Trainee Associate Review

In any audit as of now, my daily tasks would mainly consist of substantive testing and working on accounts through the use of workbooks. Typically, I would be interacting with the Senior above me who is also working on these accounts but if I am working on a number of accounts, I would be interacting with most of the team. Depending on my knowledge, it is possible for me to interact with the client as I have done previously on a number of occasions. It is my role to make sure that the workbooks for these accounts are of good standard.

I would say that the main skill I have developed on are the Excel skills. Microsoft Excel is a huge part of the work that I do and having worked on a few clients, I have been shown multiple ways to make my work more efficient. On top of this, I have learnt new ways to present information on Excel such as using pivot tables or using EY software.

I would say that this question is very much dependent on your team and the people you have around you on a daily basis as they are a huge factor in how much you enjoy your work. On my last client, I really did not enjoy it as the Senior was quite condescending and arrogant unfortunately. However, I am currently enjoying it very much as the team are very open and supportive. My current Senior will gladly go through a piece of work in detail in order to ensure that I have a full understanding of my work. Outside of my working hours, I found college to be quite intense. There is a lot of information given to us all in a very short space of time and I speak for both myself and many other colleagues when I say that it is quite difficult to retain the information we are taught. However, there is a lot of support provided to us after we have studied a module in college and we can ask questions any time online.

I would say that it is very organised and structured. We know right from the very beginning when we have exams, what clients we will be on and the days we have college. On top of this, we have a counsellor who is there to support us with any queries.

Recently, I have had quite a difficult time mentally and I can confidently say that my employer supported me more than I thought they could. They were unbelievably helpful and I am very grateful for the help that I received. It made me very happy to work for this establishment.

From my training provider, I would say I receive a lot of support. There are online live classes that we have been invited to and if we cannot attend these, it is available for us to view at any time. We are also able to go onto their website and have a web chat with teachers or experts about topics or questions that we need help with.

Currently, I do not feel as if my qualification is helping me to perform better in my role. I would argue that I have learnt much more during my working hours than I did spending a good few days at college. However, I am sure that as I take more exams, my qualification will facilitate me in becoming better in my role.

There are many social activities but I wouldn't say that they are entirely inclusive. For example, most social activities organised by teams have a common theme, being in a bar or pub. As someone that is not comfortable in this environment, it means I can't attend these socials. In regards to sports teams, I still don't know how to get involved but it is not an issue as I am part of a team outside of work.

Yes

The work culture here is great. The majority of people I have come across have been kind, regardless if I am working with them or not. There is a huge support system here for anyone and that is very important as you have someone or somewhere to go to regardless of what the issue is.

For anyone applying to EY, just be yourself throughout your application. Having worked here for the last 8 months, it is nice to see a workplace where no one is pretending to be someone else. It is okay to be an introvert and it is okay to be an extrovert, there are people here with many different types of personalities and characters. Don't feel too much pressure during your online assessments, just have confident and belief in yourself. If EY is for you, great and if it isn't, that is okay.