Finance and Commercial Academy Student Review

I currently do a lot of work using excel on a daily basis. I pull together data to create reports which can be used to forecast figures for future months. I also have responsibility of carrying out and sending certain reports out to external site managers. I also spend quite a lot of time looking at processes I do and trying to find innovative ways of improving them.

I get put through CIMA accountancy qualifications, the company pays for me to go to an external training provider to learn the content for this. We also do internal excel training to help day to day. You also learn a lot of communication skills through your day to day placement, along with picking up traits of the profession and how to conduct yourself in the working environment.

I really enjoy what I do. The team I work in are very friendly and helpful, it is quite like a family atmosphere in the office. The only downside is that you are expected to move around the country for different placements which means moving to a new team in possibly a new city every 6 months and this can be hard to adjust to.

I feel very valued. Siemens take a lot of time to look after their new employees. They have a very good internal rewards system and recognise achievement. It is also easy to get involved with projects and allows you to have something which can be completely your own work.

The programme is pretty well organised. Induction is completed relatively smoothly and you get a very good support system put in place to help you through. Currently the external training and studying is slightly less well structured but this may be more down to the training provider and I think Siemens are looking in to trying to resolve this. I also feel movement between placements could be co-ordinated better, for some it can be a very big move and don't feel there is enough support provided to really help this be smooth.

The training provider does offer a lot of support and does have a lot of resources, although they can be quite disorganised and some of the material is incorrect or outdated. But otherwise they do offer quite a bit of support and try to make it as enjoyable as possible.

My current line manager offers a lot of support is always there if I need help on anything. There are also plenty of people who act as mentors and there are lots of different groups that you can go to if you need any guidance on specific things.

The salary for me surpasses any of my living costs. As the majority who join this scheme are 18/19 year olds, living costs seem to low as most are living at home. The salary certainly covers the costs of an average college leaver with ease and the company reimburses any extra expenses incurred.

There are opportunities and events that you get the chance to be a part of and attend. There is a lot of voluntary work which goes on through the company. For anything out of work it would really depend on the location of your placement. As they are throughout the UK you cannot specifically comment on certain location but there will be people in the company who I am sure can provide information on this.

Yes

The scheme and company as a whole has boosted my career a lot already and there seems to be a lot of chance for development and promotion within the company. It is definitely a very worthwhile experience.

Confidence throughout the application process would be a key thing for me. From your application form don't be worried about putting achievements down, no matter how small they may seem to you. Then when it comes to the interviews and assessment day (obviously your going to be very nervous) but just keep telling yourself you wouldn't be there if they didn't want to give you the job and they want you to be able to give your best.