From internship to graduate job: my commercial banking summer placement with RBS

My course included an optional placement year and I was happy to secure a 12-month internship in the aerospace industry, where I helped implement financing solutions for IT projects. I also knew I would have three months spare between the end of my year's placement and the start of the new academic year. To make the most of it I started looking for an internship that could land me a place on a graduate trainee scheme. I saw an internship opportunity advertised in my account-holding branch and I applied.

Understand the jargon

The internship kicked off with a week of training in financial and company issues. My main task was to take minutes in the regular meetings of the Credit Committee - the body that decides on credit applications from companies. At first the jargon was overwhelming and in my notes there were expressions that I didn't fully understand, for example ‘syndicated loan' (a loan arranged by a consortium). My supervisor helped me get up to speed and after a few days the basic jargon wasn't a problem any more. Following the internship the bank invited me to an interview for a permanent job, and I will return to the commercial banking division after graduation.

Katrina Kidd gained a business studies with finance degree from the University of Brighton. Having finished her internship with the RBS, she has successfully taken a graduate job in the commercial banking division of the bank.