Virtual Schools Series: our presenters

Meet our Virtual Schools Series presenters. Find out more about their experiences at school, how they came to work at PwC and what they do they now.

Lynsey

Executive Support Operations Manager

I went to school until the end of 6th year in East Kilbride. I enjoyed History, PE and Graphical Communications which I successfully secured Higher grades in. I had a good mix of friends that allowed me to enjoy a number of activities with them outside school.

My worries and concerns were I didn’t know what I wanted to do as a career. I initially thought about becoming a school teacher as that’s what my mum did however by the end of 5th year I had changed my mind a number of times. The challenges I faced were not meeting the grades to become a school teacher however by taking opportunities in the places I worked in I was upskilled to deliver onsite training that resulted in me developing my presentation skills. When an opportunity to join the Learning and Development team became available I recognised I could use these new skills on an everyday basis. I remained with the Learning and Development team for over 8 years and within that time was promoted to Senior Learning and Development Executive. I joined PwC as I recognised the opportunities it gave me to fully utilise my skill set I have obtained from all my previous roles and opportunities allowing me to have a positive impact on others. I like working with PwC as I get to network with a variety of people from all different backgrounds that results in us being able to consider different views and opinions that influences us in making the best decisions to problem solving.

Nichola

Executive Support Regional Leader North, NI & Scotland

I enjoyed school and did well in my GCSE’s, however I also knew I didn’t want to do A Levels and any further education. I wasn’t sure what I wanted to do, and what direction I wanted to go in. At one point I thought I wanted to be a police woman. I ended up going on a work experience in a travel agent, quite enjoying it, and got offered a training scheme with them when I left school. I spent a lot of my career in travel, progressing from a sales consultant through to manager and then regional manager. I faced some challenges along the way, one of them being when I was wanting to progress and applied for my first assistant managers role. I wasn’t successful the first time however I didn’t give up and on my third attempt I was promoted into assistant manager in one of our larger stores. Another challenge was when I faced redundancy when the company I was working for collapsed. This was a turning point in my career and I made the decision to leave the travel industry and join PwC as an Executive Support Operations manager. The values of the firm aligned with my own and I saw it as a great opportunity to add value with my transferable skills and experience. Since then I have progressed into my role as Regional Leader. I love the culture at PwC, the opportunities you have to progress and get involved in various initiatives.

Priscilla

Part Qualified Accountant

I left secondary school with good GCSE results and went on to do A levels in Accounting and Finance, Media and Geography. I didn’t leave college with the desired A levels I hoped for but was still persistent in going to University where I studied and attained an Accounting and Finance Bsc degree.

Since leaving university I have had a seven year career in Accounting, where I have had the opportunity to work in various industries. This has led to me to be able to join PWC as an experienced professional in 2022 to carry on with my accounting career.

I am currently working towards completing my professional qualification to become a Qualified Accountant. I enjoy working at PWC as I get to work on various projects and alongside a wider network of staff within PWC. I have been able to develop so many skills, which have helped me to excel in my role and make a difference.

Grace

Management Consultant Associate

Growing up, I loved school and learning. I was always asking questions and wanting to know why. When I was younger I thought that I could maybe become an architect or a teacher. However I went to university and studied Human Geography, with no idea of what I wanted to go into after university. All I knew was that I wanted to do a job that involved talking to people and being able to think creatively.

I felt that not knowing what I wanted to do was quite scary. I chose geography as it was my favourite subject at school and I knew that there were many things I could go into with that degree.

Whilst I was at university, I looked into working at PwC and joining their graduate scheme for it looked like the perfect place where I could work on solving important and interesting problems creatively and in a team environment. I was offered a summer internship and loved the job so much I joined the graduate scheme following my graduation (after 3 months traveling around South America!)

I have now been working for 3 months and have loved every moment of it!

Maria

Manager in HR Transformation

I attended school in Moscow, Russia, as that’s where I was born and was growing up. I went to two different schools and have fond memories of both of them. Of all subjects I enjoyed literature, languages, chemistry and algebra the most. All those are very different subjects and, in my view, school years are great for exploring different areas and discovering your true interests. Besides knowledge and academic foundation, school gave me friendships for a lifetime which I find very important until now.

My worry at school was when I changed schools and was concerned about integrating and fitting in with new classmates. It all worked out well and the main lesson there was to be yourself. That’s something that helped me in the future stages of my life too.

At school I dreamed of being a lawyer (but I didn’t know what that job entailed!), a teacher, an interpreter or translator. I think my job at PwC now somehow combines the characteristics of all those jobs.

I joined PwC after my experience in other companies where I had different roles in Human Resources. PwC seemed like a place where I can develop and grow professionally, and learn a lot from the best professionals in their fields. After almost 6 years at PwC - I still think so!

I like the culture of PwC which is very inclusive, and the opportunities that PwC offers. With PwC I worked in two countries on challenging client projects and learnt a lot about technology, Human Resources and how organisations transform.

Rumnique

Risk Executive Support (Strategy)

Whilst at school, I was always a big fan of any subject that was numbers based, like mathematics, and not at all a fan of any subject that was wordy, like English. This meant it was a rather easy choice for me when deciding what to study at university! Whilst studying mathematics at UCL I was part of our Women in Finance society, which is where I was lucky to meet PwC staff who would regularly come and do Q&A sessions with the students. I therefore ended up applying to PwC, and still being a fan of numbers, I applied to our Audit practice where my work was focused around companies finances, like revenue.

I like having as many different experiences as possible, and need new projects to keep me motivated and engaged. Therefore whilst at PwC, I have moved around departments to keep on learning and experience new things. After Audit, I moved into our Treasury & Commodities practice (still very numbers based!) where I got to work abroad in Singapore. I recognised that I needed to work on my wording skills, having avoided it for so long! So I then joined our Strategy department where I get to see how PwC makes decisions, and I get to be a part in presenting and explaining these decisions to key individuals. My biggest joy about working for PwC is that there will always be a department to match the experience I am looking for at that moment in time.

Amardip

Senior Associate in Service Management & Governance

School enabled me to explore different opportunities and understand what I found exciting and determine what my passion really is focused on.

My concerns was that the career path I chose would not challenge me throughout my life and career, without challenge I wouldn’t be able to improve and I’d get bored, so I made sure to pick a career path that excites me, inspires continuous growth and gives me room for improvement.

During my college years I didn’t receive the required A-levels I needed, but with persistence and determination I was able to do the course I wanted at my desired university.

When I was younger I wanted to be a programmer and whilst I took the challenge at university, I ended up moving in a different direction when I started working, but because of what I learnt I was able to apply all of those skills today.

I saw PwC as a great innovator and a very reputable company, their values corroborated with my own and I knew working there would help me go beyond my current limitations driving self improvement and furthering my knowledge and passion for my role.

PwC provides a challenging work atmosphere allowing me to continuously grow and mold my thinking to be more solution oriented. Not to mention the breadth of opportunities I’m able to get involved in, the possibilities are endless!