Accounts and Business Advisory assistant Review

My role is within the Accounts and Business Advisory department. On a day to day basis, I complete accounts for clients, along with their corporation tax computations. I contact clients in regards to any queries we have with their accounts. I IXBRL tag accounts to be submitted along with the corporation tax. I submit corporation tax computations. I call and cast accounts to make sure there are no errors that have been missed and to check that all of the figures add up.

Yes, I have learnt many new skills and developed existing skills. For example, I have learnt how to put together a corporation tax computation and what kind of expenses qualify as add backs. Also, I have developed my knowledge in regards to accounts. As I previously studied Accounts at A-level, since the start of my apprenticeship I have been given the chance to broaden this knowledge.

I really enjoy my programme. I believe we have a reasonable balance of studying and working. As we have day release for our college courses. However, I believe that it could be improved by giving us half a day of study the day before our exam. As we finish work at 5:30pm and then have to drive out of town and therefore we aren't home until around 6:30pm. By this time we are exhausted and have an exam at 9:30am the next morning. I think that we have a good working environment and everyone is happy to help. At the beginning of my apprenticeship, we went on a training course for a week (this was before we started working in the office). This allowed us to gain knowledge before entering the office and applying it.

As it is a big firm, not everybody is recognised for everything they do. But that's understandable. What matters to me is that when you do a particular job for a member of staff they are very thankful and they appreciate what you do. That then motivates you in the future.

I feel as if our programme is very well organised. At the beginning of our apprenticeship, we were told what we would be studying where. At one of our training courses, one of our colleges came to talk to us about the college environment and how they do things. I now know the plan regarding studying for the next 4 years! We also have a programme called 'retain' in which we have our upcoming jobs, this allows us to plan for what we have coming up within the next few months and manage our work load accordingly.

We receive a lot of support from our training provider. We have day release to college for our courses, in which we have a tutor for the whole day, teaching us the content and helping us with any queries we have. Aside from this, we are given our tutors email address to contact outside of college whenever we need any help. Also, we have regular telephone calls and contact with our college assessor. In these phone calls we catch up on which exams we have passed and talk about whether any extra support is needed.

We receive as much support from our employer as we need. Our managers are always around if we have any issues or queries regarding work etc. We also have a friendly HR department, who provide training courses regarding appraisals and are there if we have any issues to report. We are also encouraged to attend social events by the social committee.

I currently live at home still so therefore I don't have many costs to pay out for. The only big expense I have to pay for is my car and car parking payments. My salary meets these costs with no problems. Although, if I was to move out and live elsewhere, I'm unsure if I would be able to afford it. However, this is insignificant as I am not planning to move out for another few years, in which I should be more qualified and get an increase in my salary.

Yes. We have many opportunities being sent round on our emails. For example, we have got the opportunity to complete the Diamond Duke Of Edinburgh challenge within our departments. Our entry fee was paid by our company to encourage us to do this. Also, there are other opportunities such as rounders, football etc. The social committee organise social events for outside of work e.g we have 'first Friday drinks', laser tag, meals etc.

Yes

This is because, it's a very friendly environment to work in. You have a lot of support. You meet a lot of different people and have the opportunity to talk to clients and improve your social skills. College is a nice aspect as it allows you to mix with more people and study at the same time.

Be yourself when going through the application process. All they want to see is someone who would fit in to the office environment. But you need to be a motivated person to be able to qualify. As the first exams (level 3) are early hurdles and if you fail one of these 1st time then you lose the apprenticeship. But as long as you want to pass, then you can do it!