Trainee Associate 2 Review

I am currently a second year trainee associate at PwC in Cambridge. I work on different client engagements throughout the months which means I can be either based in Cambridge at our office or the client site. We also work with some clients that aren't based in Cambridge so occasionally I get to stay away in a hotel. I am regularly interacting with different members of client staff and I also get to work in a variety of audit teams so I get to know my collegues pretty well.

I have developed a lot of skills on excel as this is a tool that I use on a day to day basis to perform my work. I have also developed my confidence when speaking to new people as I am regularly exposed to new environments and clients that I have to interact with. So far in my training I have completed all 6 of the certificate level exams with first time passes.

I have met a lot of new people whilst working at Pwc from all over the country which is one of the main things i enjoy. We have regular social events in our office e.g monthly pub evening with a bar tab, bowling, rock climbing. summer ball and christmas party to name a few. This is something that I was not expecting as I thought I may miss out on the social aspect when choosing not to go to university but PwC has opened me up to a lot of new people and experiences.

From the offset of my job I am given a lot of responsibility to complete work and am given my own areas to work on which i can take control off. I am also able to ask for coaching when needed from my seniors and they are always happy to help. This has helped me develop a lot of my knowledge that I now have.

I think the exams are well spaced out so that you are still continuing to progress through the qualification but are not having to sit too many at once. This means you get a good balance of study/college time and work experience whilst on the training programme. There is also a designated contact for any questions regarding the training programme which is helpful.

When at College the Tutor's are very contactable and will help you with any queries that you may have about the content. When we are working we are also assigned a people manager and a buddy, these are the people who will be able to help you settle in and you can go to them with any questions or worries you have throughout your training programme.

As mentioned above we have a buddy and people manager to help us with any issues at work. There is also generally a friendly atmosphere in the office and everyone is always welcoming when you have any questions as they have all been in the same situation when they first joined.

Living costs in Cambridge are quite high and our salary does not really reflect this when compared to other places like St Albans however this is still a competitive salary when compared to other Big 4 firms in the area therefore it is unlikely to change much. I have still managed to move out and live comfortably on this salary and i believe it is a good starting salary for someone of my age who doesn't have a degree.

In addition to the social events that are organised by our office social committee which I have discussed above PwC offer I believe 7-10 days a year which can be used for volunteering as they promote doing good for the community. We also have an office charity which is chosen each year and we have several events throughout the year in which we raise money for the chosen charity which you can get involved with organising if you would like to be part of the community affairs team

Yes

PwC has given me a lot of good work experience and exposure to big clients and new contacts which will help me a lot on the future which deciding my next step to take in my career once qualifying. I believe that if you can a big 4 firm such as PwC on your CV then this will be a great advantage to you and will help you to grow and develop a lot quicker than in any other firm.

There is lots of information online about the application process so you just need to do some research in order to prepare yourself, try and attend an office open evening or apply or the insight week. Look on our website at the PwC professional and think of some attributes that you can give examples for as this is something that is referred to a lot during the application process especially at the interview stage.