June 20th – 24th
It’s hard to believe, but I just finished my first week at Ernst & Young!
After a full week of training in Ohio, I was eager to be back in the Philadelphia office and start working.
On Monday morning, I went straight to a conference room on the 28th floor, which is where the tax interns and I will be spending our time while in the office. After settling in and reviewing our individual schedules, we were instructed to reach out to the EY professionals on our client teams. I learned that my first client is only 20 minutes away from my home in South Jersey, and that I will be spending two or three days a week at the client site. I instantly considered the pros and cons of the situation. Shorter commute: pro. Firsthand experience: pro. Not being in the Philadelphia office with the other interns: con.
Now that the week is over, however, I gladly realize that I enjoy going to the client site. The EY professionals on my team are extremely friendly and helpful, and after my second day, I began to feel like I was a member of their team from the very beginning.
With this experience I now have a better understanding of how important teamwork is in the accounting profession, as well as the roles of different professionals on a client engagement. I was surprised (and pleased) to realize that no matter what level you are in your career (staff 1, staff 2, etc), you never stop learning.
I knew that as an intern, I would be taken step by step through everything that I was asked to do, but I realized that professionals at every level are in some way instructed by their superior. It was in many ways comforting to realize that even when you pass the CPA exam and go through weeks of training, you are still not expected to know how to do everything. And that’s where your team comes in!
At the client I am assigned to, my team and I are working on a tax provision, something I was entirely unfamiliar with up until this week. We are each working on a small portion of the total project, and I’m excited to see how it is all going to come together in the end.
Until next time,
Liz