Summer Intern Review

I enjoyed my summer internship at Bank of America Merrill Lynch immensely. Everyone I met was very friendly and happy to speak with me about their role. From the first day at the desk we were encouraged to meet with the Senior Leadership Team which made me feel both welcomed and valued.

I was placed in a relatively small team and despite them often being busy, they all took the opportunity to get to know me and they always made time to answer any queries that I had and give me advice on both my work and general career advice. I really enjoyed being a part of the team

Although I was given a lot of freedom to go about my project how I wanted, both my manager and my colleagues made it very clear that they were there if I had any questions, advice or even just needed a sounding board. When I was preparing for my final presentation my manager and colleagues were extremely supportive and always willing to give me some constructive criticism

My business varied depending on the stage of the internship. My first week consisted of training. My first week on the desk was not very busy as I had not been given my project yet but I did have a lot of online learning to do. Most of internship was reasonably busy but not so busy that I had to stay late to complete my work

I feel like I was given quite a bit of responsibility. I was given my project but then it was completely up to me how I went about that project. I was given a lot of autonomy. I decided on who I wanted to see and then went about organising meetings, obtaining documentation and arranging follow ups.

The training we received in the first week was very general as it focused on what an investment bank does and the products that it sells. In some respects this was good but I did not feel very prepared for my first week on the desk. I definitely feel that I improved my presentation skills as I had to give a final presentation to senior leaders. I was also given useful advice on my final year university dissertation.

My team was based on one of the trading floors so there was always a good atmosphere. Everyone I met was very friendly which contributed to a very positive atmosphere. The floor was open and my manager sat with the team which meant it was quite a collaborative atmosphere and I always had the opportunities to ask questions

I feel like the work placement/ internship was set up reasonably well although we were not officially told our teams until we started. There were numerous intern social events some set up by HR and others set up by the department. There were also recruiter drop ins where we could go and speak to HR about any issues we may have had

There was a week of general training and there was also a number of online learning activities we had to complete. There was a number on intern learning sessions on topics like mindfulness which aided my personal development. I definitely developed my presentation skills as over the course of my internship I received a lot of constructive criticism on my final presentation

I really like the organisation. It has a great culture - open, friendly and collaborative. I would like to be offered a graduate role. The one thing I would say is that we were never told the number of graduate roles that were available. There ended up being a lot of rumours and speculation on this topic. I don't know whether I'll get a job or not since the all the interns are of a really high calibre

There was a good social scene amongst the interns. We all got along well. There were a number of HR organised events throughout the internship. Also, there were a number of more informal intern/ grad/ alumni events in my department which were enjoyable and also gave us interns the opportunity to get to know people who previously did the internship and were successfully in securing a graduate job.

I was based in St. Paul's. Being based in the City meant that I didn't really expect the cost of living/ socialising to be cheap. I spent about forty pounds a week on travel. Although there were lots of tasty lunch options both in the Bank of America Merrill Lynch canteen and outside the bank, lunch typically cost around £6/ £7 a day which meant I tried to bring lunch with me at least twice a week

I didn't really partake in the nightlife as I'm not really one to go clubbing etc. However, I was aware of a large number of clubs/ bars within walking distance of the office. Areas such as Covent Garden, Old Street and Liverpool Street were all within walking distance so I would have had no issues in finding somewhere to go out if I were so inclined

There were a large number of opportunities to get involved in activities outside of work. The bank was very big on corporate social responsibility so there were a number of volunteering opportunities to get involved in. My managers were both happy to let me get involved with any that I were interested in.