Audit Senior Review

Performing the statutory audits of privately owned businesses. This included the testing of clients accounting treatments in the year and investigating the validity of the numbers they are reporting in their financial accounts. Another part of the role is organising the logistics of the audit and coaching any audit juniors.

I have been able to put my accounting knowledge into practice after studying accounting at university. I have also improved my organisation skills when controlling the logistics of audits, leadership skills when working alongside audit juniors and strengthen my excel skills. The studying aspect has also seen my technical knowledge improve massively.

I find the work interesting and challenging to a certain extent and enjoy doing something different everyday. The work can be a bit boring and tiring though and balancing this with studying in the evening can be very hard. It is to be expected that working on a screen for 5 days a week is going to be draining though so i dont really hold that against the programme.

The overall structure of the programme is great. We have a dedicated team in the company to help apprentices with any questions and the training provided (BPP) are great too. My main problem is that the company only pay for access to the BPP resources for some exams - as opposed to live college sessions.

The nature of audit means that every person I work with either has been or is going through the same programme as me. This means that co-workers are understanding when I become too busy to do overtime during exam season. We also receive extra study days off during the apprenticeship. I feel as though the professional development team sometimes lack empathy when dealing with people who are struggling with the exams.

The training provider off whole bunch of resources and have an 8 step method that is supposed to improve your chances of passing. I dont feel these steps align with my studying techniques but i do like to get involved in the later steps which are essentially mock exams. The college sessions before exams are also very very helpful.

I have picked up new knowledge and skills in areas such as national insurance contributions, income tax, corporation tax and VAT which i have been able to apply to my audit testing of client's PAYE, VAT and CT figures. I have also been able to expand my knowledge on accounting standards which helped my to test areas such as leases and impairments.

Our team offer a decent range of social events across the year including bowling, drinking, Christmas parties, horse races and BBQs. These are a great opportunity to build your relationships with other team members. There are also sports teams to get involved an this something that have done in the past.

Yes

I would be hesitant to encourage a friend to go through the programme as it is a lot of hard work and stress which doesnt necessarily see you earn more than other professions that come with less exams/overtime. But if they were looking to join audit then i would recommend mazars a they're about as welcoming and understanding as an audit firm can be.

The application process involves a lot of direct communication with the recruitment team. this means that you really get a chance to show who you are and exhibit any of your good traits. Be sure to practice your numeracy skills before taking any online tests but otherwise, just be yourself and dont be scared to show off about what makes you great.