Fidelity Investment Insight Week Intern Review

The Fidelity Investment Insight Week was incredibly rewarding - both useful and genuinely enjoyable. The week effectively combined valuable work experience with light hearted activities to help the group get to know each other. Having discussed other insight weeks with friends at University, Fidelity appeared to be by far the most enjoyable experience. Due to the group being all female, the atmosphere was perhaps less competitive than other insight weeks. Mixing with Fidelity employees from all areas was especially rewarding, as they all spoke so highly of Fidelity as a company. Also, you were treated as a valued member of the insight week. Each day we were introduced to different senior employees of all teams - you felt like Fidelity were genuinely passionate about you gaining the best experience of their company possible.

I imagine that at some insight weeks there is no element of feeling valued, as your internship is very short. However, at Fidelity, the feeling of being invaluable was completely non existent. There were daily networking events with employees ranging from current graduates to senior managers. Everybody in the office was excited about the insight week and felt eager to mix with the group of girls taking part. We were given the opportunity to shadow leading members of the Equity Research, Fixed Income or Solutions teams at Fidelity. During this experience, the employees did make you feel valued - we shared opinions and discussed recent movements that would be affecting their work. This experience was particularly helpful and did make you feel part of the Fidelity community.

There was constant guidance and support throughout. After every interactive session, questions were encouraged and employees were always willing to clear up any issues that you felt you may have. Support was offered from employees in the investment teams in terms of any career based questions. There was continuous support from the HR team regarding CV, application and general advice for future internships and placements. Support and guidance was also received from other participants when exchanging presentations - positive feedback to each other was encouraged. Overall the insight week was incredibly supportive.

As an Economics student, the insight week really helped me with my finance based modules. You gained a real insight into how an investment based firm works on a daily basis. This is extremely value knowledge to apply to your degree studies and exams. The information and experiences received from the insight week are the most valuable for applications, CV work and future internships. The skills I developed helped to make myself more employable.

The insight was the perfect balance of work experience and a lively environment in which to network with the other participants and current employees. The week involved a guided tour of the City of London, a trip to the London Eye and a curry night as examples of the relaxed and friendly atmosphere. In addition to this, the investment insight week was incredibly well structured in terms of giving us a lot of information in a short space of time - we received talks from a number of senior employees. Alongside this, we were able to choose a branch of the investment team to shadow. Having such useful experiences to learn about the industry as well as having enjoyable activities proved the insight as well structured.

The atmosphere during the insight was always positive. You could tell that a lot of planning and preparation had gone into the week, and as a result the insight ran smoothly and was always enjoyable. The atmosphere amongst employees in the Fidelity office was great to be a part of - the staff always offered any guidance they could. Also, the participants of the week were encouraged to network and socialise together, and as a result the atmosphere was very friendly. Overall I would describe the insight week as welcoming and supportive.

This is difficult to answer as the internship was only an insight week, so much personal training or development was not expected. However, Fidelity were definitely keen to invest as much as they could in us. A lot of information was given about future summer internships with the company, and applications were encouraged. In terms of development, Fidelity allowed us to discover so much more about the investment world, and I would definitely class this as useful development for future careers.

I would definitely say that the insight week left you desiring a full time role within the company! Every employee was so complimentary of Fidelity as an employer. All seemed genuinely happy in their roles. Through shadowing members of each investment team, an insight into what a full time role within the company would consist of was gained. The culture of Fidelity was completely shared with us.

As stated above, the insight week allowed the culture of Fidelity to be fully understood. The culture of Fidelity in having a complete work-life balance was clear when speaking to employees of all levels. The insight week also conveyed this culture - unlike some insight weeks which appear very work heavy, Fidelity offered the right work / activity balance.

Each day allowed us to understand the investment world further. Through talks and discussions with various senior team members, you were always questioning various career options and deciding whether a role in investment was suited to you. Questions were encouraged and the open atmosphere meant that you could find out more about any given content. Any queries about future careers could be addressed.

It would be wrong to expect pay for an insight week as it's about discovering more about the industry and the firm as opposed to working. However, Fidelity generously reimbursed any travel expenses (unlike other insight weeks) which was a big help! They also provided accommodation if it was needed, which again I understand isn't often an option with other firms.

Yes, as often mentioned, every day offered more networking opportunities. It was a great experience in terms of meeting employees who were often very senior. The insight week allowed you to network with employees of the company on every level - interns, graduates and team members of every level. Everybody was always eager to help and answer questions.

The events were always well organised and well attended. Networking events included a curry evening at Fidelity's offices, a cocktail evening and a trip to the London Eye. The environment was friendly and easy going amongst everybody. 'Working lunches' were common, with graduates coming down to eat and network with the interns. All of these experiences were a great part of the week.

At Fidelity there appeared to be many activities to get involved with. One which was especially introduced to us was a social group purely for female employees - the Women's Network. This was an obviously popular group with it being mentioned often. It was encouraging to know that Fidelity was a great workplace for women, who are usually the minority in the investment world.

Absolutely! In terms of my expectations for an insight week, there wouldn't have been a much more fulfilling experience. Having compared my insight week at Fidelity to friends' insight weeks at other firms, it confirmed to me that Fidelity did seem the best all round experience. I would encourage anyone to apply!