Trainee Associate Review

My day to day includes many different tasks all to do with testing the financial statements of a company. I will work with a variety of people who coach and mentor through different testing processes. Some days we will have face to face contact with management, other times I will communicate over email, but either way we learn to build high quality relationships with management.

I have developed existing skills of being able to develop meaningful and positive relationships with a wide variety of people, which is something I have learned over previous jobs. EY has taught me how to think with a critical mind and working in audit has taught me time management skills that I don't think I would have developed otherwise.

I enjoy the flexibility that the programme offers. We are able to work from home and can work flexible hours if desired. Although I much prefer being on site or in the office where I have been able to meet a wide variety of people who are always eager to teach me something new.

I find that sometimes the college experience hasn't been great. I personally don't enjoy having to learn online as I had to for a long while over my A Levels which I feel negatively impacted me. I do feel as though this will improve as we move towards face to face. I feel as though sometimes the support can be lacking when trying to learn online.

We receive support in many ways at EY. We are allocated a buddy and a councilor who are always available to answer questions but it definitely is the teams who you build trust and relationships with who offer the best support. I have been fortunate to work with a relatively consistent team over multiple jobs and so I have very good relationships with them and know that they would look out for me and offer any support I needed.

I feel as though I do not get as much support from the training provider as I could if we were learning face to face although I appreciate that this is something that is going to change. I think that the tutors I have worked with have always had a good attitude when you ask them for help but it can feel somewhat detached when you never actually get to see them.

I feel like although the training/qualification we do is important, it only covers the basics of the job. The internal training and practical on the job experience is much more valuable. I appreciate that the qualification is crucial to the apprenticeship and especially the later exams can help to put certain things into context. I think this works more the other way round and the work we do day to day helps more with the exams.

There are very regular extra curricular activities, we often have office or region wide socials where we may go for food or an activity. Normally teams will go for a social at the end of a job to help further build rapport and as a "job well done". There are also charity events, sports teams and lots of networks to get involved in. I normally speak to my councilor if I want to get involved.

Yes

I think the culture of working at EY is great. I moved to a different part of the country to be able to work at EY and I am so glad that I did. Everyone we work with is great and the work we complete is challenging and exciting. I don't think I would get the opportunities I have now if I wasn't at EY.

Definitely do specific company research! At EY we have the EY Foundation (definitely one to name drop in your interview.) Make sure to ask the people around you to complete mock interviews with you as they really helped me. If you can show an interviewer exactly why you want to have the role you are applying for (specific reasons for that service line over others, as they want to know why they aren't going to be wasting their money to train you for you to leave) as well as this make sure you are confident and professional.