PwC 1st Interview: Advice Please! :-)

If you've been through the PwC recruitment process, could you please share your experiences of your first round interview?

I have one coming up soon for tax, I haven't had an interview in years, and my Careers Advisory Service doesn't do mock interviews, which isn't really helping to settle the nerves. :wink:

I was given an interview date on the phone, but haven't received my confirmation email yet, and am getting edgy because train fares are going up, and no one has actually said they're going to reimburse my expenses... Couldn't think of a polite way to bring that up when speaking to them. What a coward. :rolleyes:

Thanks in advance :smile:

Reply 1

coupsy

I had my first interview in November and they were paying expenses then, when you get the confirmation e-mail there is a link to a form to reclaim travel costs, think its £150 max (any more and you have to phone them). Don't know how efficient they are at paying you back as i walked so had no fees to claim

Reply 2

dups45

8

they remimbursed me, but it took about 6 weeks!

Reply 3

shona

OP

10

Thank guys, that's really helpful. :smile:

A last minute standard return by train won't cost more than £65, so I hopefully shouldn't have a problem getting reimbursed. It's not a huge amount of money in the grand scheme of things, but it does all add up!

Can you tell me a bit about how your interviews themselves went? How long they lasted, what sort of questions were asked, etc. Cannot stress how long ago my last interview was... And I've only ever had to interview for a job once, seeing as I've worked for the same people for the past three years...

Reply 4

Streetwize

1

hey, just PMed you but

for the 1st interview, i was just asked for a recent business article i had read in the news, or seen on tvm etc. i talked about the tata steel takeover of corus (before CSN made their bid) and just said that it would make the 5th largest steel manufacturer. then he asked me how a company 56th in steel manufacturing (tata) could buy a company 8th in steel manufacturing (corus). i talked about tata being just more than a steel company n that they did consultancy, cars, etc. then he asked me what it would do for corus and then what it would do for steel. for corus, it gives them access to untapped indian markets and for tata, means that they dont need to start their european steel empire from scratch but they have growth already thru corus. that was all!

hope that helps, good luck with the interview!

Reply 5

shona

OP

10

Thank you again for your help - found out today that I'm through to the assessment centre! :smile:

At my first interview, I was told that the AC would take the form of either a group exercise, case study or presentation, but the recruiter who called me today said it would be a group exercise. Sound about right?

If it is a group exercise, am I going to be working with people who have applied for the same stream as me (ie. tax), or should I be expecting to work with people from across all lines?

I'm going to keep reading up on the business news, and make sure I know what's going on the world... Is there anything else you think I should be trying to improve between now and my AC? Or is it pretty much impossible to revise for the rest of the activities?

Thanks :smile:

Reply 6

Streetwize

1

yep, will be the group exercise then. you'll be in a group of 4-5 i think and given a booklet of info and then youll need to discuss it in a group. the best approach is to just listen to other people and then when you suggest ideas, dont just give new ideas but also build on others comments, eg 'along with what you said, etc etc etc' if you catch my drift. youll be with both tax and assurance people in the AC

you can always practice for the numerical tests and there are some diagrammatic examples floating on this site. in the search box, type in 'diagrammatic tests' or somethnig like that and they should come up. you cant really do much more else apart from keep reading up on the news, maybe looking at some accountancy issues in accountancyage.com and if you type in PwC into Ft.com, theres loads of stuff directly related to PwC

good luck!

Reply 7

enigma2009

i had an interview with PWC last week, i did not make it through but here are a few tips

like Streetwize has said on many occasions they will ask u questions based around your application form, so just make sure you can go into more detail when they ask you to explain whats on your form...

i applied for assurance and she also asked me to talk about issues affecting accounting and i talked about IFRS and Sabarnes Oxley

she also asked me to alk about an article i have read recently

she also aksed me what I would expect to find on a balance sheet and what I would do if i had a million pounds to invest.....!!!

hope this helps

Reply 8

shona

OP

10

It's actually assessment centre advice I'm after now, sorry, the title of this thread is now quite misleading!

Sorry to hear you didn't make it through :frown:

Are you getting anywhere with your other applications?

I got asked the million pound question too - I thought it was a bit odd, but it must be one of their standard questions then. I was asked, if I had a warehouse and a million pounds, what would I do? It's certainly not a question I was expecting... :wink:

Reply 9

Disney

Is anyone applying for the school leavers programme @ PwC? Does anyone know if you join as a school leaver do you get the same benefits package as graduates - i.e. private medical, company car scheme, etc etc - ive noticed in a few places people have said "if you join us on the graduate scheme you have access to the benefits such as company car" - as if they were specifically excluding any other entry routes?

Reply 10

Disney

Oh and another question - did you guys/girls have to do the interview or assesment day first? Which interview is more testing - the assessment day interview or the interview on its own (if you see what i mean?)

Reply 11

shona

OP

10

Disney

ive noticed in a few places people have said "if you join us on the graduate scheme you have access to the benefits such as company car" - as if they were specifically excluding any other entry routes?

PWC website

If you join us on the HEADstart programmes, you'll also have access to some of the additional benefits available through our Choices flexible benefits scheme. Some of these benefits include the option to request extra holidays, lease a car through our company car scheme, take out holiday insurance, or the option to take out a bicycle loan under our new Cycle to Work scheme. These are all in addition to our core benefits, such as private medical benefit.

Looks like you get some, but not all benefits. Maybe someone with first hand experience here can clarify for you?

Reply 12

PekuPekuSay

Disney

Oh and another question - did you guys/girls have to do the interview or assesment day first? Which interview is more testing - the assessment day interview or the interview on its own (if you see what i mean?)

Hey Disney.

I found the both interviews pretty relaxing and quite informal. On balance it was the first stand-alone interview that i found slightly more difficult, since it was slightly more structured and focused more on competencies.

The second partner interview at the assessment centre was more like a general chat, with a few probing questions here n there. Got asked one particular question that i didn't know the answer to, but i felt comfortable enough to just admit i didnt know the answer - to which he acknowledged that he appreciated my honesty.

Good luck!

Reply 13

shona

OP

10

Thanks PekuPekuSay, that sounds really reassuring :smile:

I found the first interview to be really informal, and more of a chat than a scary interview, so am hoping that if I get through to the partner interview, it'll be much of the same.

I was a little surprised, because I thought that the partner interview formed part of the assessment centre, but the recruiter on the phone told me that the interview came after the AC, if the AC went well. It wasn't automatic.

Reply 14

PekuPekuSay

shona

Thanks PekuPekuSay, that sounds really reassuring :smile:

I found the first interview to be really informal, and more of a chat than a scary interview, so am hoping that if I get through to the partner interview, it'll be much of the same.

I was a little surprised, because I thought that the partner interview formed part of the assessment centre, but the recruiter on the phone told me that the interview came after the AC, if the AC went well. It wasn't automatic.

Really? What service line are u applying for?

At my AC the partner interview came last, but was still considered part of the AC.

EDIT:

Sorry just read up and saw ur applying for tax. Must be a deliverate difference in the process for different service lines then!

Reply 15

shona

OP

10

PekuPekuSay

Sorry just read up and saw ur applying for tax. Must be a deliverate difference in the process for different service lines then!

There weren't any online tests for tax either... Which is going to make the AC tests even more of a challenge :wink:

I'm going to do some online tests for a smaller company the night before, as practice.

Reply 16

PekuPekuSay

shona

There weren't any online tests for tax either... Which is going to make the AC tests even more of a challenge :wink:

I'm going to do some online tests for a smaller company the night before, as practice.

Yeh that's a pretty good idea. Good luck!

There were no online tests for RAS either, instead they formed part of the AC. I actually failed one of the tests at the AC but still got through, so its not totally do-or-die at the AC, altho it's best if u "do."

Good luck again!

Reply 17

niz33

hey, are these the same questions asked for school leavers or are you all graduates? i have my first interview on the 14th feb and have a rough idea what needs to be done but any extra info or help would be great.

PwC 1st Interview: Advice Please! :-)

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