Assurance - Summer Internship Review

The internship has been a great experience of PwC. Seeing how the systems work and getting familiarised with the audit process. It has also been a very good opportunity to meet people in the firm and ask about their experiences to see whether the graduate scheme is the correct thing for me to do after I finish and graduate from University.

Over the internship, I have been very trusted by managers and colleagues to carry out tasks on the audit. I have been trusted to talk to the client and also been given extra tasks to do when it was felt I would be able to do them. My colleagues were also very open to being asked questions about these tasks in order for me to understand them before carrying them out.

The structure at PwC is great for providing you with support and guidance should you need it. Before joining you are assigned a buddy who answer any questions you have before you arrive and are there to look after you when you do join. You also have a people manager who is more senior and able to help with any bigger problems. The teams you work with on a project are also a great provider of support.

There were always a variety of tasks to do and my managers and supervisors would always check that I had enough to do and would give me some more work if I needed it. Equally however they were also willing to do things themselves if I felt I had too much work to do. They were also very understanding and engaging in asking how I was getting on with the work I had to do.

I felt very trusted by my managers and colleagues throughout the internship and I was given a level of responsibility that I felt happy with. When work was given to me my manager would ensure that I understood what was needed and let me ask any questions that I needed to before I went to the client with this background knowledge and found out the necessary information to carry out the task.

I believe that the skills developed on this internship will help me in my degree course, being accounting and finance, and also help me in my future career as even in six weeks I have developed a lot of understanding around accounting principles and audit procedures which will be useful in any future job. I have no doubt that this experience will help me after my studies when I join in a full time capacity and would help in any professional environment.

The atmosphere in the office was great! Everyone was very sociable and keen to look after you and make sure everything was going well. There were lots of opportunities to talk to senior members of staff both in the office and in a more relaxed setting for drinks. The associates also regularly have socials and go out so there was a lot of time to get to know people and have fun. The ping pong table in the office is also a good way to have a break and chat to people.

Upon arriving I wasn't assigned an initial project to work on which was slightly disheartening but this was quickly resolved. Also the intern challenge had a few technical hitches and updates were not well circulated - for example no winner was announced and no feedback was provided on your contribution. Overall, the initial induction was well organised and the office were quick to sort out any failings.

It is clear the company if not spare any expense when accommodating us during the induction and spending money making sure we enjoyed ourselves. The office I worked in was very recently renovated so the facilities to work in were fantastic. Also the provision of a laptop was another good perk as you could take this home with you.

The future employment prospects with PwC are extremely appealing. From the internship I have been able to ask about the prospects of different lines of service, different locations amongst other things. It has been a great insight to be able to talk to current employees about their career journeys with PwC and see the different routes people have taken.

The social scene with fellow colleagues was great. Friday night drinks were frequent and associate socials also took place. Colleagues and fellow interns were keen to socialise together and everyone had a good social relationship as well as a working relationship. This was one of the key things that stood out for me. All the other people on the internship have been great and very open for social events. When in the office we have tried to meet up for lunches and also drinks in the evenings.

Overall, the cost of living has been quite expensive. The accommodation I was staying worked out at one hundred and thirty five pounds per week. Food has been normal prices and I probably spend around £50 per working week. However lunches and socialising are very expensive in Birmingham, with prices fast approaching the same as london.

I did not really go out in the evenings except to pubs with friends but on the whole these were very good experiences and there are also enough different venues around to keep trying something new. Birmingham is also a University city and as a result if you know some students they can usually point you in the right direction.

There were many opportunities for social events and sporting activities such as football, badminton, squash and many others. This was advertised openly to all skill levels and anyone who was available to go along. On the whole this makes the company feel very friendly and gives it a feel that anyone can know everyone. We were given extra curricular opportunities such as joining the football games every week.