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I had a great experience on my internship. By and large the work was very interesting and the people are all passionate about the work they do. It gave me a much greater sense of how the firm operates and what it might be like to work there permanently (not always something you can discover without first-hand experience!).

I felt valued by my colleagues across all division areas and levels within the firm. Everyone made a particular effort to ensure I was comfortable with asking them any questions I might have, and gave me real work that directly affected the project I was on. I was really impressed by the level of responsibility I was given by my team so early on, and used it to prove my worth to them. The more I delivered, the more work I received.

Aside from the supervisors on your project that oversee your day-to-day performance, you are given a buddy (usually 1-2 years older and on the grad scheme) and a people manager (typically more senior e.g. Manager) who help you get set up and act as a platform to review your internship objectives respectively. Within the firm there is a substantial focus on feedback and performance improvement, so feedback and support are always available.

The workload varied depending on the needs of my project team, but I was never left without anything to do. If ever you find yourself with a bit of time spare between tasks for your project, there are always other things that require attention (such as competitions for the interns, asking for feedback from colleagues, reviewing internship objectives, networking, filling out expenses claims – the list goes on!)

I was given a large amount of responsibility from day one. Of course the objective of the internship is not to overload you with work, so it is not uncommon to be given some small tasks to start off and for it to build from there. I was given some very quick work to do at the beginning and received more each time – by the end of the first day I already felt like I was a member of my project team and making a positive contribution to the project.

The internship has generally improved the speed at which I complete tasks and has greatly improved my time management. Having others rely on the work you produce and the knowledge that your work will likely be presented to a client naturally improves your focus, your attention to detail and your level of organisation. These skills should assist you in any walk of life, especially with revision!

The general atmosphere tends to relaxed and positive – there is often someone or a group of people in the break area, and the staff will always be happy to talk to you if they have the time. However, when in work mode everyone is focused and driven. It’s the work hard, play hard mentality – you have to put the work in to get the benefits out.

PwC is a large recruiter, so as you would expect the internship program is a well-oiled machine. Everything is very well-organised and structured, though a lot of the experience you get will depend on the project you are placed on.

The firm ask you to set a variety of objectives for your time at the firm which are then read and approved your people manager. It is then your responsibility to complete these objectives, but I would advise you to tell everyone what your objectives are – your colleagues will almost always help you achieve them! At the end of the internship, you will then review your objectives and whether you completed them. This is done with your people manager and will affect the chance of grabbing a job offer, so make the targets realistic!

To my knowledge a very large proportion of interns are offered permanent positions, which is definitely a positive. The people you work with will do their best to make this a reality so it’s important to be open and to get to know them!

On the whole it was very good. You will get to know the other interns very well and a lot of social events (e.g. lunches, post-work drinks etc.) end up happening at least once a week. Some of the associates also arrange events for you to attend too. My project team hosted a dinner every Wednesday night where the entire team (around 20 people) would get together in a more relaxed scene. This was a really great way to get to know everyone without having to focus on work.

Not especially cheap but not unaffordable either – the internship pays so it’s definitely feasible for everyone!

Reading has lots of places to go (especially since London is so close!). In your eight weeks I doubt you will run out of things to do!

Yes, several opportunities are on offer. On the whole these are not advertised so you need to network and find out about what is going on – but you have every opportunity to get involved in whatever you are interested in.