“Don’t waste your time during holidays”

Shyam Sundar

Bachelors’ in Computer Science Engineering, Final year, CEG Campus

Intern

Barclays Bank

Interviewer: Pugazhendi Saravanan (GT)

Interviewee: Shyam Sundar

GT – Was there any particular reason to choose Barclays?

Shyam –Initially, I didn’t have any intention of choosing Barclays, since it is primarily a banking firm. Generally, plenty of companies come to recruit students for internships through CUIC and offer jobs based on performance. I had attended interviews with three other companies, for which I was not selected. Then I got selected to intern at Barclays and I am glad that I eventually considered opting for it since it has a technical domain too.

GT – What was the selection procedure for Barclays internship like?

Shyam – There are lots of registration links for companies that you can find on LinkedIn. The various levels in the recruitment process included competitive programming, coding, aptitude, online test, and HR interviews.

GT – What is the best strategy to crack the Barclay’s internship?

Shyam – It is better to start preparing from the summer holidays as one can utilize two months fruitfully. It is a crucial time for every student. It is generally after the commencement of the fifth semester, companies across various fields and domains come and recruit for internships.

GT – Brief us on the project that you worked on.

Shyam – In Barclays, there are many teams and domains. I was working in the Risk Finance & Treasury (RFT) Domain. I also developed a Windows application that is being used in Barclays. Normally, every company has multiple teams and you will be assigned in a specific team based on your previous experience and skills.

GT – Tell us about your work at Barclays as an intern.

Shyam – Due to this COVID-19 pandemic, we did our internships from our home. Work from home is a slightly cumbersome task. In several instances, I would face connectivity issues. We would work only on remote access that our company provides. One good thing as that there was no need to travel and consequently no expenses. Nevertheless, if the internship had been conducted under regular circumstances, we would have had a lot more exposure and would have met different kinds of people - a different scenario altogether. The working hours began at 10 AM. My mentor called me every day to discuss the progress and difficulties I must have faced, if any. At around 10.30 am, my work started and we had 2-3 meets daily to track the ongoing projects. During the first two weeks of our internships, we mainly learned about how banking works and about finance.

GT – What do you personally like about this internship?

Shyam – They gave us a chance to talk and interact with various leaders at Barclays, like the CEO himself and other senior employees. It was my first time working in a professional workspace for six weeks. During the initial 15 days, we used to have 2 hours of work daily in which we learn about the working of a corporate company, which gave me some wonderful insights. Barclays also gave opportunities to work with other teams. They are many projects going on in the company, and we had the opportunity to sit in their meetings and learn about how they take up a project and make decisions about it.

GT - Do you think you might continue in this field after your final year in college?

Shyam – Yes, this field is very engaging and quite exciting. To be frank, initially, I had no interest in finance. But after I joined, I learned new programming languages. It was indeed a splendid experience working there. Additionally, I am very pleased that they have offered me a job.

GT – Share some advice for the juniors out there seeking to apply for internships.

Shyam – Many companies provide internships for our students. My advice would be to not waste your time in the summer holidays. During June, July, and August many companies come and recruit you for internships after which companies don’t approach. So, prepare well during the summer holidays.

GT – What do you think about our initiative of Intern Diaries?

Shyam – This is a distinguished initiative of The Guindy Times. It lays out to juniors some basic understanding of internships. I think this should continue in the future as well.

The Guindy Times thanks Shyam for his time and wishes him all the very best for his future endeavors.