Intern Review

by Hang Seng Bank

This review was submitted over 4 years ago, so some of the information it contains may no longer be relevant.

Rating

3.7/5
  • The Role
    3.6
  • The Company
    3.9
  • The Culture
    3.5

    The Role

  • 1. To what extent did you enjoy your work placement or internship?
  • Good healthy working environment, superiors and colleagues were friendly and helpful in general. They were willing to teach interns if you are willing to learn. Working hours were good from 9-6 with 90 minutes of lunch break (depending on the department). Not too stressful with the workload and OT was not required (unless you don’t meet the target).

    4/5

  • 2. To what extent did you feel valued by your colleagues?
  • All of my work felt useful and meaningful as I had to take up tasks that full time workers had to do which made me feel valued. Even in an intern position I was trusted from an early stage to undertake important tasks. My input was also valued in meeting and I always felt equally treated.

    4/5

  • 3. To what extent were you given support and guidance by management/your supervisor(s)?
  • I was assigned to a number of tasks throughout the department however in most cases I always reported to the same manager. I could not have asked for a better manager throughout my placement year. He was very kind and no matter what he was doing he would always find time to help or talk to me and was willing to teach more if I asked. Everyone else in the office were only too happy to help if you had questions about a particular task including senior specialists.

    4/5

  • 4. How busy were you on a daily basis?
  • Work load varied from different departments. In investment departments aimed at local customers, front line employees finish work at 4pm when the market closes. Managers were keen to know your current work load and would always try there best to ensure that you were not overloaded. On the odd occasion when I did feel like I had too much work they were happy to shuffle tasks around.

    4/5

  • 5. How much responsibility were you given during your placement?
  • I was given a small amount of responsibility from an early stage to learn the basics and conduct my e-learning tasks. As days go by I am given more responsibility to help out individual teams and assist them with tasks. Superiors are willing to give more responsibility if deemed capable.

    3/5

  • 6. To what extent did/will the skills you developed, and training you received, assist you in your degree studies and beyond?
  • The internship in the investment department aided me significantly as I had a better understanding of the market as a whole. I used valuable information from the internship to write my dissertation for my final year. I had an opportunity to learn how to use the Bloomberg Terminal as well.

    4/5

    The Company

  • 7. What was the general atmosphere in your office?
  • The office was quite relaxed and this would lead to a happy and productive working environment. Everyone was happy to help and very friendly which made it a joy to go in everyday. There would be occasional afternoon take-out teas from colleagues and organised division lunches with their team members.

    5/5

  • 8. How well organised was the overall work placement or internship set up?
  • The company was well organised from the recruitment process to the end of my internship. In the financial compliance department, my superiors notified us that we were the first ones to join in this department. However they thought it was a success and would take the experience from us to improve on the system for the department.

    4/5

  • 9. In terms of personal training and development, to what extent did the company or firm invest in you?
  • The company invests a lot of time and money into training and personal development as well as using the e-learning systems to get you to understand the basics. The first few weeks consist of on the job training and working closely with the team. Training was practical and closely related to the work that is required.

    4/5

  • 10. What were the perks on your work placement?
  • Company Parties/Events

    4/5

  • 11. How appealing are future employment prospects within the organisation?
  • I would very much like to return to the company after my studies as they have a good organisational job prospects for graduate schemes. Taking part of their internship programs seem to have a positive effect in future job opportunities with the same company. The pay is fair and it is a good starting position to start your career.

    4/5

    The Culture

  • 12. Was there a good social scene amongst any fellow placement students/colleagues?
  • Along with myself there were other engineering interns at the company, we regularly ate lunch together and worked together on a number of projects. We all got along well and it was nice to get to know students from other universities. Competition was not hostile and we always exchanged information to help each other out in the daily work.

    4/5

  • 13. What was the cost of living and socialising in the area you worked in?
  • The cost of living was high as the area is situated in a central business district. Although with many restaurants and bars nearby for socialising, a cocktail in happy hour would cost around 8 pounds and about the same for lunch and this is considered expensive in an Asian country.

    3/5

  • 14. What was the Nightlife like in the area you worked?
  • The nightlife was good as there were a lot of bars in a ten minute walking distance. Public transport was convenient to go to those places and locals get involved in the activities. Happy hours in the area also provided employees a chance to relax in a more affordable price.

    4/5

  • 15. Were there many opportunities to get involved in activities outside of work?
  • There would be various volunteering activities to participate. In addition, there were sports competitions such as football competing with different departments. The manager would occasionally invite colleagues out for happy hour and have an enjoyable time. Division lunches make a wonderful opportunity to catch-up with colleagues. Interns also have their own lunches to get to know each other.

    4/5

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Details

Internship (1 Month+)

International

June 2017