Vacation Student Review

I really enjoyed the placement. I got to work on three different projects within my team (not for the full duration), which allowed me to get a taste of different aspects of the work. All the work that I did was of real value, sometimes a bit monotonous, but that's not really something you can escape in any job. My team were amazing - structure was completely flat, and so it was so easy to talk to anyone, no matter how senior they were in the firm.

My colleagues really did value my insight and my output, even despite my limited experience in the industry.

Not coming from an accounting background, anyone who gave me work would take some time to explain the key concepts and aspects of any financial information I was dealing with. I rarely had any questions outside of these introductions, and if I did they were quickly and comprehensively answered.

Most days I had tasks that I needed to complete, but I never felt in a rush to meet a deadline. That said, there were times where I had quite a bit of downtime, but I used this to catch up with the financial news, read some client reports, and also prepare for my final interview.

Every task I was assigned was my complete responsibility. Although not the end product, all my work contributed to something that would eventually be sent to a client or to other members in my team.

We had a one day basic induction, and then access to the online training portal. However, the most important skills are the soft skills you learn as you progress, for example, confidence in talking to people across all levels, and the little technical knowledge that you start to grasp, for example, getting better at excel.

The office felt very open, and the partners would sit on the same desk as my team, rather than shut away in a separate office. There was a real team spirit, and I felt really welcomed, coming in initially as an outsider. It was kind of strange at first because not everyone is in the office all the time, so it can be quiet sometimes, and really busy at others, but it is nice to see new and familiar faces on a regular basis.

It was well organised, but at times people can be very busy, so there may be times where as an intern you need to step up and allocate some work to yourself. However, there is always someone to speak to, and it really is up to you to decide who you might want to spend time talking to or working for.

We were treated like full time employees from day one - even given our own work laptops. Everything was accessible to us, such as the online training, and research tools. The firm really did take an interest in us, and my performance manager made a real effort to catch up with me. I was also able to ask for and receive regular feedback, which is really useful for the future.

I would really love to work for KPMG in the future - its a brilliant place full of lovely people. There also does seem to be a work-life balance, which I did not necessarily expect at first.

I was able to attend one team after work social, which was really nice to get to know to people in a more informal environment. In terms of the other interns, there were events organised by graduate recruitment, but we also had a facebook chat which we used to coordinate after work drinks every friday. We would also have lunch together most days, and so since you do not tend to see the other interns when you are on the desk, it was nice to stay connected socially outside of work.

It is London, so socialising isn't the cheapest, but you can always find good deals if you look hard for them. Transport was my main cost as I was living at home, but you do get paid at the end, so all these costs are covered.

There are loads of bars in Canary Wharf to visit after work, and they always seem to be busy. It really is a vibrant place to work.

It is only a short internship, but we did have one corporate responsibility day working with a charity to come up with business plans.