We recently caught up with Ben, part of the 2022 intake, to discuss top tips for anyone applying to our Investment and Impact Graduate Analyst programme with British International Investment (BII).
What attracted you to British International Investment?
The impact the organisation has. There are very few financial sector organisations out there that give you the chance to make such a positive impact across the world, particularly in developing countries. The graduate programme itself is fantastic – you get a real opportunity to see both the investment and impact side of things and the chance to spend time abroad in an international office is incredible.
What was the application process like? How did you find it?
The hardest part was the nerves I felt while waiting for the assessment centre!
Do you have any tips for someone looking to apply to the British International Investment graduate programme this year?
If you prepare for each stage, and really understand what BII’s mission is, you’ll set yourself up to do well. Also, for any of the in-person assessments, just relax and be yourself. They’re not there to grill you, but to understand what your motivations are for applying and to see whether those motivations align well with the BII mission and values.
BII are not looking for people that already know everything about impact and investment – that’s what they train you for! We have a wide variety of degrees across the graduate cohort this year, but everyone genuinely cares about the BII mission, so I would say make sure your motivations are clear as to why it is BII as opposed to other organisations that you want to apply for. Also, whilst you don’t at all need to recite an endless list of statistics on development finance institutions across the world, if you can demonstrate that you have researched the industry, sectors, countries or deals that BII have worked in, it will help you show that you are genuinely interested in the BII mission.
How do you align with British International Investment’s mission and values?
It was very important to me that my work had some form of positive impact so BII’s mission of delivering productive, sustainable, and inclusive investment is exactly the type of work I was looking for.
Is there anything else you would like to share about your experience as a graduate with British International Investment?
It is obvious that BII are investing a huge amount of time in us graduates. Everyone has been patient, informative and engaging with the questions and training so it really is a great place to start your career!
If Ben’s journey is something you would be interested in, you can discover more on British International Investment's page here.