Internship Review at Barclays

The Role

Role Description

I was required to produce a detailed presentation illustrating the impairment position of Barclays Commercial Bank.

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

★★★★★★★★★★

Rated 10/10

A very enjoyable placement. The shadowing opportunities which enabled me to see various different parts of the bank and gain an understanding of where the impairment team fitted into the wider picture were particularly valuable.

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

★★★★★★★★★★

Rated 10/10

I worked on quite a small team and everyone else on the team was fantastic. Roy and Himanshi were very helpful and supportive.

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

★★★★★☆☆☆☆☆

Rated 5/10

Don't expect your line manager to hold your hand and be looking over your shoulder all the time. Part of the experience is learning how to work independently so you don't get the same level of support and guideance you might have got at high school and college.

4. How busy were you on a daily basis?

★★★★★★★★☆☆

Rated 8/10

Generally very busy with plenty to do but it does vary from day to day and week to week. When a new project arrive you feel like you're snowed under with work but there are also quieter times.

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

★★★★★☆☆☆☆☆

Rated 5/10

I was given as much responsibility as was reasonably possible in a bank. You're certainly not going to be able to come into Barclays after 2 years at university and run the show (a lot more experience is required to do this) but within the scope of the project I was doing I was given the opportunity to recommend new ways of presenting information and redesign the spreadsheets I was working on to make them easier to use, which was good.

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

★★★★★★★★★★

Rated 10/10

I consider the commercial experience gained at Barclays to be increadibly valuable. I personally will be persuing a career in commercial banking but even if you decided not to the transferrable skills are excellent to have and the experience looks very favourable on a CV.

The Organisation

7. What was the general atmosphere in your office?

★★★★★★★★☆☆

Rated 8/10

Good fun but there was serious work to be done at the end of the day.

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

★★★★★★★★★★

Rated 10/10

HR were absolutely spot on. Introductory drinks when you first get here, intern events during the internship, a well organised final interview for the graduate job which was very clear in terms of what is required of you on the graduate scheme and when you hear whether you are successful or not. Intern masterclasses were also a fantastic feature which gave me a very valuable insight into which part of the bank I wanted to work in. It was nice to see that Barclays don't automatically assume that all interns have got their career paths perfectly planned for the next 20 years.

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

★★★★★☆☆☆☆☆

Rated 5/10

Masterclasses were very informative. One-to-ones with line manager were very valuable in terms of feedback. However, the main way in which I learnt about Barclays and banking in general was by shadowing graduates and other full time staff and asking them lots of questions. There are definitely opportunites to do this but it's very much up to you to organise it and take the initiative.

10. What were the perks on your work placement?

★★★★★★★☆☆☆

Rated 7/10

• Subsidised Canteen
• Subsidised/Company Gym
• Company Parties/Events

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

★★★★★★★★☆☆

Rated 8/10

I don't want to speak too soon because the bank haven't confirmed whether we've been successful or not in our interviews but the general feeling is that there are definitely graduate opportunities at Barclays and if the summer interns are good enough they will have the first opportunity to go for these jobs before everyone else.

Other Information

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

★★★★★★★★★★

Rated 10/10

Yes - excellent. All of the interns were very sociable, likeminded people and the social side after work was very good.

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

★★☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆

Rated 2/10

Very expensive (particularly central London) but you might as well get used to it sooner rather than later.

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

★★★★★★★★★★

Rated 10/10

There is pretty much anything and everything in Lodnon so whatever you're into you are likely to find it here.

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

★★★★★★★★★☆

Rated 9/10

Excellent - 5-a-side football after work, subsidised gym, boxercise classes, gym classed, local football teams to sign up for. Just very few tennis clubs in the area which is a shame.

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?

It's a very valuable experience and I'd definitely recommend it to other second year students.

Review 62/62 for Barclays

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