SVS Student (TMC) Review

I really enjoyed my experience at Deloitte. Before applying I found it's quite hard to fully understand the work that the Big 4 do, due to client confidentiality, and so it was great to get first-hand experience of some of their projects. From day one I was given lots of responsibility, and involved in such a wide range of work across the TMC team, and ultimately I enjoyed it so much that I'm returning for the graduate programme next year!

The TMC team is quite large, at around 75 people, but this didn't stop a lot from approaching me from the start with work they would like to get me involved with, and so I felt really valued. In particular a couple of team-members made sure I went to several client meetings, and involved in the work associated with these clients, so that I could get a full understanding of their work during such a short placement. I also went for drinks with some of the team a few times, which was a great way of getting to know them more and feeling valued by them!

I thought that the support I was given was great, not just from my line manager but the team as a whole. My line manager made sure that I had enough (but not too much work) and would help out finding work if I was struggling to find any, and there were regular check-in meetings to make sure that I understood all the feedback that I had been given over the placement -and how to act on it. During the SVS you have to fill out a feedback form with feedback from all those who you're working with, which I thought was a great way of ensuring I got the guidance I needed to land the graduate offer.

As it was the summer, some days there weren't many people in the office and so it could be a bit of a struggle to get work allocated. However, most days I had enough work so that I was kept busy, but didn't have to stay much longer than the contracted hours (9:30 to 5:30), which was nice. As there's so many projects going on at any one time, you soon learn that you really get involved with as many as you feel comfortable with - to make sure I stayed busy for the majority of my placement, I'd just make sure that I had work lined up a couple of days in advance so that once I'd finished one project there was something else to move onto.

A lot more than I was expecting, which was great! In particular there was one project where we visited the client, and then I had to draft up a report based on our findings with suggestions on changes the client could make to their tax processes. For all projects I was given all the guidance I needed - and everyone would be happy to help if I asked - but I did like how I was given free reign over a lot of work.

I learnt a lot of skills during my placement, especially with Excel but also soft skills like communication and organisation. Whilst I feel these won't help hugely with the final year of my degree, I do think they'll really help me start off at the Graduate Programme with a better understanding of how to do the work.

As our team was large, it's perhaps less 'family-like' compared to other teams/smaller firms, but the atmosphere was still great. Everyone was very happy to help out with any problems or get you involved in their work. I thought that the hierarchy between positions may have made the hot-desking system a bit strange, but everybody was extremely friendly - I remember on the first week even going to Sainsbury's with one of the partners to buy ice cream for the team!

Whilst on the placement, it was very well organised - from the induction day, to the mid-point social with other interns and even having my final meeting scheduled in before I had started! There was also a clear schedule which we were told from day one: a mid-point check in meeting for going through feedback, a final meeting at the start of week 6 and then the job outcome on the last day. The organisation before the placement started was less good, however - sometimes you would go months without hearing back from HR despite them saying they'd be a couple of weeks, which could perhaps be improved.

I thought my team in particular invested heavily in me for such a short programme - they made sure that I wasn't just filling out spreadsheets on Excel, but getting involved with as many projects as possible. In particular I had two days shadowing partner-client meetings (they make sure you will have at least one), and around 10 other client meetings - I thought this client exposure in particular was useful in getting to understand the work that TMC does. It seems analysts are invested in heavily too, both in the office and through the ACA/CTA exams and classes

Very appealing! The work was really interesting, and the team really friendly and involving. Deloitte as a whole also has a great culture, offering many benefits on top of the salary (such as interest-free loans, training and extra holiday) and the offices are really nice. 1NSS in particular is such a nice office - I ended up going to the rooftop a lot to have lunch with other interns!

I thought that there may have been a few more socials organised by the firm for the interns, particularly as the induction day was nationwide so I didn't really get to know many of the other tax interns until the mid-point social in week 3. However, me and other interns did organise a few social things together, such as on the last day after the job outcomes, which was nice.

London is known to be expensive, and I found this experience was definitely no exception! Luckily I had accomodation with friends/family so saved on money here, but the tube fares and eating out did add up. However, the salary is slightly higher than other UK offices, which probably made up for this.

Unfortunately during my placement I didn't go out, but I did explore the area around the office which has a lot of bars and restaurants. Given it's central London you're definitely not going to get bored, as there's always a lot going on, and the office is very central (near to Farringdon/Chancery Lane).

There seemed to be quite a few opportunities outside of work - there were a few sports teams, as well as things such as lunchtime language classes and a subsidised gym. I didn't really take advantage of any of these, given the length of the placement, but from what I've heard from those working at Deloitte there is definitely a lot to get involved in.