Assurance associate Review

On a day to day basis I go out to various clients and audit their financial reports. Auditing involves testing that the client's figures used in their financial reports are accurate. On the daily, I am communicating with clients and meeting new people. The working day is usually 9-5:30 however I often work past 5:30.

I have learned many new skills whilst working at EY. In particular I am now a much more confident person as I have developed my communication skills greatly. The job requires communication as you are required to communicate to your clients. My role has also helped me develop my problem solving skills.

I thoroughly enjoy my programme that I am currently doing as I meet loads of new people and every day is different. There are some drawbacks, such as the long hours however overall it is a great learning experience and a chance to meet some great new people. I would recommend to anyone.

My programme is very well structured and the exams are well spaced out. We have days at Kaplan college (our provider) which teaches us what we need to know for our exam. It would however be more beneficial to have more time spent at college as some people may not be prepared for the exams.

I receive a lot of support from EY and they are always very helpful. The personnel I work with on a daily basis are always very helpful and if you are stuck they will help you. However sometimes it would be better if we had more support when it comes to exams.

We don't receive that much support from our training provider (Kaplan) in terms of help on the job as this mainly comes from working with employees at EY. However in terms of exams, Kaplan are quite supportive. It would be better if we received more support from Kaplan for our exams as we don't get that many emails from them.

The qualification gained does help me perform better within my role as it gives you more of an understanding of accounting as a whole. Furthermore it helps if you want to progress your role in the future. Overall I would say the training help I've received on the job has been more helpful.

Due to the long hours and long commute I have not been able to get heavily involved with extra curricular activities. However I sometimes go for drinks after work and social events put on by EY such as the Christmas ball which was very enjoyable and meant I could network.

Yes

It is a great career opportunity and once you become qualified the world is your oyster. Despite the hard work, it is worth it! It can be seen to be more beneficial than university as well. I am getting a professional qualification at the end of it and I won't be in debt.

Ensure that this is something you will enjoy as the course isn't for everyone. However EY offer a great range of courses that meet the needs of many people. Be prepared to work hard but at the end of the course it is well worth it. For the selection stage, just be yourself and relax.