Supporting students at school or college
Right now, your students are at a critical stage in their lives, with lots of options and opportunities available to them
Do they decide to start their career, go to university or have a blend of both?
Perhaps they want to explore new opportunities or consider gaining some insight into the working world. You know they'll have to start work at some point, but when is the right time, and what is the right path? Whatever they choose, it has to be right for them.
We understand that making important decisions for their future and submitting applications can be a daunting task. That’s why we think it’s important to support you with information about the full range of opportunities available to them, so that you can help your students make the choice that’s right for them and give themselves the best possible chance of success.
Helping you to support your student in making the right decision about their next steps
There are many ways in which we can support you and your students:
- Understanding the options on offer to young people at PwC - including the benefits of, and differences between, apprenticeships, degree apprenticeships and partnership degree programmes. We offer all of these programmes at PwC.
- Finding out what PwC does as a business and what a role with PwC might look like - read some of our profiles here.
- Explaining the recruitment process, deadlines and how best to prepare - find out more here.
- Offering support and guidance through skills based sessions which will help to boost confidence and deal with worries or concerns.
- Supporting your students with the preparation process prior to joining PwC.
We'll be supporting them along the way with information, coaching, and feedback, but one of the best ways you can help is by offering general support and encouragement. We hope that these pages will aid you in having some of the background information you need to help you do this.
What we offer
At PwC there are three routes on offer to students; a full-time graduate or undergraduate position, partnership degree programme (including degree apprenticeships), or full-time school and college leaver programmes. All routes offer the same deal; the opportunity for them to grow as individuals, to meet new people, and build lasting relationships that will stay with them for life. Their hard work will be rewarded with our programmes offering a competitive salary and, in most cases, a personally tailored benefits package. And there's no limit to how far they can progress, regardless of their chosen route.
Encourage your students to thoroughly research the different options and routes available. Watching our animation together will help them to understand the options available and decide on the best route for them.
Encourage your students to search our events list and sign up to one of our virtual events. This is a fantastic way for your students to find out more about us, the skills we look for and to have the opportunity to meet with our people. Click here to search our events.
Offer to proofread their application form – accuracy for all the information they provide is essential here, so a second pair of eyes could be useful.
Make sure your students are familiar with our application process and the types of assessments we use at each stage, have a look at our employability hub for a further insight into the different stages of our selection process.
Talk to them about recent news stories and the business impact of these. Provide some business media at home or in the classroom, discussing these helps them to develop their understanding and their point of view, which is something they’ll need to work at PwC.
Help them to research the skills we look for and help them come up with ideas where and how they might already have demonstrated these; sports teams, part-time jobs and college coursework are just a few examples of everyday activities which they can talk about to show us they've got what we're looking for.
Encourage your students to make the most of the onboarding support we provide, such as preview events.
Encourage your students to attend one of our pre-joining events, which will be a great chance to meet with other new joiners and staff from the business.
Ensure your students feel comfortable about the required travel for the role.
Talk to your students about anything they’re unsure about, and point them in our direction to answer any questions they might have.
Make the most of any opportunity provided to speak with a current school leaver at the firm. At PwC, all of our new joiners will be assigned to a ‘buddy, who they can ask questions to before and after they join.
Find out more
Programmes
- School and College Leaver roles: Audit, Tax, Consulting, Deals, Operate
- Flying Start Degree - Accounting
- Flying Start Degree - Technology
School and College Leaver roles: Audit, Tax, Consulting, Deals, Operate
How long does the programme last?
A fully paid training programme at PwC lasting between two and four years, followed by a permanent role and further progression opportunities aligned with graduate entry routes. All programmes include studying towards a professional qualification. Some programmes carry an apprenticeship qualification depending on their location.
What is the entry criteria and how many students join each year?
96 or 112 UCAS points, dependent on the vacancy
What professional qualifications are gained and what is the progression pathway?
- Audit/: ACA ICAEW qualification
- Tax: ATT or CFAB
- Consulting: You’ll complete the Junior Management Consulting Level 4 apprenticeship over 2 years
- Deals: CFAB with the ICAEW
- Operate: ATI or CFAB
Depending on your route and role, further professional qualification opportunities are available following completion of the initial training period.
After 2 years you could expect to reach the level of an incoming graduate and progress at the same rate from this point.
Please note candidates can only submit one application to a School and College Leaver position every 6 months.
Flying Start Degree - Accounting
How long does the programme last?
4 year partnership degree programme (including integrated paid work placements at PwC in years 2, 3, 4) followed by the opportunity to secure a permanent graduate job offer. Students will also work towards gaining the ACA qualification.
What is the entry criteria and how many students join each year?
The universities differ in entry requirements. Please refer to the Accounting Flying Start web page for more information on this.
We take on students from each of our university programmes every year. The Flying Start programme is available at Newcastle University Business School, Nottingham University Business School, Henley Business School at the University of Reading and The University of Manchester
What professional qualifications are gained and what is the progression pathway?
You‘ll study modules that will exempt you from 12 of the 15 ICAEW professional examinations, enabling you to become part ACA qualified. PwC will support you to complete the qualification upon joining full-time.
After 4 years on this programme, students join us full-time at ahead of a traditional graduate joiner. All students can expect to become ACA qualified within their first year as a full-time employee at the firm.
Which locations could I apply to? (pending availability)
Newcastle University Business School, the Nottingham University Business School, Henley Business School at the University of Reading and The University of Manchester.
Please note that you can apply for all four university degree programmes.
Flying Start Degree - Technology
How long does the programme last?
Over a four year course you’ll gain a full degree and work experience with our Technology teams, as well as receiving a monthly salary and fully-funded university tuition.
What is the entry criteria and how many students join each year?
The entry requirements differ between universities. Please refer to the Technology Flying Start web page for more information on this.
Around 100 Technology Degree Apprentices start their journey with PwC each year.
What professional qualifications are gained and what is the progression pathway?
Students will gain a BSc in Computer Science or Software Engineering, depending on the university that they attend. Please refer to the Technology Flying Start web page for more information on the specific university offerings.
After four years on this programme, students may have the opportunity to continue their graduate career with PwC.
Which locations could I apply to? (pending availability)
The University of Leeds, the University of Birmingham and Queen’s University Belfast,
Graduate vacancies available in: Actuarial, Deals, Consulting, Technology, Audit, Risk Assurance, Tax and Legal
How long does the programme last?
Graduate programmes typically last between two and three years, dependent on vacancy. Undergraduate work experience programmes are available from three days through to an 11 month placement.
What professional qualifications are gained and what is the progression pathway?
Audit: ACA,
Deals: ACA/CFA
Actuarial: FIA
Tax: ACA CTA
Technology: N/A
Consulting: No formal qualification but opportunities to gain qualifications after graduate programme
Once students have completed their graduate programme, progression to manager and beyond will be dependent on job performance.
Which locations could I apply to? (pending availability)
Aberdeen, Belfast, Birmingham, Bristol, Cambridge, Cardiff, East Midlands, Edinburgh, Glasgow, Leeds, London,, Gatwick, Watford, Manchester, Milton Keynes, Newcastle, Reading, Southampton.
New World. New Skills - Schools series
Our Social Mobility Schools programme offers secondary school students an opportunity to develop their confidence and key employability skills. The programme is aimed at secondary schools across the UK with a higher than average proportion of students eligible for free school meals. For this academic year (2020/2021), we'll be running a fully virtual programme.
We plan to restart face-to-face activity as soon as we’re able to, as we believe this type of engagement is important for the students we're looking to reach. We also intend to continue our Virtual Skills Programme, in addition to face-to-face events, so that we’re able to engage with students in hard-to-reach areas that are far from offices (for example, in local authority cold spots).
Activities
This year, we’re offering the following activities to schools and students. All of our sessions are mapped against the Gatsby benchmarks.
- New World New Skills Schools Series
- Virtual Back to Schools
- Employability Skills Toolkit
New World New Skills Schools Series
This virtual skills programme will run over a period of six weeks, focusing on a different employability skill each week. Covering topics such as teamwork and leadership, learning materials will be released online each week, giving teachers the flexibility to run the sessions in a way and at a time that works for them. These will include a 20-30 minute ‘on demand’ video and an optional challenge for students which can be submitted to PwC for feedback. Teachers will be able to submit questions throughout the programme, which will be answered by our volunteers.
- The first cycle of the programme will start on Monday 2 November for students in Years 10-13 in England and Wales, Years 11-14 in Northern Ireland and S4-6 in Scotland.
- There’ll be a second cycle in the Spring (February and March 2021) for students in Years 7-9 in England and Wales, Years 8-10 in Northern Ireland and S1-3 in Scotland.
- Further cycles will be confirmed later in the academic year.
If you're a teacher or careers leader and would like to sign up a class or group of students for the first programme, starting in November, please complete this short registration form and we’ll be in touch with further information and details on how to access the content. Registration details for the Spring programme will be made available nearer the time.
Virtual Back to Schools
As part of our Virtual Back to Schools tour, we’re running three types of live talks, which will be streamed into classrooms across the UK.
Our 30-minute Business sessions offer students an insight into the world of business and raise awareness of the different entry routes into PwC. They’re aimed at students in Years 10-13 in England and Wales, Years 11-14 in Northern Ireland and S4-6 in Scotland.
We also offer 45-minute Accounting or Technology sessions which give students the opportunity to hear from our staff who are currently on, or have completed, a Flying Start degree programme with us. These sessions are aimed at students in Years 12-13 in England and Wales, Years 13-14 in Northern Ireland and S5-6 in Scotland.
Our next tour runs between 5 October and 2 November 2020. If you're a teacher or careers leader and are interested in attending one of our talks, please get in touch. Future dates will be confirmed later in the academic year.
Employability Skills Toolkit
Our online toolkit has been created for teachers and careers professionals to support their students with developing key skills in preparation for their careers, whether at PwC or elsewhere. It contains a wide selection of lessons, suitable for students aged 13-18, that can be easily accessed online. Topics include technology, financial literacy and wellbeing as well as access to resources such as our Employability Hub. All sessions have easy-to-follow lesson plans, presentations and engaging activities.
