a lively fast paced environment.

The programme is well organised i.e. one week training and nine weeks at the desk. There are also four arranged Friday afternoon work shadowing. Of course we are encouraged to arrange other work shadowing in the area that we are interested in. The programme structure was well communicated before the internship and most of the details were given at the beginning of the internship.

There was a one week training at the start of the programme - both soft skills and technical knowledge. This serves as an introduction to financial industry but eventually a lot more is learnt at the desk. The training could be more beneficial if more time is spent on explaining the fundamentals rather than trying to skim through all the content. There are online learning available if we need further knowledge on any particular area.

I like the culture at HSBC a lot and therefore find it appealing to work here. Everyone in the intern class is capable and deserves a place here. Therefore, I am not certain how many places are available for the interns. There are good future prospects here especially now that EM has come into spotlight and Asia plays an increasingly significant role in global economic growth.

There is a good relationship among all the interns that we do go out together sometimes and ask each other for help.

The price is expected for this area but still it is more on the expensive side and going out everyday could mean quite a huge sum of money.

There are nice bars and restaurants around Canary Wharf area if you want to hang out after work.

There are some opportunities available for interns to get involved. There is a volunteering day to give us an idea of the volunteering opportunities available at HSBC. However, since the internship was only 10 weeks, there are limited number of activities we can join with the firm. There are a lot for full-time employees.