Summer Intern Review

I learnt a lot being exposed to a new business, I was not familiar with before. However, I feel I still have to explore other areas before knowing what I want to do in life.

My colleagues were nice but very busy so it was quite hard to communicate with them and to feel integrated since they would use terms and jargons that I was not particularly familiar with.

My managers were really nice but once again very busy so it was hard to be given some work or to ask questions. But they were always very supportive of my work.

It really depended on the day. I could have loads of work on one day when I was asked to finish something or to build an analysis base on the selection and understanding of data. However, there are days (quite frequently) when I would have nothing specific to do. I would use those days to talk to other people or do some self-teaching programs or read the news but I got bored very fast an these days were very long.

I had to work on Projects and data that the desk would use daily so I was given enough responsibility for me to feel useful when I was given work.

I am not sure the things I learnt about the financial products and the way they are traded will necessarily help me in the future given that I am not sure I want to work in finance. However, I got expose to the financial world and I think I have now a much better understanding of the economy in the world and the impact of new son the market. I developed my esxcel skills which I think can be very useful for any work.

It was fast-pacing which is nice and exciting but that means that people don’t necessarily have time to spend with you. People were also quite private and not necessarily talking a lot to interns. It really depended on the day, and the fact of whether or not people were busy. But in general it was hard to build on strong relationships with the colleagues.

It was quite well organised by HR but then the experience on the desk was difference. In the sense that on the first day you feel ‘left behind’ since you are not properly introduced too your desk, which does not necessarily have time to talk to you at that moment so it’s not very reassuring. Also people don’t necessarily take time to speak to interns and you can feel like a burden quite quickly

We had presentations once a week on different teams and the different products related to the bank’s activities. But these were very theoretical and assumed a good financial background from the interns, which is not necessarily the case. They should make it more accessible to people who are not necessarily familiar with this kind of environment.

Employment prospects are not that appealing given the fact that the company is sacking a lot of people and the fact that the financial industry seems to be going through difficult times, which will all the more be true with Brexit and the uncertainty associated with it. But I think this is a more general point rather than specific to Nomura.

I worked in the city so the cost of living was extremely expensive. Especially the canteen of the office was very expensive so I had to bring my own lunches. Finally it was hard to find accommodation near the office (they ask you to be as close as possible) given the prices of renting in central London. .

Unfortunately I did not have the chance to truly enjoy the nightlife in the área I was working in, the City. This was mainly due to my long hours (I had to be in the office at 6:30) so I could not go out for long. However we did regularly had drinks, either in the office or downstairs

I was encouraged by my flatmates to join a gym nearby where we live and I decided I would go there after work every day. It really helped me keeping some balance since you come in very early in the morning at work (6:30) and you stay for long hours seating the whole time.