Internships

Intern profiles

My background
I studied Economics at Edinburgh University and it was quite clear to me for a long time that I wanted a job in an industry like banking, which was very fast-paced with a lot of exciting things happening. I also wanted to combine this with economics which I really enjoyed studying. What initially attracted me to Standard Chartered was its focus on developing markets, something I've been interested in for a long time. I thought Standard Chartered would be particularly interesting because it's working in countries which are moving so quickly - and also because the organisation is growing very quickly as well.

Why I chose Wholesale Banking
Because I've studied Economics, I'm particularly interested in how the markets work and how they interact to have certain effects on different countries. Wholesale Banking was always going to be the area that would give me a general overview of the whole world. There are so many different products and different aspects of banking involved in this part of the business, I don't think you're narrowing your opportunities in any way. And because Standard Chartered covers so many countries, you get the chance to see complex markets from many different angles, which is something that really appealed to me.

Applying for an internship
I started by doing some research to see what Standard Chartered was like and find out more about its values. In terms of the application process, it's explained well on the internet. There are quite a few stages to the application form, which means you can go back to it. This is useful because you can do extra research as you go along.

The induction process
The induction process was very comprehensive and, even on the first day, we had a good opportunity to find out a lot about Standard Chartered from people at very different levels across the Bank. This was really helpful in terms of placing yourself and finding out what Standard Chartered does.

The CEO of Europe came to meet us on the first day, along with people from different functions within the Bank so we could find out how it all works together. We had people from HR, from some of the different Markets teams and from Client Relationships. This approach has continued with a development session every other week in which we find out about another area of Standard Chartered. It's quite informal and you get to chat and ask lots of questions. As the programme goes on, you have more and more questions because you know more and more about what you are doing.

The support I received on the Internship Programme
There's an awful lot of support from so many different angles. There are lots of social events so you build up a network with the other interns, and there's good camaraderie because you're all in a similar position. You're all learning together but obviously you're only doing a placement in one department. The social events give you the chance to find out what happens in other departments and how everything fits together.

At the same time you have your line manager and the other people in your office. My colleagues are always trying to teach me things and get me involved in what they're doing, which is really, really good. You also have the HR people who make a big effort to help you feel part of Standard Chartered. They spend a lot of time making sure you're having a good time, something that's very good about the programme.

My expectations
It's always hard to say what you expect when you apply for a job. I knew I was going into Wholesale Banking, but I was aware that there are many different aspects to it. I'm in Fund Management which I didn't know very much about before I started. In terms of the general Internship Programme and what I've learnt, I would say it has probably exceeded my expectations!

A typical day
I wouldn't say there's such a thing as a typical day, but there is a typical week. A lot of my tasks are day specific and it's very varied. I'm lucky in that I took over from an International Graduate so I've got quite a defined role. Half the time I do the monitoring that is a part of my role, and the rest of the time I deal with things that crop up like helping people with research or listening to conference calls to find out more about the market.

My top tip for graduates
Do your research beforehand because there are big differences between different companies. I think that Standard Chartered really does stand out from other banks and it's important to read about the work they do and their values to see if there's something that particularly appeals to you. The more research you've done, the more you'll stand out to recruiters.

What I've got out of being at Standard Chartered
I think I've learnt much more than I thought I would. I've had so much exposure to so many different aspects of Standard Chartered. Of course, most of your time is spent doing the job you've been assigned to, but a lot of effort is made for you to see other parts of the bank and you get an insight into many different areas.