Internship Review at Barclays Capital

The Role

Role Description

Working with sales teams and product origination teams. Compiled a weekly trade idea publication and distributed to clients, helped with day-to-day tasks like backtesting, checking marketing documents, competition analysis etc. Had a few projects that spanned the 10 weeks.

1. To what extent did you enjoy your work placement or internship?

★★★★★★★★☆☆

Rated 8/10

Overall, a very positive experience, and my first real work experience. It was tough, especially in the final weeks as I was given new projects to complete even in the final week! However, this is much better than being left to your own devices and struggling to find meaningful work - and I was very happy to accept my job offer at the end.

2. To what extent did you feel valued by your colleagues?

★★★★★★★★★☆

Rated 9/10

Everyone is very supportive and happy to take time out of their day to explain something. The meet an MD/Director initiative is especially valuable.

3. To what extent were you given support and guidance by management/your supervisor(s)?

★★★★★★★☆☆☆

Rated 7/10

There is sometimes the impression that in a banking internship, you become a minion to some frustrated analyst and don't really get to communicate with 'important' people... This is definitely not the case at Barcap, and there is credence to the claim of a 'flat hierarchy'.

4. How busy were you on a daily basis?

★★★★☆☆☆☆☆☆

Rated 4/10

For the majority of the placement the workload was challenging but fair - it is the sort of placement where it is up to you to optimise your workload; either by helping others with their tasks if you don't have much to do, or by communicating with people to let them know that your plate is too full to take on further projects or commitments.

5. How much responsibility were you given during your placement?

★★★★★★★☆☆☆

Rated 7/10

I never felt 'in over my head', however I was working on projects with various teams and was doing meaningful work.

6. To what extent did/will the skills you developed, and training you received, assist you in your degree studies and beyond?

★★★★★★★★★☆

Rated 9/10

Improving my knowledge of Excel will certainly help with my final year dissertation, but more importantly, the internship has confirmed my interest in the industry and I look forward to starting on the grad programme next year.

The Organisation

7. What was the general atmosphere in your office?

★★★★★★★☆☆☆

Rated 7/10

Not the sort of raucous trading floor you imagine after seeing Wall Street and similar accounts of the financial industry, but nowhere really is anymore. There is somewhat of a buzz, however the time I spent there the markets were relatively quiet. I imagine it is quite exciting when economic conditions in general aren't so poor!

8. How well organised was the overall work placement or internship set up?

★★★★★★★★★☆

Rated 9/10

Very good - the HR people know what they are doing and you are always in the loop - from the application process to the offer communication at the end. There were some good events set up through the summer which provided a much-appreciated opportunity to catch up with other interns.

9. In terms of personal training and development, to what extent did the company or firm invest in you?

★★★★★★★★★☆

Rated 9/10

Good training week - as effective as a one-week crash course in banking can be.

10. What were the perks on your work placement?

★★★★★☆☆☆☆☆

Rated 5/10

• There were no perks with this internship

11. How appealing are future employment prospects within the organisation?

★★★★★★★★★★

Rated 10/10

The firm seems to have a strong commitment to hiring and retaining new talent.

Other Information

12. Was there a good social scene amongst any fellow placement students/colleagues?

★★★★★★★☆☆☆

Rated 7/10

So-so. During the week, I usually went straight home from work because I was tired, but there were drinks at the same place every Friday. The HR-organised events were a good way of keeping in touch with people.

13. What was the cost of living and socialising in the area you worked in?

★★★★★☆☆☆☆☆

Rated 5/10

Depends entirely on your preferences -- I was living in an affordable place in Bow, because it is on the DLR so it took me 20 minutes to get to work. However the social life was basically zero -- it was okay living there for the summer, but I plan to move somewhere a bit more exciting when I start the grad scheme.
Lunch in C Wharf is always rather pricey (£6-8 minimum), but there is a wide variety of choice and it is all pretty good quality.

14. What was the Nightlife like in the area you worked?

★★★★★★☆☆☆☆

Rated 6/10

Fine for drinks after work; plenty of pubs and bars.

15. Were there many opportunities to get involved in activities outside of work?

★★★★★☆☆☆☆☆

Rated 5/10

Somewhat -- it's only 10 weeks so you can't expect too much in the way of after-work activities. I will be more interested in looking into this when I start full time.

In addition to these questions, is there any extra information you would like to leave about your experiences on your work placement that other students may be interested in?

No

Review 84/88 for Barclays Capital

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