Audit Senior Review

I work in financial services audit which means I work with businesses such as Banks and Insurance companies. The day to day involves auditing the annual financial statements of these companies. On a more specific level, individual accounts are assigned periodically in the year such as Premiums for an insurance company and my job is to perform work on that account to verify its financial accuracy.

Main skills developed: Technological - You get to work with a variety of new/existing technologies on a day to day which over time you pick up skills and knowledge of how to use these platforms.

It comes with its challenges. Particularly around busier times of the year, it can be hard to balance work/life. This includes finding another gear in yourself to study for exams alongside the programme. However, despite this, overall the knowledge/experience gained so far has made it worth it.

Its fairly organised. However I would say because its a length Programme (4 and a bit years) it is very gradual so you never feel the extent of the structure. It just kind of happens over time. However when requirements are needed from you, there is plenty of structure to follow to meet them.

On one hand, my employer is very supportive financially in paying for my tuition with exams. However, depending on who you work with will depend on the level of understanding you receive for the other responsibilities you have outside of your day to day e.g. Studying, Hobbies and personal life. Some people are great, however others not so much.

Kaplan so far has been a good experience. I have not had a bad experience with the tutors and they are always willing to support and answer questions. The learning is thick and fast but they do provide good materials and structure in order to help you through it all.

Some exams I sit are not very applicable to my day to day, however as an overall knowledge base I have found it is very useful the learning you receive even if unrelated. A lot of the financial concepts taught are transferable so there is an element of transfer to my everyday but I would not say it is massive.

There is plenty of the suggested items above available. I am just not one of those people who relies on their work connections for my life wellbeing (having a strong presence of people outside of work) hence I tend to not get involved as much. However, definitely a wide range of options for a wide range of people.

Yes

On balance, I think the experience gained from working at EY is worth it. It does come with challenges as it is known to have, however I think as a starting point in your career you can really make good headway for your future. There is plenty of variety in the firm, so exposure to various aspects of work does help you figure out what you do not enjoy doing.

I would say if you are going to apply and are accepted onto the programme, a couple of things should be clear. Be aware that this is not something you can blindly coast your way through, it requires a lot of effort/work. Understand the commitment and long term benefits of getting through the Programme and if you want to do it, stick to it. You can easily waste your time here by not finishing it so make sure your expectations are clear as well as your commitment.