Associate of Assurance Review

The enjoyability of my work really depended upon the client which I was working on. Sometimes, when the client staff weren't too cheerful or when the clients' records were a little messy, the work can be quite frustrating. However, when you work with a cheerful and more efficient client, the work is much more enjoyable. Also, a relatively bad job can be made infinitely better by a cheerful audit team.

I felt highly valued by the people (ie the audit team) which I worked with on a day to day basis, as you usually work around a single table and work as a tightly knitted team. The "team leaders" rely heavily upon your work, and I therefore felt valued. As the managers have many jobs to juggle and tight deadlines to meet, contact with senior staff at times can seem a little impersonal, as you only see them for maybe a day or two across a two week period.

Support was always available from more senior members of the audit team (ie second or third year employees), if sought. Personal development is achieved very much through asking questions and gaining wisdom from your colleagues, as they have the experience to resolve problems which are completely new to you.

I was generally very busy, the only time I had to seek out work for myself was when I was in the office and not at a client's site. When working on an audit, there were always tasks to complete, and I often had to juggle my tasks to ensure that everything was completed by the deadline. During the busy season of January I had particularly long hours, for the remainder of the placement my hours were not too severe. taking commuting out of the equation, my hours would on average be 0830-1730.

At the beginning of the year, I was generally given the cash and fixed assets sections of the accounts to audit, with a great deal of guidance from others. As the year progressed and I gained more experience, I was given work in many other areas of the accounts, taking complete ownership of some of them. By the end of the year, I was even coaching new starters on a couple of jobs and effectively performing the roles of a second year employee.

I sat 6 accountancy exams which means I am 1/3 of the way to being a chartered accountant. The skills I gained do not really relate to my maths degree, however the work ethic which I have developed should really help with my final year studies. The nature of the work also pushed me outside of my comfort zone, which should benefit me in the future.

Again, this depends on who I was working with. On certain jobs, the atmosphere would be very relaxed and cheerful, at other times it would be more serious. Obviously if a member of senior management was out at a client site, the 'fun' would be kept to a minimum.

As a business placement student, I was treated the same as a first year for the vast majority of the time. The only slight criticism is that there was a bit of uncertainty about when a desision would be made about a job offer after graduation. The decision was only made clear to me about a month before I finished the placement.

The firm paid for technical accountancy training and pays for any exams that I sit. This is very expensive, and so it is a big investment for the future. I also had a great deal of "on the job" training from colleagues.

I was given a decision about a month before I finished the placement. On the condition that I achieve a 2:1 at university, I've got the job!

A number of the gents in the office took part in a weekly five a side football league, which I participated in on several occasions. There were a number of unofficial drinks/meal nights (every few weeks), and there were about 4 or 5 official socials (eg Christmas party, annual dinner etc..)

I chose to live in a new block of apartments, which were fairly expensive for the area. However the cost of living was generally quite good, and I did not struggle at all to survive financially.

I lived in the centre of town, so there were plenty of bars, restaurants and clubs in the area. The office was also positioned in the centre, which was convenient for Friday night drinks (if I was in the office and not a client's site).

I was able to get involved with some football matches, and informal golf play. However, my office was relatively small, and particularly at the beginning of my placement, there were not too many opportunities as I was in a completely new location and did not know many people outside of work.