Associate Review

You are considered a first year associate for placements 1 and 2 and then a second year associate for placement 3. You participate in the audit testing - selecting samples and then testing them through agreeing amounts per transaction listings to appropriate supporting documentation. You may also gain exposure to the planning activities involved before commencing with an audit. You are client facing and so will often work out at the client site and be in direct contact with their finance team.

You learn a great deal about how firms produce accounts and what potential risks arise through human error or fraudulent activity. You gain an understanding of the step-by-step process of an audit.

The university aspect of the course has been enjoyable. I have been able to participate in the majority of university life as any other student without a placement can. However the placement part of the course has not been so enjoyable for myself with limited sociable opportunities for myself. I am working in a very remote office location with limited opportunity to visit friends or family and it has been difficult to meet and gain new friends through work.

I believe that the course is well respected and that higher level roles appreciate that we are an essential source of recruitment however on a smaller scale I do not feel so valued. Working as an AS2 after only 6 months of placement spread over a 2 1/2 year period makes it difficult to meet the expectations and so more difficult for team members to appreciate your efforts.

It is very well structured in that both the university course and the 3 placements both complement and contribute to each others success. Having the first year just to enjoy university I feel is important. The placements then start with you having a basic understanding of accountancy and auditing and so you are not going into placement with no knowledge in the subject area. Having the placements broken up over three years enables you to apply what you have been learning more easily than a regular sandwich course.

I feel the university course team provided plenty of support when required. Should I have had questions with regards to modules then there has been many opportunities to ask these. I have also been given support in other more personal areas such as exam stress. I have felt comfortable confiding in the available support any worries I have had and they have listened, understood and provided guidance to help me through these difficulties.

I do not feel there is a great amount of support while out on placement. Whilst you have senior team members assigned as a mentor/buddy I wouldn't say I would feel as comfortable sharing any issues I had with them. However they have provided us with opportunities to voice our concerns

The salary package I feel is very generous considering our status and placement costs are all covered. Living and travel costs are covered full fully by the company as are expenses for away jobs (including evening meals). The only specific cost to me has been social and location costs which have been significant. Being in my location I have limited opportunities to see friends and family and so this has made for a more difficult placement experience.

The company does provide numerous activities to participate in however certainly during busy season, attendance can often be restricted by workload. However there have been activities outside of work that I have been able to get involved in. I have been able to participate in both swimming and other sporting activities. The only difficulty with these is having the time to be able to do these activities outside of work.

Yes

Because whilst there are sacrifices to be made, it is a great platform to build upon, covering your ICAEW qualification and giving you experience which can be built upon in the future. It also pushes you out of your comfort zone and prepares you for life after university.

Do try and be proactive in learning whilst on first and second placement as it makes the third placement and I expect the following full time job much easier. Do make the most of your time at university and put the hard work in when it comes to the ICAEW examinations as it is required. Think about both the job opportunities and social opportunities when it comes to applying for your office location and ensure that you put in a strong application as you may end up in an office in which you do not want to be based and there is little opportunity to change location once it is assigned.