- Goldman Sachs surveyed 1,800 of its interns across the world to see what mattered most to them in life and their thoughts on everything from Brexit to how much sleep they should be getting a night.
- Among the stand-out results: the majority favored government action to tackle climate change and nearly half were in favor of recreational drug use being legalized.
- When it came to the future, the interns said AI would be biggest change to accommodate.
- The results also showed that the interns didn’t care for influencers.
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Goldman Sachs surveyed 1,800 of its global interns and found some surprising results about their views on life.
The survey asked questions including what will cause the biggest global impact in 10 years, to whether they prefer hotels or Airbnbs.
Goldman Sachs highlighted some key takeaways: 85% favor the legalization of cannabis for medical use and 48% globally favor legalization for recreational use, while 72% of the interns favored a second Brexit referendum. Only 4% said that influencers helped when making buying decisions.
To be sure, the selection process for the bank’s internship is considered to be among the most rigorous in the finance world – this particular crop of Gen Z-ers is thus likely to be more educated, performance-driven and competitive than the average in that generation.
Below are the findings Goldman found out about its interns.
Who they are
Goldman Sach's 1,800 interns come from far and wide. Over 400 universities, 46 different languages, and 61 areas of study are represented. There were more women than men taking up the trainee roles at the bank.
Brands over product
When it comes to buying products, the interns valued brand over product. 41% said the brand was the most important, while 26% said the product itself was. Interestingly, only 4% said that influencers helped when making decisions.
Hotels over Airbnb
When it came to travel, interns preferred to stay in hotels, with 2/3 favoring them. Airbnbs, on the other hand, were much more unfashionable. Just 29% said they preferred homestays.
When it came to feeling like themselves water bottles and sleep were important
When it came to feeling like themselves, sleep was the most important factor, with over a third wanting eight hours a night. 18% said they needed caffeine and 14% said a water bottle was vital.
When it comes to careers, employer size didn't matter as much as what they did.
When it came to careers what mattered most was the actual job they did and working with the right people. Employer size didn't seem to matter as much, nor did wearing what you wanted.
Work-life balance
When it came to work-life balance friends and family came out on top with nearly two-thirds wanting to spend time with loved ones. Being able to stop thinking about work came in the next highest. (Oddly, 1% of the interns said that work-life balance meant sitting on a beanbag?)
Only a third said they think the American economy will get better.
Confidence in the economy wasn't at the forefront of the interns' thinking. Outside of the Americas, 55% were bullish about improvements, but the same couldn't be said for the American interns.
Favoring legal drug use was more common
85% of the interns favored legalization of pot for medical use, while nearly half wanted it to be legal for recreational use.
Most wanted government action on climate change
Perhaps the most strongly felt opinion across the board was that the interns wanted action on climate change. 83% wanted a carbon tax to help fight it.
Brexit doesn't mean Brexit.
When it came to Brexit, the interns were much more in favor of a second referendum, though which way they voted wasn't clear. The interns in Europe, Middle East and Africa were slightly more in favor - over three quarters.
AI will be the biggest influence
Perhaps unsurprisingly, the bank's interns felt that the biggest change in the future will be the use of AI. 31% did say climate change, 9% resource scarcity and 6% cybercrime.
They're ambitious
Perhaps unsurprisingly for interns at one of the world's most prestigious investment banks, the young people are ambitious. About 60% said they want to start a business. And 92% said they want to work for five or fewer employers in their lifetime.
