Summer School Intern Review

Spent the 2 weeks as an Audit Intern. Daily tasks involved assisting on the preparation of annual accounts, performing research on potential clients and visiting a client site as part of an audit team on some days. Some other tasks were a little mundane, although that is to be expected considering I was only there fro 2 weeks and had no prior accountancy knowledge.

Learnt basic accounting skills, specifically in role of auditing. The induction day in London helped develop teamwork and communication skills. I also got more familiar with Excel and also systems such as APT.

The programme was thoroughly enjoyable. The work was generally varied and interesting, while the people at BDO were all very friendly. The company culture was positive and the programme was as good as I had hoped.

I felt valued by BDO - I was assigned to an audit team, allowing me to gain first hand experience at a client site which was a lot of responsibility considering I was only there for two weeks. Senior members of the office were friendly and welcoming.

On the whole the programme was well organised, particularly the London induction. I almost always had work to do, and if I ever found myself without something to do, other people were always happy to help to find something.

I didn't have a training provider due to the brevity of the placement.

I was well supported by BDO. There was a buddy system in place that meant I had a contact at the firm before even arriving, to whom I could ask questions if I wanted. I was always assisted if I needed help with anything and there were meetings with a manager to ensure everything was going well.

I was paid for the work experience which was very good. Travel costs to and from the office, as well as the train to London on the first day, were reimbursed.

There were opportunities outside of work (and there would have been more had I been working at BDO for a longer period of time. Just before I joined I played in a BDO football tournament which was very fun.

Yes

I learnt a lot about the work of accountants in the audit department on a day to day basis, and the pay was a nice bonus. The experience has certainly persuaded me to consider a career in accountancy.

Take time when filling out the application and read the test questions carefully. Learn BDO's 4 key values and prepare examples that display each of the competencies.