西瓜视频

The spring internship at Goldman Sachs is an invaluable opportunity. For the two week duration you are treated as an employee at the firm with little restrictions and so there are unbounded opportunities to learn about the industry. Thus, if navigated correctly, it can be the perfect balance between intensity, growth and challenge.

Employees at Goldman clearly genuinely care about looking after and educating interns. It was nice to see a range of seniority taking time out of their schedules to educate us on their specialisms and experiences. In my division, our projects related to the work of our teams and this meant we could leverage our perspectives as millennials to challenge their industry experience and expertise.

The culture at Goldman Sachs is effectively a flat structure meaning very senior members of the bank will be prepared to help you in your work should you reach out to them - even as an intern. However we were also actively assigned employees in the forms of mentors, team leaders and HR to individually assess, guide and give feedback, ensuring that we were well versed to handle the intensity of the programme.

Depending on your discipline, what you learn at Goldman Sachs will most likely not directly help you towards your degree. That being said, there are many skills both formally taught and informally picked up that will help you succeed at university. These include teamwork and presentation skills, the ability to navigate different cultural environments, as well as time management and work ethic enhancements.

It was clear that HR had ensured that the programme was extremely well structured before arrival. We ran on a schedule with class-wide lectures, divisional presentations and individual meetings. Since we had access to this timetable we were also free to personally manage our time to attend optional classes and join in with affinity networks.

The atmosphere in the bank depends on which division you are visiting. In general it is well balanced; employees are professional in their approach to work but also very approachable and in general pleasant to talk to. Everyone is clearly extremely intelligent and due to the nature of their work they are willing and able to share their industry experience with interns.

Goldman Sachs invest heavily in their interns. They understand even if interns do not join their specific bank, everyone can benefit from having a well trained banking workforce due to the inevitable movement of labour in the industry. We received both technical training from external consultants, as well as in-house divisional technical training. This was supplemented by the various lectures, presentations and meetings to ensure maximum personal growth.

Throughout the two weeks we were treated as employees for the most part. Because of the limited time we had at the bank, we didn't actually directly contribute to the work of our teams in a professional sense - but the programme provides the closest insight achievable without actually working there. With regards to day-to-day life in our division we gained a significant understanding as to what time we would be expected to come in, what time we could expect to leave, how the days would feel etc.

The insight was extremely helpful in understanding the company culture. Through networking with employees and working on projects relating to their work, you really get an insight into how flat the structure actually is and how to navigate it optimally. It is apparent culture is a major factor in the differentiation of Goldman Sachs and other financial institutions, and something they are (justifiably) very proud of.

The programme provides a taster of the work different divisions in the bank do, and what roles are available in each division. However, this scheme is quite different from others as you get to specialise in a specific division (and potentially team). Because of this, you will get to see what you enjoy in your division very clearly.

Confidential.

There were plenty of networking opportunities throughout the scheme. The nature of the programme ensures you are introduced to many teams within your division such that you can then follow up with people if you share an interest. In addition, we were allocated desks so it was quite natural to network with the teams we sat next to. Finally, the affinity networks, namely the Firmwide Black Network and the Women's Network, hosted networking events as to promote inclusivity.

The networking events were well structured. For the hosted events we were introduced to different people and then given space to speak to who we wished. Everyone who was present clearly wanted to be there to talk to us.

There are lots of opportunities outside of work at Goldman. Between the large range of affinity networks, sporting and social activities, any personal work-life balance goal can be achieved. Personally, I met employees who shared my passion for dance and they explained how they continued to pursue it outside of work. Through networking I also met people in rugby and football teams, but the programme also directly addressed this focus - we were allowed to attend gym and meditation sessions if we had the time.

Of course.