student Review

The work experience included a number of tasks. Most of these tasks involved some teamwork-based tasks or some sort of mathematical/statistical element. Individually, I found each task and lecture to be of great use in developing my own financial knowledge, as well as learning more about what HSBC is about and their mission.

I developed quite a few skills during this work experience. The most notable skill that I believe to have developed has been my interview skills, as, on the last day, a mock interview was set up, for which we were given feedback, so I found this to be quite useful in applying to future jobs.

I did enjoy my work experience quite a lot. This is because I was able to meet a variety of new people, including others my own age, as well as apprentices, and those who worked for HSBC themselves. This helped me gain more knowledge about what HSBC was about, and made me like the company more.

The work experience was quite well organsied. This is because, before the work experience week had started, they sent us an exact day-to-day agenda of the different tasks that we would be doing, and I found this very useful to prepare for the week. The company also stuck quite well to the timetable.

I learned a lot about the culture of HSBC. Firstly, their staff was quite diverse, which I found to be more inviting, and HSBC was also quite open with how they took steps to become more diverse, and the different programmes they had, which were all quite progressive. In addition, all the staff were very inviting.

Prior to this work experience, I did want to pursue a job in the finance/accounting field, so my work experience with HSBC simply affirmed this. I was really thrilled with how the employees acted, as they seemed to really enjoy their jobs, so I felt less daunted about the prospect of working in this sector.

I was not paid for this one-week work experience, but I do believe it was very valuable, as it helped me gain a greater insight into the industry, and meet some people who helped me with my networking skills. Also, the interview prep work was arguably invaluable, so I would say, despite not being paid, that the experience was worth it.

There were some opportunities for networking, as we met a lot of people from different sectors of HSBC, such as risk management, which I was unfamiliar with before, so it was quite refreshing. In addition, we also met current HSBC apprentices, who gave us insights into how their experience of HSBC has been.

Yes

I believe HSBC is a good organisation, not only for banking but also for prospective jobs. The staff are diverse and very welcoming and friendly, and the workload seems manageable. I would thoroughly recommend HSBC to anyone who wishes to work there, as I am sure they will gain a lot of valuable experience.

I would tell others to just be themselves, be confident, and make sure they actually want to pursue a job in this field. If you do, then the experience that they gain from his work placement will be invaluable. Make sure you brush up on your interview technique as well.