Audit Associate- Summer Intern Review

The internship was a good experience as it allowed you to try a variety of different jobs on a variety of different clients - no two jobs I had have been the same. I experienced a range of different tasks throughout the job, and also different sized jobs - some smaller jobs I was given a lot more responsibility and was speaking directly to the client on queries I had, helping me to get involved and decide whether I wanted to pursue this career further.

My colleagues did not think of me as a burden to stop them doing work, but took time out to not only coach me through the work that I would be completing, but also gave me an overview of the wider work that was being completed, so you could see where your contribution came in. They appreciated the work that I did, and didn't expect me to be able to do anything straight away, but were always willing to answer questions and make you feel part of the team. This included social events outside of the work environment as well as inside the work environment.

The support network of people is really good at getting the best out of your internship. The People Manager allows you to talk about the jobs and the tasks at hand, and how you are finding the work, but the Buddy gives you an outlet to ask all the silly little questions that you don't think you can ask anyone else. They were both happy to talk you through something if it was confusing and willing to take time out of their day to have a catch up on the work you had been doing, and seeing if they could improve your experience further. Even when working on jobs, the in-charges are willing to coach you through things and answer questions when you have them, to ensure that you understand the work fully.

It varied on a day-to-day basis depending on the cleint and the type of work. Most days I worked for the required 7 hours, and on larger clients I worked more to ensure the work was completed, but I was never left doing nothing across the internship. In terms of the work set, I was often given enough work or large enough tasks to work independently for a couple of hours at a time, which allowed me to fully get involved in the work and understand the job.

On smaller clients, I was given a lot more responsibility, and was communicating directly with the client on the information I was working with. I was also completing work, and then going through any problems or questions I had at the end of tasks, but I was left to use my intuition on some of the tasks, and so was allowed to make the work my own.

There are some job specific skills such as using the computer systems that are only applicable to this specific job. However, building an understanding of how to work in a professional environment is important; including how to handle yourself in front of clients and how to phrase emails to get specifically what you need. It also helped to learn how to make notes on tasks from conversations and be able to work from those notes; so they have to be detailed as well.

The general office atmosphere is one of work, but also there is a welcoming atmosphere where there were people who may not be working with you, but they would be willing to take time to discuss your internship. I spent time talking to a man from Tax about what he did for a job, whilst getting a coffee, but he was willing to explain his job to me so I got a wider picture of the opportunities available.

The organisation of the overall placement was good - by keeping all the interns together for the first couple of days allowed us to be trained together in basic skills and to get to know each other, building a wider network of people, and then being in regional training allowed us to get to know the people within our departments and offices more. We knew in advance what clients we were booked on to speak to the relevant people beforehand, and even though this changed, I found that the organisation of the jobs I was given meant I could gain an overview of the whole process that clients go through, and the type of work that is carried out across the year.

The company spent a week training us, using a mixture of residential training to bring up the core skills needed, and regional training to get us up to speed with the IT systems. This is the formal training and development we received, but the informal training was given throughout the job on the feedback received formally and informally, and these things can help to improve the way you work for the future.

The people I have been working with have given me realistic expectations of the job, giving both the perks and the downsides to the job. The feedback I received throughout the job meant that I can act on the development areas I have, helping to increase the chances of gaining a job at the end of the internship.

There were socials every other week that involved anyone from the department, as well as larger socials for the whole of the group and just the interns to get involved with and meet new people and discuss experiences with.

The cost of living was expensive, but that is because it was based in London, but the socialising wasn't too expensive, given the area that we were working in.

The nightlife was good with a variety of places to go to, given the area of London we were working in.

Every other Friday, there were department drinks on our floor to get to meet other people within the department, as well as the department AGM which we were allowed to attend, where they have an afternoon of sports and a barbeque.