HR Summer Analyst Review

I loved my time at Citi! It was a steep learning curve, but working in the world's (arguably) largest investment bank was an awesome opportunity, in every sense of the word. To be given the opportunity to take the lead on projects that would be approved by the business and later implemented was fantastic. The people were so warm and friendly, and so keen to have the interns on board. I was given loads of responsibility, advice in abundance, and a really great head start on my career.

I was welcomed so warmly by my colleagues when I arrived. I felt like part of the team when I was there; not just someone who was there for 10 weeks. I was invited to their social events, taken along to meetings, and they were all willing to share their experience in order to help me make more informed decisions about my future.

I was given a lot of support and guidance. There was a fairly flat hierarchy, such that it was easy to arrange meetings with my manager, and even her manager. It was encouraged and expected that interns check in with their managers; but in any case, managers do take an active interest in your development, so they want to speak with you!

I always had enough to do. There were periods in which I was snowed under (and barely had time to leave my desk to eat!), and there were times when things were a bit quieter. You're always encouraged to ask for work in that instance. There will always be something to do, it just won't always fall into your lap. In HR, your hours are really decent. I only left after 7 pm once.

I was given a surprising level of responsibility! I was always treated as someone who was able and capable, and I only made coffee for somebody once! :) I wasn't treated as "just the intern" - I was invited to lead and plan meetings, make hiring decisions and pitch my ideas to other business areas.

The internship has definitely helped me a lot. In terms of time management, I've become much better at managing several long-term projects without letting any of them fall by the wayside. I've learned to be more concise in the way that I express myself both orally and in writing, and I've developed a lot of professional and business acumen.

I'm not sure if my experience is indicative of all the business areas, but I found that within HR, things were super chilled. There was absolutely an ambiance of professionalism and propriety at all times, but things weren't dull and stuffy; nor were they cut-throat and ambitious like you see in the movies! People genuinely want to get the best out of other people.

Fantastic! From the application process through to interviews, on-boarding and settling in, things were very well organised. We were in touch with our hiring managers on a regular basis before the internship began, and the formalities of settling in were taken care of very well. There were loads of social events and networking sessions to help us develop. All in all, very efficient.

They invested so much in me - I was so touched by how much attention and interest they took in my professional development. By giving people actual meaningful projects to work on, instead of menial, mind-numbing tasks, they really believe that you are capable of great things. Your manager checks in with you frequently, and in my experience, no matter how busy they were, they always took that time.

Very appealing! The graduate programmes are really varied and there are fantastic rolling-off opportunities at the end of the full-time graduate programmes. There's definitely an expectation before you begin that you'll be good enough to get that graduate position. It makes things easier on them, I guess. In terms of how many interns are hired, it's definitely a fair few.

Yes, there were loads of social events organised, with the primary view to helping you expand your professional network across the business areas. These were very efficient, and usually involved a presentation by someone in the business, followed by drinks and food (which is excellent!!). Our end-of-internship event was on a rooftop bar, so they pull out all the stops! Working hours in some divisions mean it is hard to meet up on an informal level, though.

It's Canary Wharf - everything was extortionate. You did get paid a lot, but given that I'm not from London, I had to rent privately for the summer, which isn't cheap! I tended to socialise more in the area in which I lived (Elephant), so I can't really comment. Canary Wharf is a bit soulless though, it's just concrete and the stench of money.

As above, didn't really socialise much in Canary Wharf. Too expensive, and not really geared towards young people. Better and more friendly bars in other areas. East London as a whole, though, is great for socialising. The events that Citi organised themselves, however, were top-notch, and couldn't be faulted!

Yes: some people took part in Gay Pride parade, and there are often charity runs among the various banks in Canary Wharf. There are lots of Citi Networks, which represent under-represented groups at Citi (women, ethnic minorities, people from the LGBT community, etc), but I found them quite hard to access. There's a gym, as well. If you have long working hours, finding the time would be hard.