I joined the Barclays graduate development programme many moons ago (well 6 years). It all depends i which direction you want your career to move. If it's in a bank, then all when and good - you'll probably be sent on a few decent training courses and provided you work the system properly start at a decent level once you come off the programme. It's not a right of passage though, many of the old Barclays grads on my scheme fell by the wayside, didn't really seek out the best departments/ projects/ teams to work in while they were on the programme and ended up in pretty mediocre project positions and then leaving after a year or two. The best thing to do is really network while you're on the programme - speak to recruiting managers and other departments, sell yourself, and position yourself as best you can - being on the barclays programme carried a lot of weight across the business and the most astute grads used its reputation for their own gain.If you want a career in consulting then the banking scheme route isn't a disaster - quite a lot of the FS consulting firms want banking experience, project based training etc etc which you'll probably have. Saying that, i f you want a career in consulting then just go straight for a consulting firm and don't waste your time.
