Commercial Banking - Customer Solutions Review

I really enjoyed the virtual experience, which included a mixture of speaker-led sessions and development sessions to improve the interns' key skills. I feel this internship has prepared me well for working either in RBS or on another graduate scheme. Considering the difficult circumstances surrounding Covid-19 and the challenges faced by the bank in terms of delivering an internship scheme, I am very impressed by how the bank chose to carry on the scheme in a virtual way and how they have carried out the scheme across the 4 weeks!

I felt very valued by RBS, they structured the entire internship scheme well in order to provide the best overview to its interns of working in the bank. They had very senior leaders give up their time to talk about specific areas of the bank and they were happy to answer any questions that us interns had, and as they said, "No question is a silly question." Everyone on the internship scheme was very friendly and in no way was I made to feel inferior or not a part of the RBS team.

We received quite a lot of guidance. The only reason I have only given 8 stars is because it is difficult to give guidance virtually as opposed to when doing a face to face internship. In terms of support, the Early Careers team were great and were always quick to answer any questions we had whatever they may be. Each intern was also assigned a graduate buddy who is there to call or email if we need any help or advice with anything. I really liked this part of the internship as it was more informal and really helped me to settle into the role.

The information I have learned will I'm sure not only help with my degree (Economics) but will really help me later in my career. The virtual internship gave us a great overview of lots of sections of the bank and has helped me realise which areas I'm most interested in and would look to pursue a career in later. The internship has also developed some other key skills such as networking which I had previously struggled with.

The virtual experience was very well structured. Before the internship started we were sent a calendar of events with times and Zoom IDs and a brief descriptions of each event. Week 1 was a brief introduction, week 2 - a more focussed week on the specific programmes (mine was commercial banking- customer solutions), week 3 - sessions designed to improve our own skills and week 4 - bringing the internship to a close with some more talks and some points from graduates. I liked how each week varied slightly so there was something different to look forward to every day.

The general atmosphere was very friendly and encouraging. As with any internship there are some people a bit more 'keen' than others who can take over but I felt the way this internship was structured, everyone was given a chance to show their skills and everybody was included. Every Friday there was also a fun session, which was often interactive and in smaller groups, which was really nice to end on before the weekend. I really enjoyed the internship and had a lot of fun working with everyone.

They invested a lot in us, most of the programme was them teaching us so it was a big investment on their part. We had many skills sessions aimed at improving ourselves professionally and personally.

The speaker led sessions on each sector of the bank were really insightful and helped me a lot in terms of understanding the roles within the bank and what tasks I may be doing if I worked at the bank full time. The graduates answered any questions we had about what it is like working on the graduate scheme. We were given a lot of information about day to day life at the bank and also possible future career progression.

The virtual experience really helped me understand the culture at the bank. From listening to and talking to the senior leaders and the graduates it is clear to see the customer focussed culture of the bank. A friendly and enjoyable workplace is also important in the culture of the bank. They look after their employees and are concerned about both the physical and mental health of its employees. Everyone we spoke to who worked at the bank echoed these comments.

It was valuable, in terms of working out whether I want to pursue a career in commercial banking in the future. We were given lots of information and insightful talks from some very senior leaders who were honest with what they most loved about working in their specific roles in the bank as well as the challenges of the job. Hearing from someone who is in shoes you may potentially be in the future is really helpful in checking whether that career path is right for you.

I was paid in full for this internship. This was very good of the bank considering I know many other similar internships with competitor banks have been cancelled with the recent Covid-19 crisis. The fact that the bank stated a financial commitment to all its interns and other employees should be highly commended. I believe in this way RBS (now Natwest) has proven to be a top employer that really looks after its employees and their welfare.

Yes there were many opportunities to network and meet other employees at the firm. One day there was a coffee morning were a small group of interns and a senior leader within the bank were in a zoom call together and this was a great opportunity to network and chat in a more informal setting with someone more senior. Similarly, graduates were more than happy to guide interns and help them to network by introducing them to people more senior to them. During zoom via breakout rooms, interns were able to talk in smaller groups and network in this way too.

They were very good, my only complaint is that there were not more. I loved the coffee morning and would have loved another one to happen in the 4 weeks

Yes we had talks by the CSR (Corporate Social Responsibility) Council on some opportunities within the bank but outside of work such as volunteering. They spoke of how this a great way to get involved with other colleagues and meet more people in the bank but in a less formal setting and all for a good cause. We were in fact given the challenge of also getting involved like many RBS colleagues have already done in the 2.6 challenge raising money for charity, in this case for young persons' charity, The Princes Trust.

I would really recommend this virtual experience to a friend. I've enjoyed all parts of the internship, considering the circumstances with the Covid-19 crisis I think the bank have done the best they can to deliver a virtual experience that gives an insight into what it is like working there and all the potential opportunities open to their employees. There have been sessions aimed at improving our employability and other skills which have also been very helpful. Overall really recommend, they are a great employer!