This review was submitted over 4 years ago, so some of the information it contains may no longer be relevant.
Rating
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The Role
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The Company
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The Culture
- 1. To what extent did you enjoy your work placement or internship?
- 2. To what extent did you feel valued by your colleagues?
- 3. To what extent were you given support and guidance by management/your supervisor(s)?
- 4. How busy were you on a daily basis?
- 5. How much responsibility were you given during your placement?
- 6. To what extent did/will the skills you developed, and training you received, assist you in your degree studies and beyond?
- 7. What was the general atmosphere in your office?
- 8. How well organised was the overall work placement or internship set up?
- 9. In terms of personal training and development, to what extent did the company or firm invest in you?
- 10. What were the perks on your work placement?
- 11. How appealing are future employment prospects within the organisation?
- 12. Was there a good social scene amongst any fellow placement students/colleagues?
- 13. What was the cost of living and socialising in the area you worked in?
- 14. What was the Nightlife like in the area you worked?
- 15. Were there many opportunities to get involved in activities outside of work?
The Role
Overall I thoroughly enjoyed my internship with Handelsbanken. During my 12 weeks some days were certainly more enjoyable than others depending on what work I had to do and what was happening in the branch at that time but in general I looked forward to coming into work each day.
I interned with Handelsbanken last summer and the main reason I decided to return for a second internship was because of the people who work there. As the branch is small I felt well connected to each colleague individually and felt completely at ease and valued by each one of them.
As this was my second internship I feel like I was given less direct guidance by my manager as I did not need it - but I knew they were always there should I have any issues. Whenever I was given a task I hadn't done before I had it clearly explained to me by another member of staff and I always felt I could ask questions if I got stuck, so I felt fully supported.
I found there could be a drastic difference in how busy I was from one day to the next. Some days I would have little to do and would spend my time doing prep work for the managers which could be boring at times. However, on other days, especially in my last couple of weeks of my internship I had a full to-do list of varied and interesting jobs to do that directly complimented what other staff were working on. In general, the amount of work I had to do depended on what the other staff needed help with at that time, but I always had background prep work I could be doing so I was never sat doing nothing.
As the banking industry is highly regulated most documents and inputs have to be checked by a second pair of eyes; meaning that I could be given important jobs to do with the view that they would need to be checked by someone else before submission. I was given a good amount of responsibility in that I would be given a task and left to crack on with it and wasn't checked up on unless I asked for help.
Although I don't think my internship will directly assist with my university studies it has given me many other skills that will help me in the future workplace. The main thing I have gained from this experience is a huge improvement in my attention to detail as so much of the job depends on accurate input and documentation. I believe this will benefit me wherever I end up in my future career.
The Company
This depended on what was happening in the branch at the time but I found the general atmosphere to be very pleasant. Although everyone would be focusing on their own tasks conversation would regularly break out (work related or not) which meant everyone was communicating and having general chatter throughout the work day.
At the start of the internship I went on an intern induction day at the bank's head office which gave me a good refresher of the culture of Handelsbanken. Other than this induction I did not think my internship had a clear structure - but it didn't need to. I learnt everything I needed to about the day-to-day running of the branch through helping with jobs and taking on my own responsibilities.
I felt well invested in as my colleagues always took the time to show me how to do things rather than doing them themselves, meaning I could complete the same task independently for the rest of my internship. Additionally I was never excluded from any meetings or discussions so I felt like I was a fully fledged member of the team.
Company Parties/Events
Embedded within Handelsbanken culture is the 'long-term' mindset meaning that if you have a successful internship and you fit in with the culture they are keen to take you on as permanent staff. Although continuing on at Handelsbanken wasn't suitable for me at this time I will definitely keep in touch with them throughout the rest of my studies to see if any suitable opportunities arise within the branch.
The Culture
I met all the other interns within the central region at the induction day at the beginning of my internship but did not have any further interaction with them after that. It would be difficult to have social interactions with other interns due to everyone being spread out in different branches across the central region of the UK.
I lived in my university house for the duration of my internship so costs were the same as during my time at university.
As I was living in my university house the nightlife was similar to during term time.
There wasn't much to get involved in outside of work but the staff occasionally got together for food after work.
Details
Internship (1 Month+)
Commercial Banking, Banking
East Midlands
September 2018