Summer Intern/ Associate Review

Item: Summer Intern/ Associate at HSBC
Rating: 4.9
Author: Anonymous

at HSBC

Internship (1 Month+)

Commercial Banking

London

Review Submitted: August 2026

Overall Rating

4.9 /5

The Overall Rating is the average of all the ratings given in each category. We take those individual ratings and combine them into one final score!

5/5 - Overview of Role

4.8/5 - Skills Development

5/5 - Support and Guidance

5/5 - Company Culture

5/5 - Overall Experience

5/5 - Future Career Prospects

Overview of Role

Please give an overview of your role and what this involves on a day-to-day basis.

I interned in HSBC’s Tech sector team, working across the bank, supporting ooru clients and other internal teams with a mix of sector research, business development and internal reporting. Day to day, that involved analysing company and market information, helping build and prioritise target lists, producing short sector “Perspective” notes for colleagues to use in client conversations, supporting internal reporting by improving team trackers, and joining internal meetings and selected client calls to understand how opportunities and deals progress.

Were you given much responsibility during your placement / internship?

Yes. I was trusted with meaningful work that had real utility for the team, including improving a key internal processes, completing large-scale prospecting work, publishing work to our the internal content hub, and contributing analysis to support business development and deal discussions. I was also given opportunities to present to senior colleagues and clients alike, and represented the team when speaking to work experience students.

Please rate how meaningful the work you were doing was

5/5

Skills Development

Have you learnt any new skills, or developed your existing skills?

Yes, I’ve developed a range of skills, both technical and behavioural. I strengthened my commercial analysis by turning large datasets into prioritised target lists and opportunity sizing, and improved my communication by writing short, practical sector notes and presenting to different audiences. I also built my computational thinking by improving internal trackers and using prompt-based automation to streamline parts of reporting. Alongside that, I’ve developed softer skills like stakeholder management, collaboration, and time prioritisation, especially when juggling multiple deadlines and incorporating feedback quickly.

How would you rate the training provided during your experience?

4/5

How would you rate your development of industry-specific skills during the experience?

5/5

How would you rate your development of personal / soft skills during the experience?

5/5

Please rate how these skills have helped you in your career development

5/5

Support and Guidance

How much support and guidance did you receive during your placement / internship?

I received strong support throughout. I had regular check-ins with my manager, clear goals to work towards, and plenty of opportunities to ask questions and sense-check my approach. The wider team were also very approachable: they gave timely feedback on drafts, helped me understand the context behind tasks, and involved me in meetings so I could learn how work is prioritised and delivered in practice. Overall, I felt well supported, while still being trusted to take ownership of my own work.

How would you rate the support and guidance from your line manager?

5/5

How would you rate the support and guidance from the wider team?

5/5

Company Culture

What was the company culture and general atmosphere like?

The culture felt collaborative, supportive, and quite fast-paced in a good way. People were approachable and willing to explain things, and there was a strong emphasis on doing high-quality work while also helping each other meet deadlines. I also noticed a positive learning culture, where it was normal to ask questions, share early drafts, and improve work through feedback rather than trying to get everything perfect first time. Overall, the atmosphere was professional but friendly, and I felt included quickly.

How would you rate the inclusiveness of the culture?

5/5

How would you rate the social opportunities?

5/5

How would you rate the diversity initiatives?

5/5

How would you rate the charity, sustainability and corporate social responsibility (CSR) initiatives?

5/5

Overall Experience

To what extent did you enjoy your placement / internship?

I enjoyed it a lot. The work felt purposeful and varied, and I liked that I could see how my outputs supported real client and business priorities. I also valued the learning curve, being able to speak to people across different teams, sit in on meetings, and take on deliverables that were genuinely used by others made the experience both challenging and motivating.

Please rate your level of enjoyment on your placement / internship

5/5

Please rate how your experience met your expectations

5/5

Recommendations & Advice

Would you recommend HSBC to a friend?

Yes

What advice would you give to others applying to HSBC

Be clear on your “why HSBC” and link it to real motivations (learning, impact, teamwork), not buzzwords.
Show curiosity and commercial awareness: be able to discuss what’s happening in the economy/markets and how it affects customers and businesses.
Demonstrate how you work with others: HSBC values collaboration, so have examples of listening, building consensus, and taking feedback well.
Emphasise ownership and follow-through: talk about times you took responsibility, delivered to a deadline, and improved something rather than just completing tasks.
Prepare to communicate simply: practise explaining a complex topic clearly, good communication stands out in interviews and on the job.
Above all else, just be yourself!