Assurance associate Review

I learnt so much on my placement but it was very hard work. There is definitely a 'work hard, play hard' ethos at PwC. There was a great social aspect, with the whole office being young on average and lots of social events organised were regularly which meant it was easy to make friends.

I was treated exactly the same as a first year graduate and therefore felt really valued within the firm as soon as I started. We were expected to do proper jobs from day one, and were relied on with real responsibilities. PwC could not have been more inclusive in this respect.

I was given both a buddy (who was an associate a year ahead of me within PwC) and a career coach (who was a manager responsible for my career progression and personal development within the firm). Both were so supportive and met with me regularly. We also had on the job coaching whereby everybody is happy to help each other.

I was very busy. We had lots of work to do, and I was often working overtime and staying late. This is just the industry that we are in (audit) and is expected of you. This did make it challenging and tiring but it gives a taste for what a career would be like in this job so I did not see it as a completely negative thing.

I was given lots of responsibility. We are expected to test certain balances within the audit such as cash and PPE, and these are wholly our responsibility. Although we are given as much coaching and help as we need so the responsibility didn't feel too much as there was always somebody to go to for help and oversee/review your work.

I have learnt to be more confident as I have been in the working world for a year, working with partners at PwC and people in high positions at our client's (such as CEOs and finance directors). I also think that having a full time job will make me more productive in my final year at university as I am used to working the hours.

The office was very friendly. Nobody could help you enough. The way we learnt at PwC was to have a coach who was the year above you. Therefore everybody is friendly and expects to help eachother. If you have a question you would be confident that somebody nearby will know the answer and will be happy to help you. Great social aspect with social events being organised regularly for you to take part in.

We are treated exactly the same as year one graduates. This meant that the whole operation and induction/training was seamless, as there is an intake of about 30 graduates a year and 6 placement students. The only complaint was that nobody seemed to know how things worked specifically for placement students. We weren't given our phones at the same time as the grads as nobody knew how it worked for us, and it took a while to understand what the graduate job offer process would be.

A lot was invested in us. We were put through a week of training when we first started and then sent to college to study for our ACA exams, the same as the graduates. PwC paid for all of our college teaching and resources and exams which cost a lot of money.

I have received a graduate job offer from PwC to return to working with them after I finish my final year at university. All placement students had to collate their feedback from the year and present it to our career coaches who reviewed it with a partner and as a result I was offered a place on the graduate scheme.

Great social scene. We joined with 30 graduate students so the intake was like a school year. We got to know each other very well and went on nights out often. There were also events organised by PwC social committee which included bar crawls, away days, pub quizzes and office parties.

Living in Leeds student area was quite cheap. You can find shared accommodation for £ 70 to £120 a week depending on how nice it is. Leeds as a city is quite cheap but in the city centre the bars are quite expensive and if you want to go to a nice bar for cocktails you can expect to pay over £10.

It was very good. Leeds is a great city with lots of nightlife. The nightlife is very varied but there is always lots going on, especially because there is such a big student presence in the city. This means at the weekend there was lots of choice on the nights out we would go on.