Skills to succeed as a summer intern
I'm an incoming summer intern at an EB (pwp, Greenhill, Moelis type) in London. I'm trying to prepare as much as possible so I can guarantee myself a FT offer. So I wanted to make this post to hear about the specific skills that could help one standout (beyond the basic Excell, Basic Valuations and accounting knowledge).
Really appreciate anyone sharing
Most important things are actually non technical as no one expects an intern to know shit:
having a positive / happy to do any work attitude at all times is key here (just don't fake it or be overly eager). You also need to show that you are happy to learn new things with your attitude. If you have a resting bitch face, change that as people will notice and always be nice to EVERYONE.
Be sociable, always go out with the team unless crammed with work. Do not shit on anyone (including other interns).
If you have nothing to do, grab coffee with different people and dont be shy to reach out to seniors (if culture allows but usually you can)
You will make mistakes and that's okay (dont beat yourself up on this). What is not okay is making the same mistake TWICE, especially after someone pointed it out.
If someone asks you something and you don't know, just say. Do not try to BS your way out of it because it will just make things worse.
When you get stuck on a task, spend 5-10 minutes trying to solve it before calling for guidance. Do not spend more than that as you will just be wasting time. When you are trying to solve the issue, make sure you actually google whatever the issue is as its pretty annoying to ask someone a question which could be googled in 5 secs.
Proof read your emails 6-8 times before sending out
Make sure to be first into the office (if team comes in 9 come in 8.30) and always be the last to leave. Dont stay late because an associate that you don't even work with is staying late, but do stay until everyone from YOUR deal team leaves. a bit old school but it really makes a difference (even if people tell you it doesn't)
You will need to turn a lot of comments on PPT. After you implement the comments, print the ppt and comments email and manually cross check that each comment has been implemented (cross it out with a pencil). Printing out the ppt will help you spot any other mistakes as well. This is key to ensure you don't fuck up. You dont want to be the kid that "finishes" all his work super quickly and then gets absolutely shat on because it has tons of small mistakes. Take a little more time doing this and you will thank me later
If you actually want to nerd out before starting, be v proficient at PPT as you will spend most of your time here (learn all formatting shortcuts and pay alot of attention to align/arrange shortcuts) I would prioritise this over excel as the excel work you will do will be super basic (if even that)
GL
Where does one get proficient in PowerPoint if they’re not a finance major, is there a course we should buy or something like that?
See line 15 above for future reference. There are lots of ppt courses online that are pretty cheap ( WSP, BIWS etc.)
Do you not do presentations in school or something? ... I don't believe that in America they don't teach IT skills, you must have IT classes from elementary to high school?
Anyway, it's not difficult. You'll get training during the first week of your internship, don't waste your money on anything. Why would you do that? You'll get paid to learn and you'll be taught using the same (or better) packages you're looking at now anyway.
There are some courses that you can take on Linkedin to practice your PPT skills, I’ll recommend doing those.
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Wow that's really helpful thanks, I didn't expect to get good advice so quickly.
Glad to help. If you have any more questions lmk
Not OP but any advice regarding full time analyst recruiting. You seem to be pretty informed who it stuff so just asking
read "meditations" by Marcus Aurelius
based stoic intern
Ikr, of what use is reading the words of some ancient polytheist whose words you work likely understand out of context—something already beaten to death ad nauseum in the case of the Bible.
Better off reading a Robert Greene book
Who cares what you know just be the nice intern everyone likes. Being smart is a bonus.
Just wanted to second what has already been said. Don't be an asshole. You're clearly smart enough to be there, no need to prove it to anyone.
You have a higher chance of getting an offer if you are liked and hand in subpar work as opposed to being an asshole yet handing in great work. Obviously you want the best of both worlds, but it shows how important likability is as an intern.
some few other skills that can help you stand out as an intern:
1 - Attention to detail
2 - Communication skills
3 - Time management
4 - Analytical skills
5 - Industry knowledge
Don't be annoying. Be a self-starter.
1. Don't ask stupid questions (many will disagree but whatever)
2. Ask questions when you genuinely get stuck on hard things
Too many times a junior will ask questions prematurely and adopt "learned helplessness" when it wasn't warranted.
Conversely, they will stay silent and not seek out help when they really need it, which is bad communication and erodes trust.
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