Assistant Tax Advisor Review

I am an Assistance Tax Advisor in the Reading office. There is no typical day-to-day tasks, as every day is different and full of new and exciting projects to get involved in. I work predominantly with Compliance clients, and interact with a lot of overseas countries on a daily basis. I also work closely with colleagues from other UK offices and Service-Lines on a number of Advisory projects. I have daily interaction with my clients, either via email or telephone. Since I joined in 2013, I have been given lots of responsibilities, including leading my own engagements directly to the Executive Director/Partner group; which just highlights the misconception about apprenticeships - you will not only be making tea and photocopying.

Over the last 3 years, I've developed immensely when compared to where I thought I would be. The practical on-the-job experience rapidly grows your practical knowledge. Combined with internal courses and the professional qualification, this amounts to a wealth of knowledge. The on-the-job skills I have learnt in relation to communication, delegation, ownership and accountability are ever growing - and I think that this can be put down to the amount of responsibility that you are given as a School Leaver right from Day 1.

I really enjoy the Programme. The team are very supportive of the fact that people are still studying and will accommodate this as much as possible. I have been fortunate enough to be an EY Schools Ambassador, and go into a number of different schools to promote the programme. I think this is brilliant, and it is definitely something that I wish I could have had when I was looking at the possible routes into a job.

The appreciation and feedback that you get in your day-to-day role is invaluable. I have very good working relationships with all of my team, and I know that the work that I do for them is appreciated and well-received (and vice versa). There are always opportunities for development, and the team will help you along the way to doing this.

The Programme now has a clear structure, and I think this is due to the evolvement of the Programme over the years. When I joined, the Programme was still in its infant stages, so while some aspects were already present, I think that it has come a long way since then. All trainees receive an induction to start, which helps to ensure that trainees from around the country are able to meet each other and build networks from an early stage in their career. In relation to study, there is now a fixed approach to this and the support is as expected. I feel that this could be slightly better and that the team could manage expectations a little more, but understandably, when organising study for a lot of people at the same time, some things are missed out. Overall, the Programme now has a very good structure, and all trainees are well aware of the structure and layout of the Programme.

N/A - no longer on a training contract

Each employee is given a counsellor and a buddy, who are there to help with any queries or uncertainties that you may have. Everyone is approachable, friendly and accommodating - this goes a long way when asking questions. Nothing is too small to ask.

For my age, the salary that I receive is very competitive and, as I am still living at home, I am able to save a lot more than I would have envisaged each month.

Our team catches up outside of work frequently. In addition, the Reading office has various sports teams that are open to all to join if you so wish.

Yes