Internship with Goldman Sachs |

Last summer, I had the pleasure of interning at Goldman Sachs in Engineering within the Global Investment Research Division. When I received my offer, I was excited to join, as I was impressed by the multifaceted nature of the firm, and I could sense that there was a wealth of opportunities to explore different technologies and projects. My ten weeks at Goldman Sachs were amazing, and I returned full-time in the summer of 2022! Here are some highlights from my experience:

Myths Debunked

When starting an internship, many of us are inclined to have beliefs that we soon find are simply not true. This was the case for me, as many beliefs/myths that I held previously about internships and working at Goldman Sachs were debunked before or during my experience.

Myth: You have to prepare for an internship by learning all the necessary technologies prior to starting.

When I first met one of my managers over Zoom, he asked if I had any questions. I immediately asked, “What do you suggest that I learn in order to prepare for the internship?” He told me not to worry about learning anything, but I was still concerned that if I didn’t rush to learn everything I possibly could, I’d be left behind. The truth was that Goldman Sachs allowed us to transition into our projects with a week of learning. My team members were also extremely helpful and willing to explain concepts that I was unfamiliar with. No one expects you to be an expert in the technologies you’re working with as an intern. Otherwise, you wouldn’t need to do an internship at all! An internship is a learning experience, so embrace it!

Myth: You need to be well-versed in finance and business to work at a firm like Goldman Sachs.

Many people believe this, and I too wondered what the extent of my financial background needed to be in order to work at Goldman Sachs. In reality, my project had nothing to do with finance or business at all! Goldman Sachs engineers do it all, from web development to network security to machine learning, and there are many opportunities for those like me who have never taken a business class.

My Experience

I was assigned to the Dallas office, which is located in the heart of the lively city. I had the pleasure of welcoming several new hires who joined my team, and I was impressed by the dynamic growth which seemed to be characteristic of Goldman Sachs, especially in the Dallas office. The networking events at local restaurants, activities, and talks with influential employees allowed me to not only expand my network, but also have fun while learning more about the firm and its people.

Throughout this experience, one of my priorities was, of course, the completion of my intern project. My fellow interns and I were tasked with a project which involved machine learning with AWS SageMaker, front-end web development and back-end APIs. Needless to say, I learned more in ten weeks than I ever imagined!

Daily stand-up meetings ensured that we stayed up to date with the progress of our projects, impromptu calls and messages ensured that we got help from full-time engineers when we were stuck, and our final presentation ensured that we had the opportunity to showcase all that we had learned and contributed during our internship. Additionally, I was assigned to a mentor and buddy who I met with regularly to talk about my experiences and seek advice. This allowed me to reflect on my career goals and deeply consider how I could make the most of the knowledge gained during my internship and beyond.

Why I Returned

All in all, I thoroughly enjoyed my experience at Goldman Sachs. I was able to make meaningful contributions through the work that I did on my project, and my team members supported me throughout my journey while congratulating me on all my wins, even the small ones. I could sense that they had a genuine interest in my development, and their encouragement helped me to thrive as an intern. With opportunities to build my skillset in various areas of technology and network with professionals from all walks of life, I have no doubt that my return to Goldman Sachs, this time as a full-time engineer, will enable me to continuously grow and thrive as an engineer.

Kharissa is a new analyst in a software engineering role. Software engineers help Goldman Sachs build the next generation of finance systems that change how our clients and internal teams conduct business. Read more about our engineering roles at https://www.goldmansachs.com/careers/divisions/engineering/.

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