Spring Intern Review

Overall the insight was indeed enjoyable. I feel like I learnt quite a lot about the industry and about the firm in general and I found myself genuinely interested in this. Moreover, this was one of the better insights I have attended because of things like having firm-wide networking and the buddy system.

During our insight we were made to feel very valued throughout the programme. The firm had clearly dedicated a lot of resources to the programme and not just from HR but from the division we were interning in. Moreover, during the insight people were very willing to take the time to talk to us right from analysts to the head of technology in London!

The guidance and support that we received during the programme was exceptional. We were assigned a buddy at the start of the week who acted as a point of contact for the week. We would also meet with our buddy every day to discuss our progress in the programme. Moreover, the people running the insight were all very approachable.

Some aspects of the programme will probably benefit us in our future degree studies. For example, we completed a coding challenge which tested our ability to solve complex algorithmic problems. However, I would imagine that most of what we learnt will be useful in our professional life more than our academic life.

In general the insight was well structured. Throughout the week there was a great number and variety of activities including networking events, informational sessions, Q&A sessions and work shadowing. We were given a schedule at the beginning of the week and we largely stuck to this but the people running the insight were flexible when we wanted to see different parts of the division.

Overall the atmosphere during the insight was quite good. I would say that in general the atmosphere got better as the week progressed. In particular, people became more relaxed and sociable as the week progressed. The firm-wide networking event helped to improve the atmosphere. The only thing that made the atmosphere slightly worse was the pressure put on by the group project.

The insight was quite useful in understanding a full-time role at the firm. We had two work shadowing sessions during our time with the firm. This helped me to see how the firm uses technology and how I might play a part in that if we worked there. One potential improvement would have to have had more work shadowing sessions as there are relatively few compared to other insight programmes.

The insight was very informative in understanding the culture of the company. From the various informational sessions we had we learnt about a variety of aspects of this such as the importance of diversity at the firm. Moreover, the time we spent in our division and with employees of the firm helped to show the kind of culture BlackRock encourages and the people who thrive in this.

Overall a very generous reimbursement scheme. I had my travel booked in advance through another company so I didn't have to even use any of my own money or claim it through expenses. Also we had a hotel booked for us for the duration of the week in a central location and were given a generous allowance for lunch.

Overall the networking opportunities were very good. They ranged from having breakfast every morning with interns from all divisions and HR staff. I particularly enjoyed being able to interact with interns from other divisions and not being constrained to our own division. Also within our division there were more informal networking opportunities such as having pizza with senior members of the division.

The style and atmosphere of the networking events varied quite a lot from very informal drinks with the analysts in our division to more formal networking breakfasts every day. Within our division the networking events were well attended by both employees and interns in general. However, I can't speak for other divisions and I did notice that there weren't many employees from other divisions at the firm-wide networking event.