Junior Tax Assistant Review

I work in the corporate tax department at BDO. On a day to day basis I assist in the filing of tax returns and draft computations. This involves knowing how to treat different items within different companies accounts. I also help with other things such as engagement letters, client take on and tax advice for companies, ensuring they comply with the relevant laws.

I have learnt plenty of new skills in just a few months at BDO. Time management is a huge thing while working in the tax department. This is because companies are fined if we file the tax returns late or if we miss things out. I have also learnt how to work full time and juggle college work and revision at the same time. Also, my people skills have greatly improved because I work and speak to different people within the firm almost everyday.

I enjoy the learning at college. I find this very interesting and its enjoyable to learn about different departments, sometimes its nice to learn about things other than tax! I like the office environment and love the people that I work with. I would prefer to be a little bit busier and enjoy always having something to do.

I believe my programme is very well structured. Before I even joined I had all of my exam and college dates in my work calendar! We have a dedicated learning support officer in each office who we can go to if we have any queries about college or exams which is really helpful.

I receive plenty of support. When we have exams we get half a day leave to take the exam as well as study leave before the exam. BDO are also very accommodating if we feel we're not yet ready to take an exam they offer unpaid study leave or we can rearrange most of the exams if need be.

We receive lots of support from BPP. When we have college for an exam, the professor gives us an email which we can ask any questions and they always offer phone calls for extra support. Also, we can ask questions on a forum to get quicker answers. We also receive regular emails from BDO's in house BPP team to check how we are doing in terms of a certain exam/revision.

We learn lots of things through BPP that are relevant for our roles at BDO. For example, the first exam is Accounting which teaches us how to create different accounts which we use on a daily basis in the tax department at BDO while putting together tax returns and computations.

We have a social budget for our department and we arrange things regularly, so far we have been to a team quiz, flight club and we have planned a shuffle club event. We also have a Christmas and summer party. There are also different sports teams that organise tournaments every now and then but mainly in the summer.

Yes

I enjoy working at BDO and would recommend to a friend. This is because we have so many different opportunities. We are always receiving emails about how to get involved with different things that are going on. We are also allocated sufficient time off in preparation for our exams and we are not pressured into working late around exam time.

Make sure you properly research the role that you are applying for because there are so many on offer at BDO, different departments and roles, so there may be a job that is better suited to you. But don't worry if you join and feel you would prefer a different department because BDO offer secondments so you can try out different areas of BDO for a set amount of time to see if it is the right department for you.