School and college leaver programmes

Joining straight after A levels

You don’t need to go to university to get on in your career. Not if you have some good ‘A’ levels or equivalent behind you. Thanks to our School and College leaver programmes, you can jump straight into the world of work and earn while you study towards a professional accounting or tax qualification. And as well as practical book-keeping, auditing or tax specific skills, you’ll develop in-depth business knowledge thanks to formal learning, on-the-job experience and coaching from colleagues.

Whether you're about to leave school or college, or you're ready to make a career change, our School and College leaver programmes are perfect for you if you’ve already decided a career in accountancy or finance is for you. You could gain your professional qualification faster than your friends who go to university with the added bonus of being debt free.

Assurance school and college leaver programme:

Join our School and College leaver programmes in either Assurance or Public Services Assurance and you can expect to qualify as Chartered Certified Accountant (ACCA) within four years. Right from the start, you’ll be working on live audit projects, managing your own workloads and visiting clients on site – so expect to travel regularly. You'll begin by tackling basic sections of client audits such as checking financial records, reviewing assets, attending stock counts, collating company information and testing controls. And you can expect to be involved in a variety of teams and clients and a wide range of projects.

How you’ll develop

You’ll study towards a professional qualification with the Association of Certified Chartered Accountants (ACCA). This usually takes around four years to complete so it does demand a long-term commitment from you. But we’ll give you loads of support ranging from a Professional Qualifications Manager to plenty of study leave. You’ll also have your own People Manager, who'll review your performance and make sure you make the most of your time with us, plus a 'buddy', who'll help you sort out all your day-to-day queries. When you complete the programme, you’ll enjoy the same opportunities as our graduate joiners – especially as you’ll have good practical experience under your belt. You’ll even have the option to continue your studies towards a degree from Oxford Brookes University.

What you need

This programme is open to you if:

• you have a 280 UCAS tariff or equivalent
• You’ve already started your career but you’re looking for a change of direction.

Tax Technician school and college leaver programme:

You can specialise in:

• Corporate & Indirect Tax – focusing on Corporation Tax or VAT Compliance
• Human Resource Consulting

You'll learn and develop the specialist skills our clients look for and value most. This includes studying towards a professional qualification, with support from us all the way.

A position in Tax provides you with the opportunity to work within a team covering an arena which is increasingly growing ever more complex. Subject to the team you join, you could provide tax advice on; mergers and acquisitions, corporation tax, transfer pricing, treasury and finance, international structuring, indirect tax, tax compliance, workforce structuring, reward and compensation frameworks, expatriate tax and international mobility. Clients include global players, FTSE 100 companies and middle market organisations. As part of the School and College Leaver programme you'll undertake a self directed learning programme involving; professional qualifications, gaining knowledge of the industry and market, technical skills, self development & awareness and leadership skills.

How you’ll develop

You’ll enjoy plenty of practical, on-the-job training while studying for a professional qualification with the Association of Tax Technicians (ATT). This usually takes around two years. We’ll give you study leave to go to college plus plenty of support, but you’ll need to study in your own time too. The hard work will be worth it though when you pick up your qualification. And the great thing is, by the time you complete your exams, you’ll have lots of valuable experience to build on. Do well and you could go on to take your CTA exams in your fourth year and become a Chartered Tax Adviser.

At the same, time, whichever area you work in, you'll enjoy plenty of interaction with clients – from multinationals to ambitious start-ups across a wide range of industry sectors – in meetings and over the phone. You'll support busy client teams by advising businesses on tax issues, and doing anything from technical research to drafting correspondence to going with senior colleagues to meetings. And you’ll get a solid grounding in your specialism plus regular training and updates to boost your development. Gradually you’ll take on your own portfolio of clients as you progress.

What you need

This technically focused programme is open to you if:

• you’re leaving school with at least a 240 UCAS tariff
• you’ve finished your degree but haven’t quite met the criteria for our graduate programme; or you’ve already started your career but you’re looking for a change of direction.

Business Recovery Services school and college leaver programme:

Business Recovery Services (BRS) offers the opportunity to work in one of the most unpredictable and challenging areas of PwC. You’ll join the Insolvency Management Team of BRS with a view to becoming a Certified Chartered Accountant within four years, which in itself will open doors to a rewarding career within other parts of BRS or elsewhere in the firm. Working in BRS is so much more than accountancy and numbers. It’s about learning to become an all round insolvency and business advisory specialist and developing the invaluable skills that will allow you to work with businesses that have already failed and those that are facing varied and complex issues. As part of the largest Business Recovery practice in the UK, with over 760 staff in 17 offices, you’ll have the opportunity to work with specialists in areas such as Tax and Assurance to Advisory, to support the team in helping clients make the right decisions.
 

What you’ll do
Right from the start, you’ll be learning on the job by working on live cases within your team. In BRS, no day is ever the same.  One day you might be liaising with employees, customers, suppliers and creditors of the company, which calls for tact, sensitivity and assertiveness.  Then you could be assisting with the preparation of reports or collating data, requiring problem solving and attention to detail. This varied on-the-job experience will be hard work but as you learn, you will develop technically and personally. No wonder it’s so rewarding.

Training and development
You'll develop skills that’ll help you build a career both in BRS and the wider firm. During the first four years within the Insolvency Management Team you’ll learn key aspects of managing a portfolio of insolvency cases and post-qualification, develop skills to look at every facet of a business with a critical eye - weighing up all you see and hear against its current financial situation and coming up with a plan to help distressed clients. This gives you the widest possible experience while you train plus a platform to make informed decisions about your career. 

You’ll study towards a professional qualification with the Association of Certified Chartered Accountants (ACCA). This usually takes around four years to complete so it does demand hard work and a long-term commitment from you. But we’ll give you all the support you need ranging from a Professional Qualifications Manager to plenty of study leave. You’ll have your own People Manager, who'll review your performance and make sure you make the most of your time with us by setting appropriate objectives, plus a 'buddy', who'll help you sort out all your day-to-day queries. Whilst in the Insolvency Management Team, you’ll also have access to technical insolvency training to develop your knowledge and understanding of legislative and regulatory requirements.
 

When you complete the programme, you’ll enjoy the same opportunities as our graduate joiners – especially as you’ll have good practical experience under your belt. You’ll even have the option to continue your studies towards a degree from Oxford Brookes University.

All of this will help you decide which areas interest you most and where you'd like to work after you qualify.

Next Steps

• View our school and college leaver vacancies Assurance or Public Sector
• View our school and college leaver vacancies in  Tax
• View our school and college leaver vacancies in Business Recovery Services
• Register your interest here for our 2013 school and college leaver opportunities