Indirect Tax - Summer Intern Review

On a day to day basis, the role involved a wide array of tasks depending on client needs at the time. This included VAT ruling research, VAT registration, compliance checks, VAT repayment claims as well as general departmental tasks. This was also in combination with hours in my diary committed to more centralised/internship based activities. All in all, there is a strong level of variation in day to day activity pending enough work given to you.

This is where I feel the EY internship really excelled in terms of multi-faceted learning with a strong focus on coaching and upskilling their staff. You were allocated time to undergo a Intern-wide CMI qualification, Tax as a service line underwent weekly training sessions, you were given autonomy during free time to pursue an 'EY Badge' as well as within Indirect Tax attendign Away Days at regional offices with certain Indirect Tax offering specialisms. All in all this was a good blend of EY-led and self-start development.

During the tasks I was placed on, the levels of autonomy were relatively high. I was given freedom to work independently on real work. Within the VAT department, I worked on a variety of things. I would have preferred a higher work-load, however thankfully due to a wide varied calendar, I was never left doing nothing. I would say my exposure to other service lines was pretty poor, however there is real scope to do genuinely international business.

The Counsellor + Buddy System is incredibly good, and having those pre-arranged discussions etc are conducive to provoking a situation whereby you are able to speak freely about elements you are enjoying/not enjoying. There is also check-ins with members of the Talent Team (more centrally based), as well as those who are head of your service line as well as the pre-mentioned regional support. I found everyone very approachable and able to speak to freely. However, I had one issue in after expressing a professional interest in a certain sector and gaining exposure to work/advice from someone with in it regarding future opportunities and entry routes. I was pointed in the direction of a certain group and after reaching out, failed to receive any reply or engagement.

I really liked EY. They place great value on their staff, events and fostering generally a great working culture. These social events for example had specific emphasis on achieving greater cohesion - whether that be on a hierarchical level, regional level or service based level for example. I feel the atmosphere in the regional offices to be of slightly differing to the London one's if I had to guess. Moreover, twice annual CSR days and genuine chances for involvement in charitable initiatives make it attractive for the altruist.

I really enjoyed my internship at EY. My team in the office were amazing - and super super friendly and made me feel at ease. The whole company I found fantastic to work for. The work I did, whilst not being overly thrilling was still varied enough to keep me completely stimulated. Whilst I do not think a career in VAT is for me, I would still repeat the internship in a heart-beat and it has allowed me to learn so many things on a professional and personal level.

Yes

Try and extract all you can from the amazing learning opportunities. To others, I would try and gain at least a greater insight into the service lines before joining, as I think there is more of a pressure to join your service line and location upon completion than I initially realised. I think more dialogue in regards to this prior would be better. Away from this latter point, I would definitely apply as I think the firm can give you a fantastic internship experience.