Northern Tax Intern Review

I was an intern for four weeks working in the Northern Tax team, with work opportunities across direct, indirect and corporate tax. I was able to get involved with projects and technical work within the team, as well as having the opportunity to network with colleagues of various grades and lines of service. I also spent some time shadowing a tax partner, supporting private business and national incentives and joining various client and internal firm meetings.

Over the course of the four weeks, I have developed a higher level of technical tax knowledge, particularly within the VAT space, and have the ability to complete VAT returns. I have improved my presenting skills and confidence speaking in front of a large audience as a result of a social enterprise project, which required a presentation of findings. I have also enhanced my networking skills through reaching out and connecting with team members to get involved with work or to find out more about the kind of work they do.

Throughout my time at PwC, interns were treated as associates, and I personally was allocated responsibility for meeting deadlines on certain admin tasks, completing various pieces of client work, and ensuring any supporting documents for presentations, reviews and meetings were of high standard and met the brief given by colleagues. We were also given responsibility for managing our time to ensure work was completed, and balancing project work with the social enterprise project, therefore prioritising tasks.

I could not fault the support and guidance received during the internship, particularly from buddies and career coaches. My buddy was able to get me involved in a large amount of technical work, which I did not think I would be able to do at this stage, as well as setting up various calls and networking opportunities with different teams across the tax space. My career coach was always there if I had any questions around goals, feedback and general queries about the internship, and they checked in with me regularly to make sure everything was going well.

I have loved working in the office with the team - everyone was welcoming and friendly, and this allowed for a happy and enjoyable working environment. I also liked how the values and culture of the firm means all grades and teams work together both in the office and virtually, and senior colleagues are a visible presence and very approachable. There is very much a caring culture here, and everyone is always willing to help if you have any questions or are struggling with anything.

I had the most enjoyable and unforgettable experience on my internship. The level of responsibility and work opportunities have allowed me to gain a better insight into which area of the tax sector I potentially would like to work in going forward, and that PwC is definitely a firm I would want to work for in the future. It has also benefited me in that I have increased my technical knowledge, as well as vital soft skills such as networking and presenting.

Yes

Definitely be yourself - I have found that there are a variety of personalities and people have lots of different interests, so being yourself will make you stand out and is more genuine in an interview process. Prep well for any stages of the application process - use your university/college career services to practice interview techniques and online resources for psychometric and numerical testing. Last of all enjoy it - assessment centres and roles once successful can be really exciting and a great way to meet new people.