CMB Intern Review

I have absolutely loved my internship over the summer, I enjoyed every aspect. The highlights for me have been getting involved in the work as it is different to the subject I study at University and meeting a variety of people including other interns and HSBC employees. I feel like I've learnt a vast amount and had an experience which will shape my future.

Firstly, I felt like I integrated well into my placement location and my team, I feel my positive attitude and work ethic allowed me to fit in well and create strong bonds with my colleagues. This meant I felt respected by my colleagues and definitely valued within the team, especially as I was engaging and helped them with work.

Throughout my internship I have had unfaultable support, I was lucky to be placed with 1 line manager and 2 support managers. I had daily interaction with my managers and weekly 1:1's which were focused around staying up to date on my personal development to ensure I was getting the most out of my experience. I couldn't have had a better team supporting me.

My days varied on how busy I was but I rarely had free gaps in my diary and the gaps I did have were used to catch up on my work and reflect on what I had coming up. Every day I would have different work to do which kept my days interesting and meant I learnt a lot over my 8 weeks.

During my placement I believe I was given a lot of responsibility, this came in a variety of forms. Very early on I was taken along to client meetings which meant my managers were trusting me to maintain a professional manner and represent the team well. Further to this, the work I have been given became more complex over the weeks as my capabilities developed and this demonstrates the responsibility I had to produce quality works that my managers/team could use.

The skills I have obtained during my placement will aid me not only through my final year off studies but for the rest of my life. I believe I have found a career path I would love to pursue with HSBC therefore what I have learnt will help me throughout the whole of this.

The atmosphere in my office was a lovely environment to enter in to, every one was friendly, approachable and willing to help. I felt I had support from every one in my location, not just my direct team and its lovely to see that everyone interacts in a positive way. There are clearly strong bonds throughout the office which made it a great place to work.

The whole internship was organised fantastically, the internship team held events throughout the 8 weeks to make sure we were getting the most out of our placement and also gave us chance to interact with the other interns. The team from the very beginning had our best interests at heart, I personally had a great experience with the team as they relocated me to a location closer to home so I could commute. This saved me a lot of time and money and made my experience the best it could be. The team were always a phone call or email away and that isn't something that should be underappreciated. Overall the team was great with the organisation, the only improvements I would make would be to some of the admin processes.

Throughout my 8 weeks I have attended lots of training sessions and presentations which aim to promote personal development. This clearly demonstrates the investments my team made into me as they ensured I was involved in as much as possible. I don't feel the team held me back at all, anything I wanted to be involved in they supported me with.

The thought of a future with HSBC is exciting and thrilling. I would love to return to work for this company, the opportunities from what I have seen are endless and the company very clearly looks after its employees. All the teams I have worked in are friendly and I couldn't think of a better place to work.

I have interacted well with the other interns in my location, we have been out together outside of work and kept in touch throughout the 8 weeks. I also interacted with the other interns at the events we were all at, everybody is approachable and friendly and great to be with both in and outside of work.

The cost of living and socialising in the area I worked was more than reasonable. I was placed in the North region which made the whole experience affordable and enjoyable. This meant I didn't have many financial worries during my placement which is something I appreciate massively. I have embraced my placement location a lot with my fellow interns and the costs in the area made this possible.

The nightlife in the area I worked in is fantastic, the city is home to two universities so has a great feel and lots of people my age around. There are lots of options for the night time which range in price as well which is great. I could not recommend my location enough.

Over the 8 weeks I haven't attended many activities outside of work however I am aware that the opportunities exist. My placement was over the summer period and lots of people were away on holiday so this limited the amount of activities that were on offer to be involved in.