Summer Technology Developer Review

The internship provided almost limitless possibilities to hear from interesting speakers and arrange our own meetings with anyone from recent graduates to managing directors. There were a number of fun interactive sessions scattered throughout to keep you from getting bogged down with work and allow you to network more with peers. The role provided me with new learning experiences that wouldn't have been possible at university. To achieve 10 stars I would have liked to be able to get some face-to-face with Barclays staff and see the office but of course this was only limited by Covid circumstances.

I felt very valued even as an intern. We were given lots of responsibilities, had access to make differences to real existing systems (safely of course) and were continually speaking with senior staff. There were no days where I didn't have the opportunity to speak to someone new, and all employees I met were very kind and interested in what I had to say. I was able to share my previous experiences from university with several apprentices who had not yet reached the same year of Uni which was rewarding. A number of directors got involved with our project and provided feedback at numerous stages.

We were assigned a buddy, line manager and mentor at the beginning of the internship. This was great as we had three friendly faces to speak to of different levels right from the offset. We also made connections quickly with other tech staff and department heads that we could go to for help. We had weekly catch ups with each of our 3 supports at a minimum, so would never be left for too long with important questions. In general - staff were very good for getting back to interns via email which was good in spite of online circumstances. It would have been an added bonus to have had some of the staff in our area reach out to us as interns, as many of the meetings and connections we made were all arranged by us.

I have definitely developed skills for life on this internship. Particularly my communication and presentation skills were greatly developed. There are not a lot of opportunities at this age to speak and present to a board of directors and VP's and for it to feel so comfortable. I learnt a lot about how to stay productive for 7 working hours a day at home - which will greatly benefit me when I return to university as procrastination was one of my biggest flaws beforehand. I developed greater writing skills as my written outputs had to be to a professional standard - and I learnt more about security risks/controls that will make sure my future projects are airtight.

The first couple weeks were a bit tricky due to the online nature of the program. There wasn't a lot of time for them to organize this however so I don't hold it against the staff at all. However, it did mean that we weren't able to start development properly until our third week which on a short 6 week experience isn't great. During these two weeks there was still plenty to do and lots of resources supplied to learn from - so I didn't mind. After we got going with 'proper' work the structure was great, and ended with presentations and reports

The general atmosphere was fantastic, all of the staff that I spoke to were incredibly friendly and interesting. The attitudes were all positive and there was a great energy around getting involved and developing yourself. There were no times that senior staff looked down upon interns - almost the opposite. They were genuinely interested in learning about my past experiences and often sought advice on what I think should be done within the company as an outsider with fresh ideas. I felt truly valued in this atmosphere and this allowed me to feel comfortable and relaxed at work - even in what would have previously been high pressure situations.

This was one of the most positive areas of the program. We were constantly being pushed to further our development through training resources in every format, many personal development training sessions and insight calls. We learnt from people in every area of the business to widen our knowledge. We got the opportunity to do a number of presentations and always had a chance to practice these to our line manager before we done them to our audience which helped massively. There was almost too much - if that's a thing - personal development in such a small amount of time and I feel like I learnt more in 6 weeks than I could have in months beforehand.

I got a really great idea of the kind of roles available at Barclays, as well as lots of information on what the grad scheme is like. This was from all of the insight sessions and Q&A's we had a chance to attend with numerous staff. I learnt about the output focused working plan - as opposed to being forced unto a strict 9-5. I now know more about the structure of managers and directors and feel like I would be comfortable to have a conversation with anyone in the business. Again the only thing missing here would be the in-office experience that cant be replicated in an online setting - so I don't fully know what it would be like to work there full time.

I got a great idea of the company culture as everyone I spoke to worked in accordance to the Barclays values - and not just on a surface level. I feel like in such a short time I got enough exposure to different business areas and functions, on every level from other interns, grads and even chief staff. I was able to speak with a number of different intern groups in an informal setting and everyone seemed to share the same consensus on the working culture.

The experience confirmed that I would want to work with Barclays in the future, and would love to work in technology with them. This is in part due to the ability to work across so many different functions in the business in the grad scheme - which stands out compared to other companies. I still don't know for sure what exact area I would like to work in - but it opened my eyes to many different technology areas within banking that I would like to try.

The pay for the internship was very competitive compared to what other companies offer. From speaking with many interns in other business it seems to be the highest paying internship in Glasgow. Barclays also provided a very good relocation bonus before starting to help with accommodation costs over the summer. When the internship was shortened from 9 weeks to 6 weeks due to covid - they stuck by their initial pay and we received the full 9 weeks worth for only 6 weeks of work.

As mentioned in the other sections, the networking opportunities were second to none at Barclays. We had many speaker sessions from lots of interesting staff around the company - and it was easy to organize follow ups for additional questions. There is a meet the director initiative which allows interns to have meetings with very senior staff and learn about their roles/career advice etc. There were also a number of networking sessions between interns for us to meet all of our cohort.

the networking events were great, and there were a number of social events scattered through the internship as well. These were all quite varied and interesting, prompting interns to work together to solve problems and have fun together. It was fun to take small breaks from the typical work schedule to not only relax but to make new connections and even friends with other people in the business. I believe these would only be better in person as opposed to online.

We had many sessions with different groups we could join if we became full-time staff at Barclays - where they recommended and spoke about various outside of work activities and charity events. There weren't many opportunities to actually take part in these due to the short time I worked there and covid situation so I can't comment on how good these activities are but from the sounds of it everyone gets stuck in and has a good time.

For a virtual experience I couldn't have asked for much more! I believe I learnt some really valuable life lessons while working here and grew my confidence in my abilities massively. It has almost changed the way in which I carry myself through life which seems strange to say but it really has had a huge impact in only a 6 week period! I would definitely recommend other students to apply and try to secure an internship with Barclays in the future.