Flying start Review

Having undertaken three placements with PwC over the course of my three year degree program I started my first placement as an FS1 (Flying start 1) and progressed each placement until I became an FS3 which is equivalent to a 2nd year associate at PwC. Since my first placement I have been on client facing teams completing external audit work in line with IFRS, UK GAAP & US GAAP standards depending on the client in question. Over the course of my placements I have been handed increasingly difficult work to undertake such as: consolidation testing, Directors remuneration testing, ISA 600 review work culminating in being able to undertake a full audit by myself on smaller clients. My daily interactions progressed from just reporting to my in charge to reporting directly to partners and directors at PwC. As well as having the privilege to take meetings with directors and financial, managers / controllers at clients. I work on various clients within my portfolio - working on several different areas of balance sheet and profit or loss account testing.

Over the course of my degree and my placements I have developed several skills including my organisational ability, my time management - especially when juggling several clients at once. I have also improved my relationship skills - building external & internal relationships with varying levels of staff has improved my ability to communicate massively

I have enjoyed my program a lot. Although it has been extremely tough and intense due to the difficulty of the exams we sat - it has also been extremely rewarding. being able to enjoy both university and work at the same time - it has given us an insight into working life whilst still being able to enjoy university.

I have felt increasingly valued by pwc as my placements have gone on. As they realised my ability to complete work the responsibilities grew. The interaction with partners and directors grew, the appraisals they give as well as the treats they give are also an incentive to work hard and do well for the company. verbal praise and actual physical rewards have made me feel very valued.

The program has been a success, we have always been led by an extremely organised leadership team who have laid out the steps we need to complete with clarity and in a timely manner. We have always had a clear direction and focus coupled with the necessary tools to complete our exams and jobs.

We always have access to our university tutors whenever we need it. they always make themselves available even in the holidays. They have always gone above and beyond for our cohort. if ever we were struggling our tutors and lecturers would always make sure we had enough support to help us through our exam periods.

As from PwC's side they always make our course representative available whenever necessary. We can also reach out to our people managers when we need to. Our people managers are always willing to listen to us and discuss any issues we have - they also resolve any issues we may have in terms of talking to more senior representatives within pwc.

During our university lives the money has been okay, in the first placement it was in line with our expectations given the level of work we were doing and given our accomodation is paid for it is a fair reflection of the work we do. however as we progress onto further placements i feel the salary could be improved somewhat to reflect the level of work we undertake

yes of course, the office in aberdeen is extremely social - giving everyone the opportunity to get involved in some way shape or form. Whether that involved playing football with the office, attending social / drinks events & even being able to go to Young professionals events with companies from the surrounding area - there has been several opportunities to network

Yes

It is an extremely good company with a fantastic values. It provides you a great knowledge base in order to further your career. Given that you have the opportunity to work on several clients in differing industries it gives you a holistic understanding of how different businesses with differing operations work and flourish within an industry. It also gives you the analytical skills to succeed.

Make sure you research the company and why you want to apply for a specific role. Understand which business unit and business area you would like to work in and why your skill set would suit such a move. think about your long term ambitions and why PwC and the qualifications you will receive help you to fulfil your career goals