Have you ever wondered what it is like to work in a global financial services group? There is a wealth of opportunities at SEB. Our teams include all kinds of people and there is one thing we have in common: we want to be a positive force in society. We empower people to achieve their goals. Our heritage of entrepreneurship makes us cherish ambition – both in individuals and in businesses.
One opportunity for that is our Helsinki Internship Programme. During the 4,5-month programme interns will get a unique opportunity to learn about banking and gain a thorough understanding of SEB’s business in Finland and abroad. Interns will work in a defined position alongside talented professionals as a part of their home team within our Large Corporates & Financial Institutions division. They will learn about a variety of roles at SEB and build their own network by visiting other departments and teams during the internship.
We are currently looking for interns to join the Helsinki Internship Programme 2023. The application period is open until September 25, you can read more about the programme and the positions in this years programme from the job ad: www.seb.fi/tietoa-sebsta/ura/avoimet-tyopaikat.
We asked few questions about SEB from our current intern Sonja Rantala and from our previous intern Mikko Virtanen. Read from below how they describe their experiences and career at SEB.
Hi Sonja! What is your name, study background and what do you do at SEB?
My name is Sonja Rantala and I am a 4th year Mathematics student at Aalto University. I am also almost finished with a Bsc. in Economics at Aalto. This fall I am working as an Intern in the SEB Helsinki Internship Programme in the Financial Institutions Coverage team.
What attracted you to SEB in the first place?
I first found out about SEB through a career mail from our guild. I decided to apply for an Internship after reading previous interns’ experiences from their website. Everyone seemed very nice and had lots of positive things to say about SEB.
What was your first impression of SEB as a workplace?
On my first day I met a lot of new people and everyone was being really friendly and gave their tips for the best internship. All practicalities were reasonably effortless and I got to start working early on. My own team has been really active in finding interesting things for me to be a part of.
Do you find the culture to be friendly at SEB? And if so, how?
I do. The atmosphere is quite relaxed and for example during lunch times and coffee breaks you can chat and have a laugh with anyone.
What advice do you have for others who are thinking about applying for a trainee position at SEB?
Before applying, you can get to know SEB through their collaboration with student organizations and/or social media. You should try and get at least some idea of what SEB does in Finland.
For the application process, it is an old advice, but you should be yourself. You can relax and talk quite freely in the interview and see if you have more things in common than you would initially guess. If you face tough questions, back yourself and describe your thought process especially if you are given a case. You are not expected to be an expert but you should be able to justify your conclusions.
Hi Mikko, who are you and what have you studied?
Hi! I guess I couldn’t describe myself without starting off by mentioning golf and tennis which I passionately enjoy during my off-office hours. But perhaps more relevantly to this discussion, I am also an alumni of both KY and SEB’s trainee program. At Aalto I studied Finance as a major and I currently work at SEB’s Leveraged Finance.
What is your current role at SEB and what do you do in your role?
At Leveraged Finance we provide funding for financial sponsors (private equity companies) mainly for the purpose of Leveraged Buyouts and refinancing of capital structures. My day to day job is split between the origination of new transactions and managing our existing portfolio. My job includes lots and lots of analysis and financial modelling, as well as preparing presentation materials and documentation.
What roles have you had previously at SEB? What did you do in these roles?
I started my career in the Markets business with roles in SEB’s FX and Equity desks. Most recently, before joining Leveraged Finance, I worked at SEB’s advisory business in a team called Financial Strategy.
In both FX and Equity desks my job role mainly revolved around the execution of customers’ trades and distribution of company and market research to customers.
At Financial Strategy I worked on varying kinds of advisory cases which involved providing our clients analysis credit profile and capital structure analysis, thematic research on different industry dynamics and ESG matters.
What do you like about working at SEB and what has made you stay at SEB?
At SEB I have found a community that shares similar values as I do. I feel very supported here to build my expertise and learn new areas within finance. Constant learning opportunities and a clear path forward has definitely made me stay here! At SEB I have never felt myself without direction or the support of my employer.
How has the SEB trainee program influenced your career at SEB?
The trainee programme gave me a first-hand look at the opportunities that exist in banking. I was encouraged to visit different teams and learn about them as much as possible which provided me a clear direction where to head when moving on to work full time. I was very warmly welcomed into the organization as a trainee which has made me feel at home since day one!
Thank you for following our blog posts this week! Our week will continue on Friday with our employee’s MyDay on KY’s Instagram, make sure to check what a day at SEB can look like.
Meanwhile you can find us and other Internship and trainee positions from www.seb.fi and follow our Instagram @sebcareer.