Summer tax intern Review

As a summer intern, most of my day to day included attending client meetings, minute-taking, participating in team training, filling out Engagement Letters and working with different tax return forms. My job responsibilities included liaising with clients, HMRC and the IRS. Workplace dynamic involves both individual and teamwork equally, where teamwork often includes working with people in different grades such as Intern, Associate, Manager, Director and occasionally Partner in the same team.

I learnt how to interact with clients and coworkers in a professional setting, develop strong presentation delivery skills and how to meaningfully expand my internal network within the company. I have also learnt specific tax knowledge on form completion and tax law interpretation through team training sessions and individual online platform training opportunities. Additionally, I expanded my digital know-how in using spreadsheets and software such as Alteryx, GSuite and AODocs.

I was given plenty responsibility during my internship. I received guidance and instruction for all tasks I needed to complete and feedback at the end of each assignment. I had the opportunity to work independently and come up with my own solutions, present them and talk them through to my seniors. The tasks assigned were on the shorter side but it was always explained how exactly they fit into the cogwheels of a bigger project and why they were essential.

Guidance was outstanding. All interns were assigned a Buddy in charge of overseeing and supporting our day-to-day activities, solve any queries and reach out for additional support on our behalf. We were also assigned Career Coaches who guided us through our career objectives, looked into progression opportunities for us and pushed us to do our very best. They were both incredibly supportive and I owe them a lot of gratitude for their implication in my internship experience.

The general atmosphere at PwC is very warm and inclusive, there are truly no silly questions and everyone in the office is keen to help you learn more on the job. It was a very pleasant surprise to meet such a positive and understanding team in a Big 4 company. PwC proved to have the healthiest workplace ethic I have come across, both in terms of office interactions as well as extracurricular activities and wider society involvement.

I was incredibly happy with my internship and I am proud to say I have spent the best weeks of my summer at PwC. It is going to be tough parting with my colleagues and fellow interns with whom I have built warm relationships and I sincerely hope we get the opportunity to work together again in the future.

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Keep calm throughout the application process, it is a long way until you get here but the most important thing to remember is that no-one expects you to have tremendous technical knowledge of the line of service you are applying to. As long as you prove to be a sociable individual and your passion for the company values and area you are applying for shine through, your efforts will be recognised.