Summer internship in DSP Merrill Lynch

At the beginning of the 6th semester I had a vague idea of what I wanted to do after graduating. I could either be doing a job(no idea what kind of job), or could try seriously for CAT. In the middle of this big dilemna I also had no idea what I wanted to do in my summer internship. At the same time I was seeing people in my wing send lots of mails to get internships, some people only mailing the professors they were interested in, others not so. By this I got an inclination that masters in CS was not for me. I was not cut out to think like a researcher, was much more interested in applying CS like in implementing a game through a Database.

I had a chat with my grandfather and my kaka(both involved in the finance industry.) My kaka suggested that I apply to HDFC Mutual Fund & DSP Merrill Lynch for summer internships so I would get an idea as to what happens in a financial firm. Also they said that I could do with a bit of industry experience to help me decide if I wanted to do an MBA directly. So they gave me an e-mail address where I could send my resume & follow up with the people. This is the hardest thing to do. Sending e-mails to contact@xyz.com does not serve any purpouse.

After this I was called for interviews in bombay for both HDFC MF & DSP ML(Merrill Lynch). With the ML offer sounding like more interesting work I went there.

The first 3 days of my internship were hell. Reality was harsh when you came to know that you were an insignificant part of the company. This was a stark contrast from IITK where you feel a very important person. Also it takes them time to set things up & your ability to contribute for a few days is not that high on their priority. At this point my access card, comp, etc were all being arranged.
On the 4th day everything changed when I met an IITK senior. I had gone into different departments to talk to other interns & I accidentally bumped into a senior of IITK now in IIMC. Well the IITK bonding rocks - he dropped all his work & took me to the terrace & we had a 3 hour chat. Later he invited me to their presentations(they were 8 IIM people who were about to finish & were presenting their work). I also had a strong feeling that these people were no super humans with great skill in finance, they were the same as you & me with just the ability to talk in the financial language. IIMs are hyped to the external world just like the IITs are.

In that week I also realised that the project which I had been recruited for which was to analyse a software, interface with MPhasis & ML. Well this got delayed so basically I was jobless till they reallocated me. So what happened is that I realised that I want to get a financial perspective from ML, rather than doing some great technical work I wanted get a good perspective about the financial industry.

Anyways from Monday on the next week I got my access card & computer & started making new friends. I was allocated to a new project in the Technology department where I had to design & implement a Technology Requests tracking system(DB work). I met fellow interns from all over the world - some were UGs in US & UK universities, others were MBAs from Bombay. It is after meeting these people that I realised the extent of the India story. All 15 of the US, UK UGs(most in 3rd year) wanted to come back to India within 3-5 years. Nobody wanted to settle in the US even in the medium term. All just wanted some initial capital to start of with. Also was the fact that although most of the employees were not brilliant in their fields all of them were extremely well read, professional, punctual & hard working. That is why they were doing well.

Overall I had an excellent time in Bombay. Really liked the place(I was staying in south bombay with my relatives - took a bus to Nariman Point(my office)). There is a lot to learn by staying & meeting different people there, living in an environment which is so totally different than IITK. The one thing I missed most there was the open spaces, places to play & relax there. However it is a differnt life there with people looking down on Science & up on Commerce(it was different in my school - DPS RKP). It also gave me a good perspective that some industry experience is preferable before doing an MBA. Also that before applying to a job there should be lots of preperation for the placements.

For people who do not want to do research ahead I think that an internship in a good company where you meet a lot of new people is preferable to a European/US internships because a company exposure is extremely helpful in taking decesions in 4th year which you have to in case of which companies to apply to, whether to do an MBA now/later/not do it at all.