Summer Analyst Review

I really enjoyed my placement. I felt like I was given a lot of responsibility, opportunity to learn, met amazing people and was valued by the team. The team was really nice and everyone was happy to help. However, the hours can be long, as can be expected of banking.

I felt valued by my colleagues a lot. Generally, interns are seen as a core part of the team. If it was necessary to stay late, it was usually for a good reason and it was appreciated. Interns were trusted and relied on by the team to perform a variety of tasks.

I felt like I was given a lot of guidance / support. Different people have different working styles. Some might not give that much guidance to begin with and expected me to figure things out but it is always possible to ask for more guidance / clarify what exactly is expected. When I did not know something technical, team members were happy to explain.

I was very busy. Business depends on a specific project. Sometimes it was possible to leave early but that was rare. I had to pull some all-nighters when projects were nearing the end or when a certain part of the project needed to be discussed with seniors. This can however be expected of banking.

I was given a lot of responsibility. At some points in time, I was performing the task of an analyst. Although some work merely comprised implementing comments, other times I was creating things from scratch. My output would in general be used in the final version of the presentation / project.

The learning curve is very steep. I certainly learned a lot and will benefit from it in the future. For instance, I vastly improved my efficiency and time management (which is essential for survival in banking). The skills learned are both specific e.g. insights about valuation and generic that can be applied to anything.

The general atmosphere in my team was great. In general, people are laid back and easygoing. The environment felt really friendly overall. I felt like I could be myself. I cannot speak for other teams as I do not know them enough. I would imagine it varies within the bank.

The internship was very organized. We had an amazing staffer that looked after interns. If for instance, one would have to stay late, effort was made for it not to repeat on a recurring basis / 2 days in a row. I have nothing negative to say in terms of organization.

The social scene was good. We would go have a drink with the team & fellow interns every Friday evening near the office. There were also some ad hoc events. In addition, there were social events organized by the campus recruitment team. I felt like all the interns were nice, friendly and eager to meet others.

The cost of living is high as can be expected of London. It is advisable to live close to work due to the log hours worked. Priced in Canary Wharf vary but generally on the upper end of the spectrum if one is looking for something nice-ish. The internship salary offsets that.