Trainee accountant Review

Preparation of statutory and non-statutory financial statements of varying sizes (small, medium and large) usually under FRS 102 but also with IFRS. I also undertake simple tax computations for smaller entities, iXBRL preparation work, administration (internal, such as budgeting), administration relating to companies house and occasional cross-departmental working (tax and audit).

Wide exposure to general accountancy, with ABA/AFR having a more direct focus on traditional accountancy, compared to audit which tends to give a higher level overview. Gained strong knowledge of financial reporting standards and a wide exposure to a variety of client types, LLPs, Limited companies, occasional PLC's etc. Gained client communication and time management skills alongside gaining formal qualifications in accounting (AAT). Although the extent of the exposure to this does depend on the office worked in and how you manage your integration in the department.

Enjoyment depends often on what clients you are working on, the support you get in your first year or so in the firm and your motivations for working in accounting. Enjoyment tends to be linked to getting new/varied assignments whilst being supported. My enjoyment does reduce when I feel I'm not sure what I'm doing, but this can be remedied by most apprentices when asking for help and support. This will vary office to office, but it is definitely something that can become an issue if you don't directly ask for the help you need. But generally, if accounting, in the more traditional sense appeals to you and that drive is there, you won't be disappointed by the variation of clients and potential enjoyment you get from working on these, but otherwise, a balancing of enjoyment vs the experience gained working in the department should be factored in if accounting is something you want to go into, but it's not a passion or a driving factor in your life.

I generally found the apprenticeship study programme part to relatively disorganised, the apprenticeship element didn't really get explained fully by the training provider and the internal training function, but this was resolved through inquiry (albeit towards the end of the apprenticeship), and thousands of school leavers have gone through the firm to qualification successfully so it's not a deal breaker, but just less organised than I felt it should have been. Also importantly, whilst there are internal training courses in the firm that apprentices go through, these tend to not (in my experience) provide much on the job relevance, and how you progress and gain skills tends to be less structured and more down to how you manage to interact with your department (which can be a plus or a negative depending). A lot of my accounting skills have been gained from being able to get put on decent jobs, have good relations with staff and be confident enough to criticise when feeling you don't have enough support. So the structure isn't really set in stone, or what is set, I don't feel is part of a wider step by step programme that helps you formally build upon. This isn't to say it lacks an overall direction, but it does vary heavily from office to office compared to other programmes with set targets and milestones.

Support as far as I'm aware is similar to most larger professional services firms, we have the standard examination rules, although no early hurdle exams, it can be easy to be fired after failing an exam twice. Support generally doesn't tend to be that formal, there was no buddy system in practice when I started, it was more just being asked to do bits of work on this and that throughout which can leave a large feeling of both imposter syndrome and confusion, which I emphasise the need to be able to speak up if you struggle to understand. Study support is industry standard, days off from work for college and exams etc. Extra/benefits in the firm tend to be relatively limited, even pre-covid staff events etc tended to be few, but that's just a small issue that is down to the office. However if you are pro-active you can use each assignment as a learning experience and ask those around you for help and guidance, but this does tend to be less formal.

The support tended to be relatively disjointed, a lot of the key apprenticeship element was not fully explained, with the end point assessments being a particular source of confusion. The quality of the lectures tended to be very high (with exception of a few modules), but as apprenticeship/coursework elements are now a key part of these qualifications, the support between the training provider and the trainee was quite low and led to a lot of panic in the later stages.

I found that most of my accounting knowledge and skills were gained on the Job, but that the qualification was a good foundation for which to base this off. The qualification does go through the underlying basics and gives context. Most of your actual accounting skills will likely come from working on clients, as there can be a huge gap (at all levels of accounting) between the formal qualification content and the day to day role of a working accountant, but it definitely provided a good base. I'd look at it like, it helps you understand an area, but not necessarily how to do it in practice

Tends to be based on the office you are in, social events etc tend to be relatively few but this does depend on what office you are in/what department. There tends to be less of firm wide set of events/social activities and just based on your office location.

Yes

If you are a school leaver, you get the chance to gain wide client exposure and gain significant accounting skills. You get a industry recognised qualification and the opportunity to progress to Level 7 chartered accountancy. The pay is good for a school leaver apprenticeship and the firm is a key industry player with a huge amount of service lines. There is a flexibility to move between them if needed or go into specialist service lines.

The good thing about considering whether to apply for the school leaver programme is that by around 20 (assuming a start age of 18) you will have a formal accounting qualification (a great gateway in the industry), significant experience and an impressive CV and a decent wage. The good thing is, after completion that you can then decide if you want to stay in accounting (and progress to chartered accountancy with the firm or another firm) or leave and go to Uni or a different industry, so in only two years you will have gained a significant amount, so it's definitely a route to consider other than immediately going to Uni (and you will become a chartered accountant faster this way than by going to Uni and then a grad scheme).