Flying Start associate Review

As a flying start, helped assist audits of multiple clients including national companies. This includes client interaction, investigating variances between listings, checking statements for any material errors/omissions and always remaining professional sceptical when carrying out my work. This work was both office and client site based and a big benefit of this role is the constant variation of the work to be completed ensuring that no two days were the same.

On placement, I've learnt many new people skills by interacting with different members of the client team to complete walkthroughs, investigate differences, request information etc. These skills have also been developed through communication with the engagement team ensuring that everyone managed to get their work completed for deadlines and was coping okay with the workload. Alongside this, my technical and business capabilities have increased drastically due to the increased exposure of working on high profile clients where the audit work can be very technical.

In my opinion, the flying start programme is one of the best programmes for a student wishing to become a fully qualified accountant. Although the workload can be a lot sometimes compared to other university courses, the end reward and placement experience far outweighs this and I have thoroughly enjoyed my time on the course so far. Every day I am presented with a new challenge that allows me to learn something new and push myself.

The flying start programme is very well organised with clear dates and timelines set up for when your placements will commence and this also gives you a rough idea of when you will be time qualified for the ACA qualification. Any changes to organisation are always well communicated and PwC and the university work well together to prevent any confusion ever being caused.

PwC are very supportive of flying start students and promote that work life balance. Every member of staff is presented with a career coach who is always there to support them and offer advice if any problems arise that may affect your ability to work. This has particularly benefited me when I encountered a problem during placement and my career coach ensured that I had sufficient support throughout this.

The training provider for the flying start programme is both PwC and the University of Nottingham and the support from both is great in ensuring that we understand the work and are best prepared for exams as we can be. Material provided is always sufficient and a good time frame is used to allow plenty of time for revision before exams.

The exams required to become ACA qualified benefit the role of an auditor largely as I can directly apply what I learn from my university studies to my role. This allows me to gain a deeper understanding of the work I carry out and in turn allow me to complete it to the highest level.

At PwC, there are plenty of events to get involved in. There is a social club set up that often holds monthly events for employees and every year there is a Christmas and Summer ball that all employees look forward to. This helps to bring teams closer together allowing for engagements to run more efficiently.

Yes

The flying start programme in my opinion is the best and quickest way to become ACA qualified whilst also enjoying the full university experience. The engagement teams at PwC are always great and means that even during busier seasons work never gets too stressful. There is always fun events going on that allows for the work environment to become more relaxing.

At the interview and assessment day for the PwC flying start course I would recommend applicants to be themselves and allow their personality to shine. With a lot of the work at PwC requiring client interaction, it is important to show that confident side that is also willing to learn.