Intern Review

I enjoyed this virtual experience to the fullest. It's one of the best experiences that I have ever had. During the short period, I have been offered opportunities to virtually meet and learn from my buddy, senior leaders, other graduates, and especially other interns from the program. I have also been given chances to carry out group works (case study and CSR challenge) with other interns, who I then made connections with and learned a lot from.

One of the best feelings that I got from my internship period was the feeling of belonging. I was extremely worried in the beginning but then I felt like I got accepted straight away. With the Q&A sessions and the small informal coffee session, I feel like my voices are heard by other members, especially seniors, of the company. It also feels like everyone at the bank is approachable. I can raise my hand and ask questions to senior leaders without being judged.

I have received full guidance and support during the virtual internship experience. -My buddy contacted and assisted me regularly both before and during the internship. She shared her experiences openly, pointed me to relevant reading materials and gave me honest pieces of advice on every concern that I had. -I also had opportunities to receive guidance and support from the bank’s senior leaders, who would speak openly and friendly about their job and journey at the company; who would answer any question that interns have. -The graduates who organised speaking sessions to share their experiences and journeys at the bank. They organised exercises for interns to learn, virtual games for interns to play and get to know each other, and many other activities.

The information that I received and the knowledge that I learnt through the internship would have a significant impact on my educational journey. As business administration (start-up businesses in specific) is my area of research, learning about how the bank is working with, nurturing and helping businesses around the country offered me a practical view on entrepreneurship. It gives me a different perspective on the relationship between a big, traditional bank and a small start-up, the perspective that I wouldn’t realise if I didn’t take this virtual experience opportunity. It reassures my decision of choosing commercial banking as my career path. Beyond that, it helps me to reflect at myself, to identify my skill and knowledge gaps for future self- development.

The program is structured to cover training sessions from hard skills to soft skills. 1st week is when interns get the taste of how the bank functions, its values, and its purposes. It’s also an opportunity for interns to get to know each other and connect. 2nd week is extremely inspiring as interns can get to know the bank at a deeper level and can also talk and learn from people who have loads of experiences at the company. 3rd week is very exciting as interns can learn new approaches to reflect at their skillset, to identify their skill gaps and learn to fulfill them in the right way. 4th week is highly informative as interns get to know about innovations and digitalisations in the financial industry.

The general atmosphere was friendly, fun with open communications. The interns are allowed to get involved, ask questions, and discuss our views and perspectives.

The bank has invested a lot of time and effort in me and other interns. They have designed a virtual program that suits the current situation but still, make sure that the interns get all information they needed

Speaking to the graduates and senior leaders at the bank helped me to understand how would it be having a full-time role with the company.

It's a culture where, I feel like my voices are heard by other people at the company. It also feels like everyone at the bank is approachable, from the graduates to senior leaders. I also understand how customer-centric the bank is as customers are at heart of every decision making.

The program is structured to cover training sessions from hard skills to soft skills. It helped to reassure my decision of choosing commercial banking as my career path.

There were speaker- led sessions every day, where I virtually met the bank's senior leaders and the graduates.

There were plenty of opportunities for interns to socialise and network with each other, and with other employees of the company.

There are lots of opportunities for employees to get involved in outside of work such as well-being activities (yoga, meditation, badminton, etc.), or fundraising activities.

Absolutely.