GFA Spring Insight Week Review

The spring week excelled my expectations in all aspects. From day one HR were extremely helpful and friendly, with a really well organised week. The spring interns were clearly well selected and intelligent. This made my week particularly enjoyable as we all got on very well, collaborated and discussed ideas. In comparison to other spring weeks where people felt like competing with one another all the time.

The bank showed that they have a true interest in investing in us. We were given considerable networking opportunities during the week. In particular, with senior management giving lots of presentation, joining us for afternoon tea and judging our final task. Given our small class-size, these networking sessions felt extremely personal.

Throughout the week, HR were always there to answer our questions, whatever they may of been. For our task set, there was a lot of independent work, and the amount of support/guidance you wanted was up to you. The resources and contacts were clearly there and it was simply a matter of making the most of those resources (e.g. through work shadowing, presentations, networking, Q&A sessions).

The presentation skills workshop, project work and interview skills will definitely be beneficial for my degree and further career. All of these tasks required significant teamwork and communication. What we learnt during the presentation skills workshop was then put into practice for our final day presentation, and I felt a lot more relaxed having had this training.

Our schedule was clear and well structured. Each activity was engaging, different and relevant to us. This meant we managed to get a great insight into Rothschilds culture, the banking industry and Rothschilds different divisions. The presentations were always clear and concise, without going on for too long and great emphasis was always placed on Q&A.

Having had welcome drinks on the first day, everyone immediately got to know one another and this made the whole week easier. I felt that everyone worked well together and were willing to help one another (even if we were on different teams) which was a rarity amongst other spring weeks I did.

The firm spent considerable time and money on investing in us. Senior bankers and analysts took time out of their day to give us advice on entering this career. We were shown around the Rothschild family archives and given a quick history of the firm. One thing that stood out from this is that Rothschild really takes care of its employee's and this is why every banker I met had been there for 10+ years, with most of them having started their career at the firm.

Having left the week I felt I had gained a deep insight into the work and culture at Rothschild. I now feel confident that it is a place I would love to join. The work seems challenging, but intellectually stimulating. More importantly you are surrounded by like-minded, intelligent and hard working people which makes collaboration easy.

As mentioned, consistent exposure to bankers gave great insight into the company culture. Many of whom said the same things about the bank, reinforcing its friendly, collaborative and supportive culture. The firm puts great emphasis on the Rothschild family motto (Harmony, Integrity, Industry) which is evidently at the heart of what everyone does.

The content throughout the week was concise, clear and informative. We had talks about all the different divisions in the firm (GFA, wealth management and merchant banking) which helped me decide what area suits me. And any questions we had on the divisions were answered in Q&A, networking session or work shadowing.

Train expenses and hotel paid for by Rothschild.

Yes, every day. Even if there wasn't any networking sessions planned, we could organise to meet up with analysts in our own time to answer any of our questions.

As mentioned, there was a lot of networking sessions. Most of these were on a one-to-one basis with analysts or senior bankers (given the small cohort of spring interns) which was particularly useful.

Yes, and we also participated in a morning of volunteering.

Without a doubt.