Why Should You Consider a FinTech Internship?

FinTech internships is not a term you hear thrown around very often. Although more commonly associated with professional vocations in medicine, finance and engineering in recent history, business across all industries have adopted internships as a recruitment tool.

Internships have moved on from the trade Guilds of the Middle Ages that taught members a specific trade, but are still broadly structured around training, supervision and filling a specific role.

The benefit to organizations is that, through internships, they have the opportunity to train young, enthusiastic and talented individuals in their specific area of operations. It’s basically an investment for the future, as these interns could possibly be the management of tomorrow that will help the company grow. They are more likely to achieve success with a solid foundation that an internship provides.

For the person taking up the internship, there are several benefits. Apart from gaining valuable work experience in an industry that they are interested in, there could be a solid job offer at the end of it.

According to The Complete University Guide, research done by High Fliers in 2017 states that over a third of recruiters warned that graduates with no previous work experience are unlikely to be successful in receiving job offers. Not only that, but internships are a great way to make contacts within a specific industry.

It could also help an individual to realize what they don’t want to do. This will narrow their focus as to which niche they actually want to pursue, a very important aspect in a young career.

Coincidentally, this is also a benefit for companies in the long-term. Although they might have invested in interning individuals, filtering out candidates that are not really interested in the specific area of business will increase the chances of finding those enthusiastic aspirants that will stay committed to the success of the company in years to come.

Why choose a FinTech internship specifically?

Finance and technology are two of the top 5 industries for offering internships. Saying that, the area of FinTech is broad and it will only get broader as technology evolves and the number of financial offerings expands.

So although an intern might have a passion for finance and technology, as we mentioned above, knowing which specific area is of interest to them is important for both the candidate and the company.

The good news is that you don’t have to be a Software Engineer, Data Scientists or a Web/Mobile Developer when considering FinTech internships. FinTech companies still have traditional departments like accounting and HR that could give you the opportunity to experience this exciting and innovative industry first hand.

Also, these days, “FinTech” is synonymous with “startup”. Interning at a FinTech startup will not only teach the candidate about the specific product or service, but also how to run and grow a young company in general.

The startup team will most likely be small and the reporting structures less rigid.  Interns will therefore have access to many different business units. Having an insight into the various departments, a FinTech intern can learn about the culture as well as other essential business management functions, including how to obtain funding and investment, marketing, relevant legal aspects, finances, business development and the importance of adding value when part of a relatively small team.

Being part of a small team in a fledgling FinTech startup could also give interns the opportunity to get their ‘hands dirty’ early on and make a difference. It also means that hard work will not go unnoticed.

All this would not be common in large, settled corporations.

As a FinTech intern, you will be connecting with like-minded people from an entrepreneurial and vocational perspective, who encourage out-of-the-box thinking. Your role is likely to be more complex and mentally stimulating as repeatable tasks (often considered mundane) will get automated very quickly in a modern, digital company.

Finally, as a FinTech intern, you will learn how to be flexible in your approach to your daily duties. The paradigm for the ‘status quo’ is likely to shift on a regular basis in this fast-paced industry. This teaches candidates how to cope, and indeed flourish, in the inevitable occurrence of change in today’s job market.