Tax advisor at EY 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.

i received a lot of support from my training advisor. i enjoyed the programme a lot because of this, i always felt like i had someone to speak too if i was worried about anything and with any of my work i was doing i knew i could ask a lot of people for help and support during any process too. Overall i would highly rate my trainign provider at EY.

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. I had leaflet also given to me about a helpline to ring if i was worried about something maybe in my personal life to get the support i needed if i did not feel comfortable enough to talk to my peers.

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. i think the salary increases by quite a lot as well for the full time work so this seems really decent and i am definitely thimnking about applying for a full time job here in the future.

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. we also gather on a weekend for drinks and other stuff as well. it's really nice to do things like this as you get to know the team a lot better and you learn more about each other as well so its more of a friendly environment at work.

Yes

I have really enjoyed my time at EY, and hopefully will continue over the next few years. I have found the whole experience insightful, and a huge learning curve. This was my first time living away from my parents, budgeting the bills and working a 9-5:30 job! During this, understandably I sometimes found days overwhelming. However, I always found there was someone at work who would take the time to help me out - even if my problem wasn't work related.

During the interviews, try to be yourself. Nobody will be trying to make you fail - they just want to help you. During my assessment day in London I turned up an hour and a half late (due to traffic), turned up in tears and stressed. The organiser of the event were extremely understanding about the event, allowing me time to compose and prepare myself. I then heard the response that I had been put through to the final partner interview only 2 hours after it had finished.