Funmi Osiyale (pictured on the right), our Campus Celeb for the week, has had a busy summer. A third year student studying Economics from London, she’s just finished an internship at JP Morgan and at 20 has some idea of her future aspirations! We interview her about her experience and her advice on planning for the future. It’s never too late to start!
So Funmi, tell us a little bit about yourself!
I’m a third year studying Economics at Manchester University and can’t believe it’s almost coming to an end! I grew up in the outskirts of London, though my parents are both from Nigeria. I’m a student rep for my course and last year I was president of the BeconSc Economics society. I first became interested in the investment banking industry from Financial crisis funnily enough. While I was studying Economics in Sixth Form, a trader visited my school to tell us about the industry and give an insight into the world of banking.
You’ve recently completed an internship with JP Morgan over the summer, could you tell us how you came about that internship and what you did?
I knew that I wanted to learn more about the industry and had heard a lot about the importance of internships through various graduate events and friends and family who had found success in them. I applied online for a Summer Analyst position in the finance department through the company website at JP Morgan. The process included general, industry, and competency questions, a numerical test, a situational judgement test and an assessment centre day at the London Offices. The assessment centre was extremely challenging and consisted of two individual interviews, a group interview and a role-play.
I was ecstatic when I found out that I got the offer and was placed in the Equities Exotics and Hedge Funds Product Control team for 10 weeks. My role consisted of analysing profit and loss statements and sending them to traders, risk analysis and reporting and various other ad hoc tasks. I also got the opportunity to attend various speaker and networking events, and have one-to-one meetings with senior staff. There was also a Corporate Responsibility day.
How, in your opinion, has the internship helped you personally?
I think the internship has helped me to gain a lot more confidence through having to give a technical presentation to 15 employees including an Executive Director. The fact that I was doing actual work that needed to be done, not just something they’d handed me to keep me busy, taught me to deal with working under pressure. And it also gave me tougher skin to realise that when working you will make mistakes that will unfortunately impact others, and it’s important to learn from them and try to prevent them instead of getting down on yourself about it. Also through “networking” I gained confidence in talking to as many people in the office and different departments as possible to try and learn a little from each of them and hopefully gain great contacts and mentors for the future.
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How do you feel about internships providing undergraduates and soon to be graduates with a way of exploring what the “big bad world” has to offer?
I think it is a great way to learn, as they give you responsibility. But there is a lot more freedom to ask questions and talk to various people. I was doing actual work that needed to be done, not just something to keep me busy, and I was pleasantly surprised by all the opportunities I had to speak to really senior staff that many people actually working there may have one-on-one chats with. It was an intense 10 weeks, and gave me a real insight into what working life is like. I definitely feel like I am appreciating how good we get it being a student much more now!
Best part of the internship? Why would you recommend it (an internship) to someone?
I would say the best part was the people I met. I was fortunate to be placed in a really great team who were happy to help and answer my questions, which I think was a large part of why I enjoyed the internship so much. We had team drinks and even went go-karting! I also made good friends with the other interns who I still keep in close contact with now. There were company organised intern parties and we would also go out for dinners and drinks after work. It’s comforting to know that I already have friends in the industry. We also took part in a corporate responsibility day – a day of giving back to the community.
I would definitely recommend an internship, I learned so much from the experience and it has made me feel more focused to work hard this year. Also there is a chance of gaining a graduate offer from an internship, which means you have more time to focus on getting your grades in final year instead of worrying about applications.
What do you think the benefits but also the downsides are to an internship?
It was a really exciting and busy summer of meeting new people and I really felt I learnt something completely new every day. I feel a lot more comfortable with transitioning to working life after Uni and know more about what I want in a career and the direction I want to go in.
It was quite difficult to adapt to a work schedule after being so used to the freedom of a Uni timetable. I learnt there really was no such thing as a 9 to 5 day, especially during Month and Quarter Ends when there were several reports to produce. But days go by really quickly as there is always something to do. I commuted from home which was on the other side of London, so I had to quickly learn to get ready as quickly as possible to maximise sleeping time. But it has made me appreciate Uni so much more.
(Photo credits to Funmi Osiyale)