Business Academy Intern Review

The Business Academy was virtual, using Microsoft Teams. It involved sessions aimed to improve personable skills, provide insight to your chosen service line and prepare you for future applications for an Apprenticeship in Tax or Assurance. As the week progressed we learnt more about our chosen lines and completed case study’s relative to Tax or Assurance. We were also given an insight into the career paths of different EY employees ranging from apprentices, partners and staff.

In terms of training I improved my soft and personable skills through workshops which aimed to improve your communication in a business sense, for example, we were taught about presentation skills and how to correctly write an email and the desired structure it should follow. For tax specific training, we developed our analysis and reporting skills through learning about the ‘PESTLE’ technique which helped formulate an analysis and response to case studies relative to your chosen service line.

I thoroughly enjoyed my work experience, I felt like the EY Business Academy involved a strong variety of different things including interactive sessions as well as workshops which were detailed and insightful. Furthermore, the team made an effort to answer any personal questions a you have regarding the the programme, further applications and career paths at EY. Of course, it would have been amazing to visit an EY office in person, however, this was out of the control of EY.

In terms of applications the initial stage was organised and efficient, in the sense that it was easy to progress to the next stage of your application if you met their criteria. However, after receiving my offer there was a lack of organisation in terms of sending my information to EY and there were a couple of occasions where I had to send the same piece of information more than once. The actual work experience has been incredibly well organised, each day the cohort had a structured day to follow and it went seamlessly.

I learn a lot about the company culture at EY, I learnt this information through workshops hosted by the recruitment team, other apprentices and employees from the very top of the company. It was helpful that EY provided real life insights into the company in terms of their promotion of a work life balance and their great appreciation for their employees personal interests. This is something which was communicated throughout the entire week during informative sessions.

The work experience has played a large part in opening my eyes to different career paths within account. This week has demonstrated to me the efficiency and infinite benefits which an apprenticeship provides, especially at EY. Before I started the programme I was still unsure on which service line I preferred, however the combination of interaction sessions with informative real life experiences has confirmed my interest in Tax and preference to work in it in the future. EY has helped me decide this more so than previous work experience weeks I have taken part in.

Yes, I am grateful EY provided an hourly salary which is above minimum wage for all of their Business Academy interns. While the experience of taking part in an EY programme is infinitely valuable, it is nice that EY pays their participants as it demonstrates a gratitude for our time. In terms of reimbursement, there was no need for that this year as the programme has taken place virtually, therefore, it is not applicable to the 2020 cohort.

In some sense there were, we were able to interact and network with a large variety of employees at EY who all had varying career paths which have led them to EY. However, the ability to network with employees has been interrupted by COVID-19. While this was a shame, it was completely out of the hands of EY and they have made a considerable effort to make up for this virtually and promoted for us to use our linkedin to connect with their staff.

Yes

I would recommend EY to a friend who wanted to learn more about Accounting and separate that from the common misconceptions people have of the area of work. Additionally, I would recommend EY to a friend who was not sure about the career path they wanted to take up. This is because the programme provides an insight into apprenticeships which is not provided by schools and colleges as uni is perceived as the traditional route.

In terms of the application process ensure to practice your numerical skills as well as your written skills. Both of those types of skills are continuously returned to during the application process in varying ways, do not underestimate this has it is challenging due to the need to not only use your skills but apply them in a business sense in combination with remaining professional and analysing data. I would also recommend researching into the culture and values at EY.