Overall Rating
4.4 /5
The Overall Rating is the average of all the ratings given in each category. We take those individual ratings and combine them into one final score!
3.5/5
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Overview of Role
4/5
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Skills Development
4/5
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Structure and Support
Overview of Role
Please give an overview of your role and what this involves on a day-to-day basis:
4/5
The main role is varied and you are assigned to different teams within the London audit group. Tasks involve auditing subsidiaries, working on specific audit papers and responding to review points made by senior members of staff. There's also a significant amount of time working towards your ACA qualification.
To what extent do you enjoy your programme?
3/5
It is interesting work but at the start many of the tasks are quite repetitive, which is nice to build your confidence and gives you time to balance your studies with work. The company culture is great but as we have not yet been in the office I imagine this will get even better.
Skills Development
Have you learnt any new skills or developed existing skills?
4/5
Lots of skills are used every day including: planning your time between work and study; communicating with clients daily; communicating with other staff members; academic skills with the ACA studying and internal training courses. The senior staff are always on had to answer questions and are willing to show you what to do.
Structure and Support
How well organised/structured is your programme?
4/5
Very well structured. Had an online induction which was great. We then went on to internal training before starting on internal audits straight away. The seniors are always on hand to help as well as my manager and my buddy. It has been hard to do this virtually but everyone has tried really hard to make it work.
How much support do you receive from your employer?
4/5
A variety of support with internal training, external training, mentor support from managers and seniors and my buddy. There is always someone there to help and they are very understanding of where you are in terms of your experience and that you will not know what to do all the time.
How much support do you receive from your training provider when working towards your qualifications?
4/5
We have study leave during the course and are at college until 4:30pm. There are inline videos, lots of past papers with feedback provided and the tutors are always available via email too. They couldn't really be a any more helpful than they are. The online lecture format is great!
How well do you feel that your qualification (through your training provider) helps you to perform better in your role?
4/5
The on the job learning is very helpful for specific exams like audit and assurance and the accounting exams but less helpful for courses like financial models where most of the learning is through self study and practice questions too. My knowledge has grown greatly in this time with the mixture of both.
Are there extra-curricular activities to get involved in at your work? (For example, any social activities, sports teams, or even professional networking events.)
4/5
There have been lots of socials outside of work albeit virtually but they will be more numerous once we are back into the office environment. There is a weekly check in call which helps with any questions we may have for senior managers and this is helpful for checking in with the cohort.
Recommendations & Advice
Would you recommend BDO to a friend?
Yes
Why?
There is a great culture within BDO and there is no one who will not help you. The support, the balance in terms of work and study is very good too. They are always thinking of new ways to help make the staff enjoy their job more and have a balance with life.
What tips or advice would you give to others applying to BDO?
Read a lot about auditing, read about the culture of BDO and think about how you may fit in. Be yourself at interview and don't be afraid to ask questions and be inquisitive. Try to join in as much as possible with the team building and you'll get a lot out of it.
