UBS Insights Review

It was an extremely well planned week, exhibiting all areas of the bank for interns to learn about. I greatly enjoyed broadening my knowledge of the different functions within UBS, whilst also making the most of division-specific work shadowing to allow me to understand better how the individual components of the bank work, too. All the employees we were exposed to were welcoming and engaging, and overall I thoroughly enjoyed seeing the inside of an investment bank for myself.

UBS provided excellent catering, insights accompaniment materials and insightful workshops to ensure that all participants engaged actively with the program. I felt valued becuase of the effort that had clearly been put in to provide us with an informative and enjoyable experience, and it was evident that UBS was looking to inspire the future generations.

There were lots of UBS employees attending every workshop and event; they were clearly motivated to promote their particular divisions. No one was intimidating, which made asking questions easy, and most importantly several employees helped out with insights every day, allowing genuine relationships to be built through relaxed networking opportunities.

In my case the skills I developed will not contribute specifically to my studies, since I study languages. They will, however, provide me with a sturdy base to work from should I choose to pursue investment banking further. In addition, inside knowledge of how an investment bank works will help me in whichever profession I end up in - knowing how some of the world's biggest institutions, that drive global markets day after day, work, will no doubt prove invaluable in the future.

The timetable was thorough, and rigorously adhered to. The sessions were of a good length so we could concentrate fully, but the variation in activities also helped to ensure that practical opportunites to put what we had learnt into action were plentiful. For most of the week, all divisions remained together, which I believe was a good idea - it gave us all a hollistic view of the operations the go on, and allowed us to appreciate areas of the banks about which we had no idea.

The participants were all very sociable and considerate. There didn't seem to be a particular social friction, but rather a cohesion, and this was reflected by UBS' integration with us. There was never any aggression or condescending rhetoric from senior employees, and from the first moment I felt welcome and motivated to do well. In addition, the emphasis on the other parts of the investment bank outside actual IBD presented UBS as a well-guided entity. All the divisions are well integrated, and I believe this was mirrored by the structure and nature of the Insights program.

They provided useful presentations to explain the function of each division, followed by skills workshops to consolidate what we had learnt. Work shadowing was also a key element to allow us to transpose the skills of the experts into our own portfolios.

Due to the structure of the placement, the emphasis was not on seeing "a day in the life of" for a particular division. We developed a good idea of the ethos within the firm, and met the people that drive it forward, but the actual day-to-day experience was not fully explored - I believe this is a good thing, as that is not the role of an insight week, but rather the role of a summer internship.

The values endorsed by UBS were consistently flagged up, and linked to aspects of their operations.I feel like I have a fairly good idea of what the working atmosphere is like within the firm.

Very helpful - we were given a very thorough view of what goes on at UBS, and many people are finishing the week favouring different divisions to the ones they initially signed onto. I believe I understand more about the industry as a whole, and it is certainly something I am likely to pursue in the future.

I study at UCL, meaning I did not qualify for accommodation. Those from outside London were provided with both accommodation and travel reimbursement, but I was provided with neither - it would be better to reimburse travel, since this will have cost £25 for the week out of a student's already-slight bank balance.

Lots of opportunity here - there were networking sessions every day and, provided you were proactive and made the most of it, they were very productive. The exposure to different business divisions also offered good networking opportunities.

Bowling on the first night was well organised, in a suitable venue and at a suitable time. It allowed us all to settle into the program and get to know each other outside a business environment. See above for networking.

Yes - there was a specific panel that came to talk to us about the Graduate Training Program Network and other "societies" within the bank. They told us about the size of their respective activities, and also stressed how UBS does the most it ca to support them.

Absolutely - the UBS ethos results in a welcoming environment, somewhat different to the intimidating and hostile world of investment banking often attributed to firms such as Goldman Sachs. I'm very glad I applied and took part, and really feel like I understand the function of an investment bank better.