Apprentice Review

I am placed within audit at KPMG and normally find myself assisting more senior staff with work on different clients. I often have had to contact clients and third parties regarding our audit work. In this role I am able to communicate with a lot of people within the business at different levels and there is a lot of different clients to keep things interesting.

I have learned lots of new skills on the job such as how to complete audit procedures, at the same time I am studying for professional exams which last the duration of the apprenticeship and upon completion will be able for promotion within the business. I have been able to refine how I communicate and developed skills in excel and outlook. I really can't fault the knowledge I have gained.

I feel that as an apprentice, you aren't valued as much as others in teams, as graduates who joined at the same time as me have been given interesting client work and I've been left to do admin work such as scanning, sending out letters and simple things. A lot of the people are nice and the Assistant Manager's I have worked with have been very helpful but there is often a lack of communication from managers/senior managers on jobs or little instruction of what to do as knowledge is often expected and staff are too busy to explain. I often find myself with little work and have to try to keep busy and this is the same with many apprentices in the firm. Sometimes as I am young I also wonder if I have made the right choice doing an apprenticeship as I am in 9 to 5 every weekday and often working overtime (which isn't paid) and all of my friends are in lectures and have the rest of the day free. It is also a nightmare coming home from doing work and having to study for exams usually around 2-3 weeks between tuition and the exam and its hard if there is a lot to fit in. It pains me to say this but this job is nothing like what I had thought and hoped it would be upon applying and accepting the offer. The only really good thing I can say about the company is my colleagues (who are a more junior level) as many are very supportive and friendly but I think the higher you rise within the firm the less able you become to communicate as manager's often ignore emails or requests for help.

I think on paper this programme sounds really good and I was attracted to the '360' part of this compared to the other firms who expect you to pick before you join but upon entering the firm was told that it depends on business needs so everyone who wanted to do tax/advisory would possibly struggle to get a place there as the demand is for audit staff. I don't think being honest that there is as much support for apprentices as I believed before I joined the company, I was told there would be regular progress meetings and lots of support for the qualification side of it but when I struggled with the course side of it and reached out to the support I was told to contact my tutor and wasn't given much help as the course was away from home. I also struggle a bit as performance managers are based centrally down in London and can often take a long time to get a reply to things that are important such as holidays as the process is very long and you have to go through so many people to take them. I think placement wise you will not choose your placement as resourcing do not care in the slightest where you go, as apprentices were asked where they wanted to go for their next placement and two people had not put down audit anywhere and both were put into audit with someone else who wanted audit getting put into the placement someone else who did not want audit was put into.

If you require support then you will definitely have to make a fuss to get someone to listen to you, meaning chasing up emails etc. A lot of people working on this programme are really helpful but are stretched with their areas of coverage. If you have general HR queries then you are able to send an email and hear back within a couple of days which is pretty good. If you fail an exam then you have the opportunity for one resit and if you fail that then your contract is terminated so I really don't make financial commitments such as leasing a car or renting a flat or a phone contract as I feel there is no job security whatsoever and you can be gone within the month. I think previously you were given more chances if you struggled but over the years people have took liberties with this and its been limited which is a shame. I know many apprentices have been let go by the company after being given 2 exams to sit with no prior knowledge of accountancy within 2 months of starting or some have quit as it was not what they expected it to be. It is especially hard coming in from work to study especially if you have had a stressful day and I think there is not enough time to study for exams.

With the qualification side of the exam we have to travel down South for tuition or it is done online, and if you struggle after lectures are complete you are just given an email which does little to help as tutors are not close and the best way to fix a problem is to ask another apprentice who understands for support.

I think it gives you the underlying knowledge you need to understand such as debits and credits and the fundamentals but in day to day work I've seen myself copying and pasting numbers or adding up lines in a spreadsheet and checking they add up properly. Often there is times where work can be interesting although it is normally passed to a graduate and I am given the more admin style work. Of course to progress to Assistant Manager you need a professional qualification so by completing the apprenticeship programme and qualification side of the exam then you are eventually able to progress within the firm.

I am aware that there are lots of opportunities for CSR, visiting your old school to talk about the firm and there are always charity events going on in the office. There are clubs to join such as golf/skiing but none have really took my fancy but also there are groups for different people such as LGBT, Islamic society etc.

No

The only benefits I can really say is the salary and the people within the firm, it is a very stressful job and looking up the ranks it looks like it can only get worse, I often feel unappreciated and go out of my way to complete something to a better standard or improve something and this is not noticed or appreciated and upon completion of something there is no appreciation and my work is taken for granted. I think working at the Big 4 looks great on a CV and is good if you want to move into industry or leave but its a real struggle for the company to retain staff after they complete their exams and qualify. There are lots of corporate benefits and overall it is a good company to work for compared to others but I don't think money often buys happiness, especially for the amount of work you do. I'd rather be happy and enjoy my job than sit and wonder if I've made the right choice often.

I would say you should equip yourself with a good knowledge of what is going on currently in the business world and know a bit about the company and its values as there are always talking points, Definitely demonstrate a good interest in this and have a basic knowledge of what goes on in the company, during my interview I had it in my head that KPMG produced accounts for companies like a traditional accountant rather than audit and carry out testing the accounts like they actually do! I'd also say don't get your heart set on a specific placement or department within the firm as it is unlikely you will go there!