Core Assurance and Public Services Summer Internship Review

I thought the work I was give was very and I was working on client sites from day 1. Everyone I worked with was very happy to help me and very friendly which made the internship enjoyable and the coaching I received was helpful. The other interns were all friendly and we all got on well.

Everyone I worked with was very grateful for my help and although I had to keep asking questions they were all keen to answer them and make sure I was happy and knew what I was doing. We were invited to go for lunch with the other associates on several occasions and when there were events happening after work we were always invited along.

Everyone was so supportive. We were assigned a buddy who was a first year Graduate who we could ask anything to and then we had a People Manager who was always there for us as well. On each job there was someone who would coach us slowly through what we had to do first and answer any questions as we went along.

Most days of my internship I had a good flow of work, I felt that I got through what I was given quicker than expected but there was always more to do to keep me busy. A few days of the internship I was on clients where there wasn't much to be done, but the managers on those jobs were quick to get me transferred to something I would find more interesting.

We were not treated as an intern and even asked not to put 'intern' in our email signature. I was given work to do that if I hadn't have done, someone more senior would have had to do anyway so it was all important. If I needed to get documents from / or speak to the clients I had to do that myself, I was given guidance beforehand so it wasn't daunting but they definitely didn't hide you away.

I think I gained important skills like getting up and getting to work on time, completing work that is assigned to me and communicating with other people e.g. adopting approach depending who you are speaking to and writing emails. With regards to the actual work, I think the experience will be a great help if I go on to a career in audit and useful to know about the process regardless (if you work in a big company you are going to have to deal with auditors anyway so it is probably better not to be clueless). I also developed my excel skills which will be helpful in the future.

The office is a pleasant place to work, people are always keen to chat to you and there have always been fruit bowls and cakes on the edges of the desks to snack on during the day! Because of the nature of a job in audit, I didn't spend a great deal of time in the PwC office and spent a lot of time on the client sites.

We received substantial training at the beginning of the internship which was helpful, if not a bit too much. I think one of the benefits of being in a regional office is that I got the chance to experience a wide range of clients and I never had any time that I wasn't doing anything. The support network was set up well and there was always someone to voice my concerns too.

We received so much training and development at the start of the internship and throughout through online training. We had a mid-internship development day which gave us further information on 'soft skills' such as commercial awareness and presentation skills.

I was offered a graduate roll for when I finish university on the last day of my internship, this was based on the feedback I received throughout the internship.

We arranged to meet up most weeks but because we were all on different clients sites around Bristol (and even around the country) it was sometimes difficult. There were limited opportunities arranged by PwC for us to socialise together.

I think prices in Bristol are pretty average, not as cheap as the North but not (quite) as expensive as London. Although, I do think it is more expensive than other offices in the region and elsewhere in the country yet this isn't compensated in the salary.

Bristol is always pretty lively, slightly less so when the students are all gone but it wasn't dead.

Very few events were organised for us by PwC, but there were end of work drinks and leaving drinks when someone from the office was leaving.