Assurance Intern Review

I thoroughly enjoyed my summer internship at PwC and felt like I really got to get a feel of how it is to work at the company within a relatively short space of time. I worked with a range of clients and had the privilege of working with both small companies and also large companies with several different business entities.

I felt very valued by my colleagues and felt fully supported within every team that I worked with. I also felt like I was treated the same by everyone, regardless of how senior their role may be. Everyone that I worked with was welcoming and friendly and always took the time to make sure I felt comfortable.

Throughout the 6 weeks I felt fully supported by the managers and felt as though help was on hand whenever I should need it. Having my own career coach to guide me through the 6 weeks was an additional source of support which I really valued. The employees on the grad-scheme also provided a lot of support and advice which really helped.

How busy I was tended to vary depending on which job I was on. For example, we worked with one client who was fairly slow at returning information to us that we needed in able to do tasks and so I found myself having to wait for long periods of time for jobs to do in this circumstance. However, on the whole I would say I was busy the majority of the time.

My responsibility tended to vary depending on what line of service I was working in. For example, on External Audit I was given a medium level of responsibility that involved going to speak to clients independently. However, on Internal Audit, I felt a slightly higher level of responsibility since they work in far smaller teams and therefore I was involved in the production of audit reports which make up a significant part of the work they carry out.

I feel like I have developed skills that will help me considerably in my future career along with an incredibly valuable insight into the Financial Services industry. I also think that it has assisted me in my degree studies since, thanks to the internship, I think I have decided on a potential dissertation topic related to the future of Financial Services provision.

The atmosphere in the office was always positive and the open spaces with no formal seating plan made it easy to interact with people of all grades which meant making relationships that otherwise would never have been made. Also, the social areas in the office provided comfortable space for social activities and breaks which helped the work, life balance.

Overall, the internship was very smoothly ran. It was clear from the offset who should be contacted regarding various different aspects of the job and therefore I encountered no day-to-day difficulties. Also, despite my internship involving travelling all over Yorkshire to work with various clients, the level of organisation meant I knew exactly where I needed to be and when.

I felt as though the company were fully invested into making sure we had all of the sufficient training and development opportunities possible within such a small time frame. For example, the first 3 days of induction were held in a hotel with all of the interns from all offices which allowed great time for relationship building and also meant everyone was receiving the same quality of training.

I would say that the organisation provides very attractive prospects for undergraduate employment. Being able to spend time with and converse with the existing graduates was extremely valuable and helped us understand what a grad job would entail along with the differences in what is expected of an intern and a graduate within the company.

Yes, the social committee would send emails with social events every week and it was clear that they invest time and money into making sure that employees have a strong work-life balance. The highlight of the social aspects was a sports day that was held during one afternoon which allowed a fun and relaxing break whilst being able to network with people from all grades.

As a student in the area where I was working I was already aware that the cost of living and socialising is relatively low.

As a student in the area I was already aware of the vibrant stud net Nightlife however it was nice to explore the more upmarket bar scene which is where some of the employee socials are held.

Yes, there were multiple opportunities to get involved in social activities including some compulsory evening activities during the 3 day induction at the hotel.