Summer associate Review

I thoroughly enjoyed the internship. From the second day I was out on site at clients and really experienced what life what be like as a graduate at GT. The work I was given was an accurate representation of work you would do as a full time employee and sections of the audit that I completed were used in the final audit submitted to clients.

I always felt like a valued member of the team right from the start. On the induction day I was welcomed into GT and support/guidance was always on offer. Whilst I was out at clients I was treated like an associate and was given the responsibilities that come with the role. The firm itself has an incredibly friendly, welcoming culture and that was definitely a major pull factor for me.

I always felt fully supported as an intern. A couple of weeks before we started each intern was assigned a recent joiner at GT as a buddy who was on hand to ask any questions leading up to and during the internship. Furthermore on the first day each intern was assigned to a manager who was there if we had any questions and also checked in on us half way through our time.

I always had the right balance of work to do during the internship. Whilst on site at clients I was given workpapers to complete whenever I had finished my previous task. There were a few, but not many, times when there was nothing immediately available, or the person in charge of explaining the work was busy/in a meeting, but during this time I was able to work on the project we had been given at the start of the internship.

I was given a lot more responsibility that I had anticipated which was great and enabled me to learn a lot more. From my second day (the first being an induction) I was completing work that would be part of the final audit. I was set work and for some it was up to me how I completed it and was left to my own devices, with help always on hand if I needed it. The more valuable part was due to the fact I independently spoke to about 10 different clients and I was responsible for getting the information that was needed.

The internship really reflected life as a full time employee therefore my time was split between working on site at clients and at the GT office. This meant I only spent 1 week out of 7 at the office but from that week and what other interns/employees said the office had a very friendly atmosphere. There were regularly team lunches that myself and other interns were allowed to go. The office was quiet at times but there was always colleagues asking each other questions and helping each other out.

The internship was well organised. Before we had started we could ask the organisers what clients we would be working on. The first day was an induction and ran through all important dates, such a nation wide intern conference we attended. Each intern was set up on the GT system for client bookings so we were able to see where we would be working next and who with. Finally the last week was organised well and we were allocated meetings with our manager to go over feedback, give our final presentation and have an exit interview.

As the interns in the London office started earlier than the other intern we missed out on a two days event at GT's training centre. However we were able to go to a similar conference with other GT employees to ensure we learnt about how to present - which was useful for our final presentation. Furthermore if interns were interested in other areas of GT they were encouraged to make contact with someone in a different department and meet with them.

As mentioned before, the internship really gives an insight into what working at GT as a graduate would be like. Therefore I am comfortable in the knowledge that I would enjoy working at GT and audit is the right career for me. Based on the feedback you receive from the in-charge on your jobs and the presentation you give at the end, your manager will then decide if they want to offer you a graduate offer - which is quite a common occurrence.

The night before the national intern conference GT organised a social for all those attending at a nearby bar which was a great way to meet the other interns and discuss experiences. Similarly the London office put on an event for all interns, placement students and incoming graduates and school leavers which was a really nice evening. One of the buddies organised an intern/buddy social and got a budget from his manager to spend during the evening.