Intern/Trainee Associate Review

I was quickly put on a large project, working with an experienced team and given client exposure and responsibility. This, coupled with the friendly culture, made the internship both fulfilling and enjoyable. My fellow interns were easy to get along with and there was plenty of opportunity to develop and socialise.

From the start of my internship my team ensured I was invited to team socials etc. and welcomed as any other member would. The responsibilities I were given were suitable, but also with the opportunity to make a real impact and generate valued work. At the end of the internship, the feedback I received was also comprehensive and personal.

There was an abundance of places to find support: The recruitment team, a buddy system, a career coach, an associate on my project who worked closely with me and my senior manager. Any of these sources were always happy to help and never left me waiting long for a response.

Most days I had plenty to keep me occupied from start till the end. I seldom had to stay late, except for a single deadline based-project which required an evening or two. However, this was nothing to be unexpected with the nature of consulting work and I was surprised by the balance. Even on busy days, my team would insist I go home shortly after the usual time.

I was assigned the development of a management tool which was not only adopted by my own engagement (In itself a seven-figure programme), but I was also then able to pitch my work to a team of Directors and Partners who decided to take it on for further development. Meaning I can leave my internship knowing the work I did will be a part of PwC beyond my leaving.

A variety of work including technical (Tool development), consulting-based (working personally with senior clients), presentations and team events meant that I was exposed to a wide variety of work and given the opportunity to learn from each. Besides the immersion, there are also a number of learning resources to make use of if ever you had spare time.

PwC appears to put a lot of effort into its culture, and generally I found that it shows. Personally, I hadn't come across any team members/colleagues that I could not get along with as the firm focuses heavily on the people aspects of its success. My team was generally laid back, so long as I was delivering the reasonable expectations given.

Although I found that I had a seamless experience, given the project-based work I was aware of other interns who either had to wait some time before being put on a project, or spent a while doing odd-jobs here and there. There is certainly an element of luck here, though the company makes an effort to find a place for everyone. Beyond projects, the induction was well organised and had all we needed to get going

The company made sure that each intern provided a set of comprehensive, achievable goals for their internship and also provided a myriad of mentors to gain knowledge/experience from. There are several training courses and bits of information available on their websites. Being a brief internship, there were not however any longer courses of qualifications to be had.

Generally, it is accepted that obtaining the internship is more challenging than to receive an offer. A good amount of effort can comfortably secure the prospect of a graduate offer. The majority of interns I was in contact with were all offered to return as an associate the following september.

Though the social aspect of my internship was very strong, it is worth noting that there wasn't many internship socials organised by the company itself. Therefore it is up to one or a few of your colleagues to make sure that people stay connected. That said, my fellow interns met up at least once a week, usually for after work drinks on the Friday.

Unsurprisingly, rent, food and drinks in central London cannot be called cheap by any means, but that should hardly come as a surprise. For those on a budget there are some cheap food places, or for drink your best best is to find the nearest Spoons or cornershop and pre to your heart's content.

Working in Central London, there's always an abundance of places to go if you look. Be it bars or clubs or events, there will almost certainly be something to your tastes going on during the weekends, or even mid-week. The centre is almost always busy and there's a pub on nearly every corner.

Some, but not all that many.