Application Developer Review

Despite the banking industry (and corporations in general) rumors, I enjoyed working for J.P.Morgan to an extent way beyond what I was expecting. J.P.Morgan aims to hire the best and brightest and it actually succeeds in that - I have worked with amazing skilled people that made me feel like home and even though it gets stressful at times (and it actually does at some point, no matter what role you are in or what company you work for), I received all the support I needed. I think it takes a combination of people, facilities and skills to make up for a great working environment and I did find all of these here. I think an internship here was one of the best choices I have made regarding my professional life so far as it gave me an overview of what the banking industry is like for an Application Developer and it helped me decide if it is the right path for me.

I think it generally depends on the team you work with because no two people can be the same but I happened to end up in a great team which put aside my experience (or lack thereof) and provided me with all the support I needed. They didn't expect me to know everything, especially when dealing with J.P.Morgan's own products and they understood that I had to learn before doing what I was asked to - which is how I learned a lot during my internship and I can honestly admit that there was no day that went by without me learning something. While they were all friendly and had a relaxed relationship, my team kept it professional which in my opinion is a great thing that not many people can achieve.

My manager was great and supportive and always helped me out when I got stuck. He's one of the most professional and fun people I have come across and I believe it takes a good balance of both to be successful. As we were told on our first day here, "there is no such thing as a stupid question" and even though I felt reluctant to bother him with my questions in the first place, he turned out to be really helpful and nice to me - there are a lot of people who come here with no financial background and it can be a bit overwhelming to begin with but having the right people around you makes everything much easier.

There were average days, stressful days and relaxed days - as it probably is in any company. I never felt pressured to work late or stress out if something did not work out the way I wanted it to but if you really enjoy what you are doing and are an ambitious person, you will do that anyway. I didn't feel that work was interfering with my personal life - if you are able to manage your time effectively and focus on work when you are at work and on whatever else you'd like when you're out of the office, it all works out just fine.

I feel like I have been given a good amount of responsibility and although I wouldn't have minded being given even more, the nature of my team's work would not allow it due to its time sensitivity and my not being as experienced with the system.

Two of the most valuable skills that I developed throughout this internship and that will be extremely useful to me in finalizing my degree studies are time management and the social skills I gained while working here. As far as the technical skills are concerned, I have learned a lot that will help me in my career, especially if I get the chance to return to J.P.Morgan after finishing my studies. One other thing that J.P.Morgan is great at is providing adequate training for its new hires - although it might seem boring if you're really eager to start doing some proper work, all the hours spent on trainings pay off in the end, as you acquire knowledge not only about how things work within the firm but also in the financial sector as a whole.

The people in my office were hard-working and focused on what they were doing but that did not stop them from making occasional jokes or have a laugh to free their minds for a couple of minutes. Teams often go out together for lunch or drinks and that really helps getting to know your colleagues and maintaining a good relationship with them. I was expecting everyone to be serious and formal as this is the first thing that came into my mind when I was thinking about banks, but the people are generally relaxed which proves that finding a good work-fun balance is not difficult.

The organization was good overall. However, despite not being able to tell what it is like in other companies, I believe we were slightly forced into the entire networking. No one likes to awkwardly go and try to find subjects to talk about to other people but networking is really beneficial especially to the interns. The only issue is that although J.P.Morgan tries its best to make it feel natural, it still feels induced and uncomfortable. I personally enjoy talking to people as I am quite sociable but even I felt a bit pressured. Other than that, there is nothing wrong with the organization and anyone will enjoy all the presentations and events that are arranged for interns - unless they are set for 8am and you are not so much of a morning person!

J.P.Morgan invests a great deal in the training and development of its employees. There obviously is mandatory training that is required for you to successfully pursue your daily activities and tasks and it is very user-friendly, but the one thing that I find great about it is that you can choose any course you would like and do it just because you think it's interesting or helpful or maybe just because you want to learn something new.

The internship is a short-term commitment that benefits both parties - you will find out whether you actually like it here and gain some experience and J.P.Morgan will see if you can live up to the expectations and be what they are looking for. If your sole purpose is to have a big firm name on your CV at the end of the internship and you will effortlessly stroll through it, you probably won't be successful in getting a job at the end but if you prove that you are reliable, hard-working and enthusiastic you will make a good candidate for an offer. I still have a few days left at J.P.Morgan so I can't say anything about getting the job myself.

The social scene was good, especially since I already knew a few other interns before I came here. However, even coming to work for J.P.Morgan and not knowing anyone can turn out to be a great experience as there is a number of events that are being organized for interns which are a really good opportunity to make friends. Once you get to know people here you might want to keep in touch with them and maybe you even become best friends - who knows?

London can be expensive - especially when you make your own money and realize the amount of monthly expenses is greater than it seemed when you were living with your parents but depending on which part of London you choose to live in, you might face different prices. However, living in the central area I managed to go out and have fun every now and then without stressing about the money too much. If you like shopping a bit too much on the other hand, the last few days before the salary comes in might be a bit stressful.

I am not too much of a night person - I prefer hanging out with my friends or staying in to watch a good movie to clubbing so I wouldn't really know but London is a great place for everything that might come to one's mind.

J.P.Morgan organizes volunteering days out, people often go to play football, tennis, etc so you can join them or you can choose to do something completely unrelated - London is full of opportunities!