Intern Review

I thoroughly enjoyed my internship which was down to the people I was working with, the interesting work I was staffed on and the training and events that were organized throughout the internship. Everyone was so open and friendly and I felt really welcome from day one. My class of interns is also a fantastic group and luckily we all get on really well. I have made some true friends over the course of the internship who I know I will be in touch with for years to come.

I felt very valued by my colleagues because they were so giving of their time when I had questions or when they were explaining a task to me. The way my team sits is a very integrated seating plan, I sit with an analyst to my right, a VP to my left and an associate behind me. I chat to all of them everyday and we have had numerous social occasions together. I have had chances to research topics myself and provide my own insight which is a great feeling. The team really has treated us like an extension to the team for the summer which has allowed us to learn a lot and hopefully add some real value to the projects we have been working on.

Support and guidance was available every single day whenever we wanted it. We had a lot of formal training sessions provided by our team but they were also open to further questions or queries on particular topics that we were working on. No one ever looked at me like I was asking a stupid question and encouraged me daily to ask as many questions as I needed to help understand the task. This open environment meant that I was able to be more productive and learn a lot.

I was very busy over the course of the internship which meant I got a real insight into what work would be like as an analyst. I was particularly lucky with my pitches as they all provided quite a lot of work for me which meant I was always occupied. I found juggling work and intern projects challenging at times but now that I have successfully completed my projects and pitches I can see how it is possible to manage many tasks at once if you prioritise and communicate effectively with seniors.

I was given the right amount of responsibility on my internship. At times I was left to work on my own where as at other times I was guided through the entire process, depending on the difficulty and time pressure of the task.

The skills I have developed and training we have received will be extremely beneficial in my final year of college and beyond when I start working full time, I really feel like I have been challenged as much as I could have been this summer and I have benefited hugely from it. I feel really lucky to have had the chance to learn directly from such successful professionals and the AMT training was extremely beneficial and really set me up for the internship with an understanding of what kind of work I would be doing.

The atmosphere in my office was really great all of the time, I thoroughly enjoyed working in such an exciting and dynamic workplace where everyone was really friendly and fun to be around.

The internship was very well organized thanks to a fantastic HR and campus recruitment team. I was in Singapore last semester and I was due to have my final interview while there. HR were really brilliant in helping me to organize a video interview in the Barclays head office.

The firm has invested a lot in our personal training and development through AMT training and also through special training specific to our job in M&A.

I would absolutely love to be offered a position in Barclays. I have thoroughly enjoyed my time here and think it would be a great place to work after college.

There was a very good social scene amongst students and colleagues when we had time off work. We worked very hard but also really enjoyed our time off which was really nice,

The cost of living was very manageable around Canary Wharf compared to what I had expected it would be. There are a lot of food deals on which makes eating very reasonable and drinks are the same price as they are everywhere else in the city.

The nightlife was mainly after work drinks in Canary Wharf which was always really fun. Then the main nightlife area that I went out on a Saturday and Sunday was Shoreditch.

There weren't a huge amount of opportunities to get involved in activities outside of work however there is a drama society which I hope to join if I am back in Barclays next year and also I used my time on the weekends to se lots of shows.