Corporate Tax Associate Review

I have thoroughly enjoyed my placement here at Grant Thornton, the experience as a whole was just as I expected and more! I would highly recommend other students consider the firm for their placement year.

As soon as I joined the firm I was welcomed with open arms. Throughout my placement I have been involved in many team away days and other social events which has made me feel like 'part of the furniture'.

The management and supervisors have been great in terms of giving me support and guidance in my placement year. This applies to both technical guidance for the role and general advice. They hold regular training and technical sessions and are very approachable.

My workload was varied on a daily basis, however on the whole I had enough work to keep me busy through the working day but not too much, which allowed me to maintain a good work-life balance.

I feel as though I was given a lot of responsibility during my placement year. I have been able to visit clients on my own and I have been left to manage my own time and workload.

The technical skills I have picked up will assist me in my modules for my final year of university. My interpersonal and communication skills will help me greatly in the future. This placement has also given me a good idea of how a large firm operates

The general office atmosphere was a good one. People were generally willing to stop and have a chat, however in the busy periods the atmosphere was slightly subdued.

Besides a slight stumbling block with the start date of the placement, the placement was very well organised. On the first day I was given a pathway which I would follow, highlighting how my time would be spent in the first few months. Once I started to get more work everything else fell into place.

I think that the firm invested heavily in me as a placement student. I went of several internal training courses at the firms training centre in Wycombe. I was also able to attend all of the relevant training courses in the office if I so wished.

I am very happy with the culture at the firm and the opportunities arising after graduation. I can see a good opportunity for career progression with the firm and the firm is flexible with opportunities after graduation.

We met several times at specific placement training days at the firms training facility, where we socialised in the bar area and games room.

As I stayed alone, in a 2 bedroom flat this was a large cost of mine. Also this was the first time living away from home for me so I didn't have much idea of how much it would cost to live alone. However all in all I think that the cost of living was reasonable for the area I was staying.

The Manchester city centre is a very lively place with lots of nightlife.

I played football outside of work as well as going out to eat and socialising with workmates. Manchester is a city with lots of activities to do outside of work.