Smart Futures Intern Review

My role, as a smart futures intern, was to present in front of senior members/clients, work effectively with other interns, especially when working in a group and lastly taking in all the priceless information that has been given to us by various employees of Ernst & Young. They tell you about specific roles that EY has and from the information that they tell you, you can choose the one that suits you best. In the last week of the programme, we were given the opportunity to work with a client, in the specific service line that you wanted to go into. This gave me the greatest insight into what an accountant does and what their role actually consists of.

Fortunately, we are consistently given the chance to present in front of employees of EY, including senior partners and members. This is an excellent chance to put your presentation skills to the test and to see the results of how well you are able to present in front of the partners. If there are any problems, the clients, partners and members give enticing feedback on how to improve on your presenting skills. I also learnt about networking and building a rapport. This is a fundamental skill that is required whenever working, or to even make the right first impressions. I know understand the importance of networking and I highly neglected this skill prior to EY.

It was a fascinating programme, where I met many intellectual students and helpful employees. I was able to build on my skills and find out exactly what EY stand for in the three weeks. The only problem I had with this programme was that it only lasted three weeks! I would have loved it if it lasted all summer!

I feel like I was valued by not only other students, but also all the employees. It's very hard to stand out when your working with 49 other students, but the EY team help you build your confidence and allow everyone a chance to shine.

It was very well organised, from the day we started to the day we left. One day would seem to lead onto the next one and there would be a link between those days. We were also given the opportunity to learn or improve one skill a day.

We are all given a mentor who supports and guides us after the programme, for 10 months. My mentor has already given me advice about university/degree choices and given me more information on the school leavers programme. She has been very informative!

We are constantly being supported and advised throughout the programme. They answered any questions that I had and always seemed to have the most welcoming smile on their faces when any of us had any problems. They were very patient, which I think is vital, especially when supervising 50 students! They were great help throughout!

Yes

Because this opportunity has taught me so much about accounting. In fact, it has taught me so much, that I have gone from a student who did not have a career-goal in mind, but now you are looking at an aspiring accountant

BE YOURSELF! EY are looking for people who are authentic and those who prove that they have that raw passion to be a part of the smart futures programme!