西瓜视频

The Flexible Associate graduate work placement was on the whole a great experience, although there were many challenges throughout the 10 months. The job requires the intern to be flexible with their work type, location, and working hours - something which requires hard work. Firstly, as the placement was across all business units within the company, there were often times where I was given new challenges which I would have to quickly adapt to. An example of this was after my first rotation. After working for a month in business recovery services and starting to become familiar with the specialised terminology, I was then rotated to tax compliance where I had to learn specialist tax terminology and methodology from scratch. This was a common theme throughout the placement, but by using the support offered and working hard it was an achievable task. Secondly, the placement also required me to be relocated if necessary - something I agreed to when signing the contract. Within a month I was sent from my base location of London to Birmingham for 3 weeks. I like to travel, and the company covered all expenses, so I enjoyed this opportunity though it is not to everyone's liking. Lastly, the work hours at the company vary throughout different times of the year. During the period leading up to the end of the financial year I was working in audit (most of my fellow interns were also), and the hours would often be very long and tiring, so this is something to be expected.

I always felt valued by my colleagues, and I believe that the firm has a strong ethos which is to get the most out of its employee's and make them welcomed. My initial welcome to the firm was fantastic, and I always felt as though the work I was doing contributed. This is supported by the fact that I was often personally thanked after completing a work rotation within a business unit at the firm. Furthermore, after working long hours on my 'busy season' client, the manager of my team took us all out for a meal as a thank you - something I greatly appreciated.

The firm emphasizes the fact that support is always available and this is something I found to be true. Not only related to work issues, but also personal issues, there is support if needed. During the placement I was studying for the ACA and completed the first 5 exams. Throughout the period I was studying, there was always resources available to help me if I was struggling. Similarly, when working on a client job with my colleagues, I always had a senior who was happy to help. Occasionally senior members of staff can be busy, and help cannot be obtained instantly, but I think this is something which is understandable and has to be accepted.

As I was constantly rotating across the business units at the company throughout my ten-month-long placement, the workload was usually related to the business unit I was in and the time of the year. During my tax compliance and business recovery services rotations, I was working a standard 9am to 5pm day almost every day, occasionally having to stay up to an hour longer, which was rare. When I was rotated into audit, during the busiest time of the year, my working hours increased dramatically. The longest hours I worked was from around 9am to 11pm for a few weeks consistently. It must be noted however, that the company offers 'days in lieu' of time worked over the contracted hours, so it was possible to claim back days I worked extra as holiday or pay. Generally, I would say my average working day was from 9am - 6.30/7pm across the ten months.

Dependent on the job and experience, I was given different levels of responsibility on different jobs. Upon initially joining the firm, my responsibilities were understandably fairly low, as I was new to the working environment, technical terminology, and lacked experience. After working in audit for a few months, my main audit 'busy season' client came with much more responsibility. Likewise, after working in tax compliance for a month, the manager saw that I was more capable than the current work load, so gave me extra responsibilities which I happily agreed to. Overall, the level of responsibility depends on experience and work type, but mostly attitude. If an individual wants to gain more responsibility and is driven, then it can definitely be granted fairly easily - this is something I like about the company and the people working there.

The experience I gained on the ten-month-long work placement was invaluable, and I genuinely believe that it has boosted my job prospects, potential and confidence is a variety of areas. During the course I received training for the first 5 ACA exams. After successfully completing these first five exams, it means that I am part-way to becoming a chartered accountant - something which obviously is fantastic for someone who wants to go down this career path.

The offices at the company, in London, are very large. This means that there are lots of people, which is great as there is always somebody to talk to or somebody to ask for help. Furthermore, the facilities in the offices are fantastic: free coffees etc., which definitely adds to the friendly environment.

The only downfall of the work placement was its lack of organisation! However, I do not hold this against the company at all, as when I did the placement it was the first intake, so we were essentially the 'guinea pigs!' I have continued to work at the firm however, and understand that all of the critiques given by myself and my colleagues have been taken on board, meaning the placement will run much smoother this time round.

The company definitely invested a lot into the work placement intake, throughout a variety of ways. Firstly, there were many internal training days upon initially joining the firm. These related to day-to-day things such as how to talk to clients etc., and are a great help for doing the job which is asked of you. Furthermore, as I have mentioned already, the company paid for the interns to do the first 5 ACA exams, in addition to receiving training for these exams at Kaplan. This itself is a huge investment, which paid off as the pass rates were very high. The amount of time and money invested in us was obvious, and I think it massively paid off for both ourselves and the firm.

Future employment prospects are very good at the firm, in fact, the aim of the scheme is to essentially recruit graduates on a full-time position after the placement has finished. After completing the scheme, everyone who wanted to stay had an interview for a full-time role, and everyone was offered a position in either their first, second or third choices of graduate schemes.

In short: yes! The social scene at the firm is huge, and this becomes immediately apparent in the first week of joining the firm. During this week, there are many social events with your intake, in addition to more senior members in the firm. This is a great way to get to know everybody. Furthermore, there are many social events throughout the year!

I was working in London, so obviously the cost of living and the cost to socialise can be high... 拢5 a pint! However, this role does pay slightly higher than a similar role outside of London which helps to accommodate for this. If you are ever sent on an away job, these costs are all met by the firm (hotel, taxis, trains etc.), so it never costs extra.

I was working in London, so obviously the name of the city speaks for itself! There is always something to do in the city at night, and not just nightclubs. There are many bars and restaurants, in addition to musical theatre performances, gigs, film nights etc. , the list is endless! This is the great appeal of London!

There were often many opportunities to get involved in activities outside of work, either with colleagues of independently. Independently, living in London, there is always something to do. Sports, nights out, restaurants... it has it all. With the company, there is lots of 'extra curricular' things going on too. There is a charity pantomime performance every year, and also a triathlon for charity.