Summer Vacation Scheme - Audit Internship Review

Overall, the internship (6 week-long 'Summer Vacation Scheme') was a good experience, and I enjoyed most of my time at Deloitte. Although there were definitely times at which I felt stressed and unsure of what I was doing, and some of the tasks I was given were quite dull, almost all of the people I worked with were very friendly and did everything they could to make sure that I was getting enough support and learning from the experience and I was exposed to a wide variety of different projects, enabling me to get a good insight into the business

I did spend one week with a team where the manager behaved in a somewhat hostile and unfriendly way and made me feel uncomfortable, but the vast majority of people I worked with were very friendly, approachable and appreciative of my efforts (even if I didn't feel like I was able to contribute that much!). Obviously as an intern, there is a limit to how useful you are to the company, but I was treated very well by almost everyone I met, and they were all eager to answer questions and offer advice.

The scheme that I was on involved being rotated around four different departments, and I worked with a different group of people each week. In most cases, I was supervised most closely by a more junior employee, rather than a manager or senior figure, although this varied depending on how busy the team was and the personality of the manager. However, there was always someone I could ask questions and get feedback from, and I never at any point felt like I had been thrown in the deep end without adequate support. Some people were more proactive than others in offering advice, but there was always someone willing to offer it if asked.

The workload was pretty well balanced most of the time, with enough work to get stuck into and feel like you were actually being productive and getting a taste of what it would be like to work there as a graduate, without feeling overwhelmed. They were also very relaxed about deadlines and timing in most cases, and I never felt under intense time pressure. There was one week when I ended up staying late (only an hour) to make sure that I got my work completed, but that was largely self-imposed. The workload also varied depending on the team you were working with and whether they has tasks you could help with - for one week the team I was assigned to didn't have very much that I could usefully work on, so I ended up twiddling my thumbs for a while, but it was only that week that I felt under-worked.

On the whole, I wasn't given a huge amount of responsibility and I did end up doing quite a bit of fairly low-level tasks, such as consolidating spreadsheets and transferring information from spreadsheets to powerpoints or vice versa, particularly in the more technically-focussed departments, where a high degree of specialist knowledge was required to do the work they were doing. However, I did get to work on client engagements and produce research documents for internal usage, which was interesting and, although not a massive responsibility, felt rewarding.

Although the training I received over the course of the six weeks was fairly limited, I think I definitely improved certain skills such as excel and powerpoint usage and presentation skills that will come in useful in any future job. I'm not sure that the internship had a huge impact on most of the skills such as research and written communication which I employ in my degree studies, but it was very helpful to see how my skillset would fit into an organisation such as Deloitte and to learn about the opportunities for further training and development that are provided for graduate hires.

It varied from department to department, but on the whole it was a fairly quiet and business-like atmosphere. People were friendly, and it wasn't a cold or unwelcoming place to work, but there wasn't very much interaction between people unless they were directly working together. The environment was perfectly good for getting work done, as there weren't many distractions and it was comfortable and well air-conditioned, but it was lacking in personality and was a fairly uninspiring set-up: it was very clear that it was a functional space, rather than somewhere you would look forward to going each day.

The internship was very well organised, with a clear timetable for everyone and plenty of socials scheduled. I knew where I was going at all times and there were plenty of points of contact if you had any questions or needed help with anything. Everything ran very smoothly, and I never encountered any organisational problems or got the impression that things hadn't been adequately prepared for us.

The firm definitely made an effort to make sure that the experience was valuable for us and that we learnt from it, but because it was only six weeks long, there was a limit to how much training we could be given. We were given two days induction at the start, to explain how things worked and make sure that we were set up with the IT systems etc., but after that it was straight into proper work, and most of the learning that took place was 'on the job', rather than from dedicated training sessions. I think that much more emphasis is placed on training and development if you join the graduate scheme, but on a six week internship there simply isn't enough time to focus too heavily on those aspects.

Everyone who completes the Summer Vacation Scheme is entitled to interview for a graduate position, and your chances of success are considerably greater than an external applicant, as you’ve had the opportunity to see how the firm operates up close, ask questions about working there, and collect feedback on the work you’ve done, which informs the firm’s final decision. Although I haven’t yet had my interview, I have applied for a graduate role, as they seem like an excellent employer. The emphasis they place on personal development, opportunities for training and career progression, and the nature of the work that I was involved in all appealed to me, and if I were made an offer then I would definitely consider it very strongly.

I got on well with all the other interns and although we didn’t always see a lot of each other (as we were all working in different teams and in different places at any time) we kept in contact and saw each other at the socials which Deloitte organised for us almost every week. We also arranged to meet up for lunch on our last day, and it was nice to have people in the same position to talk to and share any concerns or issues.

Being located in central London, everything was very expensive, from travel to food, and eating out regularly make a noticeable dent in your bank balance! However, it wasn't always necessary to pay to socialise, as the company put on regular socials for us, which were all paid for, so you could enjoy drinks and network without worrying about the cost.

Because it was located in central London, there was a vast and vibrant Nightlife scene, but it was also very expensive. Most of us didn't take advantage of the Nightlife much, because you didn't want to turn up to work the next day unable to perform well, and by the end of the week you were usually quite tired. For those who wanted it, though, there was plenty available.

There are plenty of societies and activities you can get involved in as an employee at Deloitte, but these weren't available to us as interns. I don't think this really matters, though, as the main purpose of the internship is learning more about the specific service line where you're working and acquire experience in that area, rather than extra-curriculars. There were also regular socials arranged, so there were opportunities to socialise and network outside of the office.