Hey monkeys,
I will be interning at a BB in S&T and I am wondering some of the key skills or abilities I should pick up before summer. Anything like python/vba's I should be learning? My current preference is to work sales if that matter at all.
Apart from that, what can I do on the job to be a good and helpful (as possible) intern?
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I was a BB S&T intern last summer. Honestly, there isn’t much you can do to be helpful on the desk since making trades and talking to clients is illegal for interns. Knowing excel shortcuts and VBA might be useful I guess, but tbh the projects they give you in S&T are mostly bullshit and don’t require much time to complete. The most I ever did was program in VBA, and even then that was when I was on an exotic derivative trading desk. I would say to stand out as an intern just focus on following markets for products you are interested in, ask good questions to people on the desk, spend time shawdowing sales people and traders, and overall just have a positive attitude/show interest. Really spend some time networking with different desks because each desk has it’s own “culture” and at the end of the day your return offer will largely depend on if you’re a good fit, especially in sales.
absolutely need to be strong in python...not just theory...but you need to to able to take data from a variety of sources (SQL database or XLM file) load it into a dataframe, use python libraries to either transform the data, or machine learning libraries to analyze it,...then graph the results and analyze visually with another python library and then export the results to both an XML file and back to an SQL database.
This is the bare minimum of skills you'll need to be able to do...all with python. Then be able to do the same with Excel VBA
With all due respect, this is the biggest load of horeshit I have heard. At a prop shop? Maybe. For BB s&t this is completely wrong, spoken as a former s&t intern who got a FT offer. The other poster is correct. Do your projects well, follow the markets, ask good questions, and most importantly - meet everyone on the desk. That’s it.
Stop trying to flex on impressionable kids with inaccurate information.
I guess it varies by bank but the need for programming knowledge is overblown. I would say like 50% of my class didn’t program (myself included). It’ll be necessary in the future but not a requirement for the internship.
The other thing I would say is just to be confident and learn how to read people. Know when to approach someone and ask a question, and be confident about it. Also follow up with those you’ve asked questions.
The other thing I would say is to not overwhelm the desk with your presence. You should ask questions and interact with them but don’t feel the need to breathe down their necks 24-7. Take some time to read, work on projects, develop good questions and get a better understanding of the product.
Lastly, you’ll probably have to do a stock pitch or something similar during each rotation. You should ALWAYS run the pitch by people on the desk and get some feedback. It’ll usually be harder to get feedback from senior people but analysts and associates are gold. Not only will this help you have a more solid pitch, but you also get a feel for the questions you’ll get, as well as holes that your idea might have.
Work hard, pay attention, ask good questions, and enjoy the experience. Also, don’t be afraid to ask questions that are not related to the desk product. Many people enjoy talking about themselves, their career, and like giving advice. That’s the best way to connect with someone IMO.
Good luck.
S&T internships in my mind are the hardest because there is very little tangible work through which you can try to make a good impression as you can’t talk to clients or trade. As someone else mentioned, the “projects” you are given are complete bs and there is little to no value in those tasks unlike in IBD or ER (yes I realize aligning logos isn’t exactly creating value but it does serve a purpose). The types of projects we give out are things like “this is today’s trade idea, build me three graphs for a sales desk comment and explain them to me” or building expected earnings charts so as to compare earnings results immediately. Sometimes one of the seniors will make you pitch him a certain company as a long or short (sometimes against whatever our ER’s recommendation is) to see how you’d go about it independently.
Python/Coding knowledge for an internship is overkill imho. Yes the basics, as someone above said, should be known but that’s about it. I’m surprised no one’s said it yet but I’m much more interested in knowing my interns can navigate Factset and Bloomberg efficiently and can pull data to fit a particular scenario than them being python wiz kids.
As far as “desk manners” are concerned I’d give you the following tips: be all hands on deck/head on a swivel before market open and until 1:30 hours after that, repeat when market close approaches. And by that I mean don’t go bother people/ask questions, just sit there, take notes on what you hear/see and pay attention.
During the middle of the day definitely try to bond a bit with people. Just be likable, talk sports, weekend/vacation plans (obvi don’t tell everyone you’re going to get housed with the boys) and general chit chat. Biggest thing is asking people if they can explain a little about their product over coffee. If you’re lucky the seniors will take the initiative on this but it looks better if you do it. In the end, when your desk/division asks people for comments on whether you should get an offer or not you’ll want people to remember you. If you feel like you’ve socialized enough and/or there’s nothing to do then read whatever the latest pertinent research is.
If you’re rotating desks always ask what time they want you to be there at.
Best of luck!
It’s overkill for an Internship unless it is explicitly asked for in the app and reinforced in interviews. I don’t think it’s overkill if you go full time but I am skeptical about its role in S&T as we go on.
I commented about the difference between US and EU S&T in a previous post where I said that the two are very different due the languages, market regulation, investor class. So if you’re going into US S&T, coding will become a standard requirement eventually because you don’t need kids to speak three languages and know how the market regulator operates in the different countries, know investors who follow specific countries etc. everything runs on the same market, language, rules. You’ll basically have to add another way of cutting down on candidate profiles and by requiring coding knowledge it makes this a lot easier. In Europe (and I assume APAC) because you’re already looking for candidates who (among other things) can speak at least two languages fluently, your candidate base is already much more limited and so I’d say it’s more of a “nice to have” for now.
Having said that, becoming proficient certainly helps
Worked in BB S&T on fixed income desks.
I personally didn't need to use any technical program, although knowledge of Bloomberg in excel was useful for some of my projects. VBA is also potentially useful but not necessary.
I had friends on equities desks that used python extensively, so certainly if you are gunning for an equity desk, try to be proficient with it.
Other general tips: - S&T is a networking game during the day. Make sure that you spend adequate time with everyone on your desk or related desks (e.g. if you're on FX trading, make sure you sit with those in FX and EM sales) by shadowing and getting coffee. Analysts are great for initial coffee chats but don't be afraid to ask MDs. I got dinner with an MD one night and that was a great way to know him outside of the work context. This is so important - I knew a few individuals that gave excellent presentations but didn't get return offers because they didn't network enough. Work on your projects after market hours. - Shadowing is also a great time to get help on your project. Analysts are very often willing to help you. Always make sure you get someone to look at your finished product before presenting. - Always know what is going on in the markets and have some sort of opinion or insight. - Avoid bothering people during market close and market open unless you explicitly set up a time to shadow with them. - You may also be situated away from your actual group and near another group. Be sure to meet with those people as well. Don't forget names (write them down if you have to). - Don't expect to add value at all of the desks, but look for opportunities when appropriate. Writing up obscure news in the morning or summarizing pertinent research articles is one way. You can also help out with some powerpoints/small work, especially if it a smaller desk with fewer analysts. Make sure to ask for work, but not excessively. It is more important that you focus on having strong trade pitches and projects. - Remember your job, since you can't interact with clients, is to learn as much as possible. Be sure to take comprehensive and legible notes so that you don't have to ask something twice. Always prepare questions before shadowing someone. Show an eagnerness to learn and intellectual curiosity.
Some desks also have quizzes or trading simulations.