Summer Intern Analyst Review

The HSBC internship team were creative and adapted well to the new challenges of delivering a virtual internship. By organising a range of different events they made sure the intern cohort connected and understood the importance of networking. The internship has allowed me to develop personal skills that are both sustainable and meaningful. By investing in our personal growth as well as delivering technical skills through our individual placements, the internship has been invaluable and therefore a thoroughly enjoyable experience. I would recommend the internship highly to my peers.

My specific placement team, the intern cohort, the graduate committee and leaders in the bank were incredibly welcoming and invested their time in developing the intern cohort. All colleagues in the bank were happy to share their experiences, and offer advice regarding career progression. Team members were also more than happy to talk through the specifics of financial analysis and share their screen which ensured that despite having a virtual internship I still got the experience to see important work and add value to the team.

Throughout the whole internship I felt supported and valued by the company. I always knew who I could speak to if I had an issue or needed guidance. In terms of direct contact, each intern had a GradCoach, an On Programme Manager (both Graduates) who offered mentoring and a friendly face to speak to on a regular basis. The intern programme team were always available to answer questions and my placement manager offered regular 1:1 appointments through the internship to ensure appropriate progress was made towards my development goals.

The internship programme was designed to develop both soft skills and hard, technical skills. The emphasis on both types of skill was encouraging and allowed each intern to develop transferrable skills that can be taken back to university as well as in future career progression. There were opportunities for presentation, teamwork and resilience training to name a few. The most wonderful thing was that the internship programme focused on personal sustainable development and invested in our individual growth. I can honestly say that the programme has developed a plethora of skills that will remain prominent in my life for the rest of my future.

On the whole, the virtual experience was well structured and organised from the start. All development sessions were communicated to us well in advance and followed a well thought out timetable of events to ensure any skills learnt could be used during our placement. The only reason it was not scored as a ‘seamless’ structure is because some events were slightly too long so did not epitomise on intern engagement for the maximum amount of time.

All interns were positive, driven and willing to learn new things. This made for a thoroughly enjoyable experience and the overall atmosphere was welcoming and future focused. Due to this atmosphere it made the company a joy to work for everyday and encouraged a desire to learn more. The company were devoted to their values and made them very clear throughout the programme. By having an open, dependable and connected atmosphere I felt valued and included in the company as a colleague.

The company were absolutely invested in each individual. From the very beginning they tailored the experience uniquely to each intern and picked our placements based on our strengths and areas for improvement. For the duration of the internship the company were devoted in ensuring we made progress towards our goals and always checked in with us to make sure we were happy and reaching our full potential. The company made it clear that we could take an allocated time out of our working hours to volunteer and actively encouraged us to engage in CSR opportunities. Overall the company invested an great deal of time and effort into making the experience fulfilling and enjoyable.

The company were very good at making sure we became involved in the technical side of the business as well as the social and networking side of the business. This made sure we were fully aware of everything on offer to a colleague at HSBC. Despite only interning for 5 weeks, the intern programme was designed to introduce us to all grad committees and even encouraged the interns to get involved in planning events for different CSR initiatives and speaker panels. I thoroughly felt that I understood the company values after interning with the company.

The company successfully introduced us to the current company culture but also actively challenged the social standings and painted a positive outlook on where they aim to be in the future. This was both encouraging and optimistic to be part of a company so willing to change and adapt to become a role model for the corporate world to follow. Being part of a diversity & inclusion panel, hearing other interns speak on a podcast and listening to webinars on sustainability helped me better understand the company culture and focus on the future.

The internship delivered quality content that allowed me to see the technical side of the bank and network across the bank to understand the avenues available to a graduate at the company. This was valuable to help me decide whether a life in banking would be appropriate for myself. On one hand I got to see what a career in banking could look like but on the other hand only spending 5 weeks with the company made it difficult to decide with confidence whether the career would be fully suitable, hence only delivering 8 stars.

I was paid the full original stated amount advertised way before the pandemic. This was not essential for the company to provide but their commitment to fulfilling their original promise was encouraging and made each intern feel valued. It is clear that the company invests a large amount of time and effort into the intern cohort making the experience rewarding. There were also extra provisions if anyone needed technical devices or support throughout the internship.

The company made it clear from the very first day that networking was actively encouraged by the bank. Having access to the systems made it easy to reach out to any member of the bank and all employees were happy to devote time and effort into meeting the interns. This not only extended to networking with graduates and other interns but even included senior members of the bank. I felt there were more than enough opportunities to network and meet people across the spectrum of the bank.

As with many online events, the social networking element was difficult to find the appropriate balance. Some weeks the amount of contact was well balanced between daytime networking activities and after work social events. Other weeks, it could feel like an overload and it could be difficult to achieve the work/life balance if an intern attended every session available. Even when missing some optional sessions it was difficult not to get the impression that you were missing out. Despite the negatives, the intern programme mostly achieved a high level of attendance and I felt I gained a lot from each of the sessions.

Absolutely! The intern team were transparent from the start that volunteering is actively encouraged and provided us the platforms to get involved in as many opportunities a as we wished. On top of this, there were social networking events laid out to us and different graduate committees and employment resource groups would reach out to the intern cohort to provide information on the events and activities outside of work hours. I can confidently say that I understand what activities are available to a colleague at HSBC and where to find the information on the events calendar.

From the personal development, technical skills and networking opportunities, I would thoroughly recommend the internship to a friend. It was well structured, with a unique focus on personal traits and provided a great insight into the company. Whether an intern decides a role in banking is suitable for them or not, the internship provides a platform to base future career progression on. As a valued member of the company, the intern has the ability to add value and make a difference in such a short space of time, therefore I would definitely recommend the experience.