A huge well done to Greg who this summer will join T. Rowe Price in the equity team before he heads back to UCL to finish his degree. Greg was happy to share his experience and offer some fantastic advice for fellow Bright Network members.
Why did you choose T. Rowe Price and this role in particular?
I first came across T. Rowe Price through the Bright Network website. My aim was to get an internship at an asset management firm for the summer and after doing more research I realised that T. Rowe Price were one of the biggest asset management firms in the world and so I decided to apply there. Additional research suggested to me that T. Rowe Price would be the perfect company to work for as they had a very inclusive culture and prioritised the development of their employees which meant that it would be the ideal workplace for me to learn more regarding investments on my first ever summer internship.
I was allocated into the Equity team as I stated in my interviews that I would prefer that to other areas such as Fixed Income, as I have always found the stock market much more exciting than the bond market.
What was the hardest part of the application process? And your favourite part?
For me, the hardest part was the group project at the assessment centre as there was a lot of information to digest in very limited time, especially as I had no proper experience with asset management before. My favourite part was probably the interviews at the assessment centre. There were five interviews back-to-back but all the interviewers were really welcoming and didn’t try to trip me up. They were also happy to answer my questions at the end so I was able to get a good idea of what T. Rowe Price is like as a company.
Were you surprised by anything in the process?
I was pleasantly surprised at by how welcoming and friendly there staff were at the assessment centre. They really made an effort to help everybody out and were happy to answer any questions. I was also surprised at the friendliness of the other applicants at the assessment centre as everyone was supportive.
Do you have three top tips for Bright Network members looking to follow in your footsteps?
I would say that my main advice would be to prepare for the assessment centre as much as possible regarding researching the firm. I searched through many web pages in order to learn about T. Rowe Price so that I could gain a good idea of their culture and values, and also gain an insight into things such as their latest financial statements, press releases and articles written by their staff.
Another bit of advice would be to always have plenty of questions prepared for the end of interviews as it shows that you really want the role and means you can learn a lot from very experienced employees in the industry you want to be in.
Finally, for the group project, be a team player and instead of feeling like you have to talk all the way through it, just speak up when you actually have something to say of relevance and deliver it with confidence.
What was the toughest question you faced at interview?
“How many toothbrushes are there in Scotland?”