Apprentice E3 Review

In day to day, in the audit department, you work in audit engagements, reviewing financial statements, doing substantive testing, control testing, walkthrough, risk statements, KPMG audit work papers, liasing with clients regarding information or quries when testing, regulary team meetings, setting work to junior team members.

I have learnt many skills, such as how to speak to more senior individuals with confidence, how to overcome issues, how to coach junior members of the team. My excels skills have developed, typing more fast, being able to understand more techinical acounts. I have developed how to be more present.

I like working with my team, in audit there are many different enagements, so you get to move around and have the experience to work with my different people. Most managers and incharges (supervisors) take time to invest in you and teach more techincal areas, its never daunting to ask questions.

The programme is fairly structured at the begining, later on everyone ends up in their own pathway due to exam failures, sickness etc. But if you dont fail your exam then you stick to your pathway and its fairly simple. The rule is pass your exams in one shot to avoid coming off route!

In audit, it all depends what team you are in, who you work with makes a big difference in your work life, if you work with nice inviduals who want to help you, then your lucky. I have worked with some people where they expect you to know everything and dont coach you or not happy because you dont know.

BPP are the training provider for KPMG, BPP are ok, theircourse note are very helpful depends on what exam you sit. With BPP they give you classes few days before your exam which i dont like, this is because im stressing out and i want to do past papers but i have to attend this class. Once I was in a class 2 days before my exam.

I think overal the BPP has helped to me perform better in my role, this is because as apart of the apprenticeship, we need to skills and behaviour assignments. This assignements ensure thats we are using our skills in our role at all time. BPP also check on us to ensure we are happy and help with the assignments.

There are many extra curricular activites to get involved in at KPMG, but in audit there is never a chance to join them, this is because we are over worked, we have long hours of working and at the end of the day we just want to log off go home.

Yes

KPMG is very good company to work with, they take care of your employees, especially mental health and well being, but the hours are the only con, i can be working 12 - 18 hours some days and even on weekends, the audits are never ending. May in other departments its less hours, but in audit you know the most and obtain transferable skills.

If you know you want to go into accounting or coporate world, no point of going university, but still apply to university as a back up and just defer every year, this is so you have something to fall back on if you get kicked out of KPMG ( if you fail exams you get kicked out), I did this to cover my back but thankfully still at KPMG after 4 years.