Flying Start Degree Programme - Placement 2, London Review

I worked in audit, this meant that I was responsible for testing the clients figures at their year end. This involved testing reports, obtaining confirmations and testing reconciliations. I was responsible for ensuring that the numbers published are correct. I worked in a team with 8 other people, who performed testing alongside me, with each person looking a different area of the client.

PwC introduced new audit software in the last year, this brought everything online, as a result there is a requirement to develop proficiency with this in order to fully operate it, the new software made everything much cleaner and fast to do, and, once mastered, it made working much easier. Additionally, I developed by skills with excel, creating numerous pivot tables, performing v-lookups and running data comparisons. I was also introduced to adobe pro this year, which I used on a daily basis to compare reports and run scans.

The programme is really interesting and your always pushed to be as good as you can be, the work is challenging but you have support to complete it to a high level. You are expected to perform at your best all the time, doing better every day. I really like being pushed to be the best I can be, trying to achieve high quality, high volume output. However, this require you to work long hours at times, which can become very tiring.

I really like how the programme is structure with the studying at university. The placements are 3-4 months every year for three years, and as a result you learn at university before and after each, this maintains an excellent level of in-class training which can be applied in the workplace. As a result, I find that my knowledge of what I am doing in the audit increases every year, due to my further learning at university.

The employer is very supportive both with the work and outside. The placement programme provided me with accommodation in Central London for every placement. I was always able to message the placement coordinator if I had any queries or concerns. Each employee is assigned a career coach who is your go-to contact in the firm, they are responsible for ensuring you meet your set goals, but they are also there to help you if you have any problems. The firm also has an excellent HC team, linked to our private health care, which helps us to maintain our mental and physical health in a demanding work environment.

I am at university for the entire of the autumn term and summer term, with the placement taking place in the spring term. As a result I have very easy access to my lecturers and numerous contact hours. While on placement I was still able to email my university lecturers and get a response within a couple of days.

Having such a large amount of contact at university give me a vast knowledge of the modules being covered each year. This knowledge is very applicable to the work performed and is often needed when trying to complete testing and reviews. The training also provides us with knowledge that goes beyond what we are currently doing, but will be useful as we advance through the firm.

There are social events held every Wednesday at a larger level and events are often put together by teams to encourage networking and socialising. The events are more limited to social occasions like meals and bars, but there are several clubs. However, when subject to long hours it if difficult, if not impossible to actually attend these events as you are often still working when they finish.

Yes

I have found my time at PwC extremely interesting. You learn so much in such little time, I found my skills with excel increase profoundly in just a few months and my ability to complete work to a high level improve enormously. I see it as a great way to obtain my ACA with an excellent mixture of working and learning.

I would advise people to look out for the Flying Start Programmes available at the Universities of Reading, Nottingham, Newcastle and Manchester. These programmes are applied for through UCAS as one of your choices for university, this has the placement with PwC include without any additional applications. I would recommend reading up on PwC professional attributes and seeing how you can achieve them and if you think you can meet the expectations set by them. If you are looking for a fast and interesting way to achieve your ACA this is the best option available, but you will need to be prepared to challenge yourself constantly.