Assurance Intern Review

The work I carried out was engaging and the days often flew by. Given my lack of previous experience with the financial industry, during some parts of the internship I felt quite out of my depth and couldn't help but feel I'd enjoy the work more with a better understanding of what I was doing.

Across the board the people I've worked with at PwC have been very friendly and supportive. I always felt I could ask questions when I was unsure, and my colleagues would take their time to explain things for me. Generally I felt as if I was treated as an equal despite only being an intern.

With my lack of prior experience, I definitely needed some trivial things broken down for me. My supervisors were always happy to do this; I didn't feel as if any question would be a silly question. I was grateful for the patience as I wouldn't have gotten through the internship without their guidance.

Given the time of year that the internship took place, there wasn't always an abundance of work to do. Early in the internship I was reallocated off of a job that was deemed unsuitable for an intern and consequently it was hard to find alternative work for me. After being allocated to a client however, I felt I was able to get more stuck in

I was given enough responsibility to feel as if the work I was doing was significant and not just for the sake of it. In particular, it was quite gratifying proposing the work I had been doing revolving around a notable adjustment to deferred revenue to a client, as it was based heavily on my input.

As I am studying a degree in physics, a lot of the more specific skills I have developed may not be directly transferable. However, the more general skills involving client interaction and working professionally in a team will no doubt help me throughout the remainder of my career. I am grateful for the experience I have gained.

The Southampton office has a great open planned layout. The atmosphere here is friendly and safe, but also productive. Not having allocated seats make it refreshing to sit somewhere new each day. I appreciate the office's dress for your day policy, as it has allowed me to feel even more comfortable here.

There was a slight hiccup at the start where I was taken off the client I had been assigned to for the first two weeks at the last minute. This meant I had a few slow quiet days that I feel better organisation could have potentially avoided. In general though, the internship ran smoothly.

I felt as if the training at the start of the internship could have been more extensive, as it seemed particularly rushed. Alternatively, perhaps the training could have been more focused on they skills we'd be using on a daily basis, as I feel a lot of what I learnt I haven't used in the last 6 weeks and hence hasn't been consolidated.

I have been offered a graduate role off the back of my internship. However I feel as if I would be better suited to a different line of service within the firm. I am unsure however how easy it would be to transfer, or if my current offer would help in any way.

There was definitely a social scene to get involved with, especially with the other interns and graduate students. However as I was driving around an hour to get to the office each day, it made it harder to get involved with activity after work. I'm sure this would be different if I lived locally.

I am unsure the cost of living and socialising around the office as I didn't live locally. I did have to spend a lot of money on fuel getting too and from the office, and it was a shame I couldn't claim any of this back. It also meant I couldn't claim virtually anything from visiting clients, as they were generally all closer to me than the base office.

I didn't get to experience the nightlife in the area due to living far away and not having a realistic way home or a place to stay at the end of the night. I have heard from the other interns that the nightlife in the area we worked is quite good however.

I would see emails to get involved with football but this isn't really something that interests me. Other than that I wouldn't say I am aware of any other activities that I could have got involved with. Perhaps it would be good to introduce more activities that aren't sport related.