One of my main motivations in my role is working getting to work with amazing people, both within EY and at our various clients. I've always been really passionate about helping others, and you really do get the opportunity to do that here. It can be as simple as helping your team by showing initiative in flagging errors or completing paperwork, showing one of your fellow new starts how to pick samples for their first stock count, or simply checking in with a colleague after a long week. But it can also be much wider than that. I think it's important to remember that auditing isn't just a tick box exercise - the work we do matters, and can make a genuine difference not just to our clients and the people who work there, but also wider stakeholders who rely on them. Another side of this is that, because of the way EY is structured (with graduates and business apprentices starting every year), after a year in your role you're no longer the newest staff members! You'll have the opportunity to become a "buddy" and help guide a new start in their first few weeks/months in the role. This is something which really appealed to me personally - and after all the help I've been given by my buddy, I'm really motivated to do the same for the next class of associates!

Something I've learnt a lot in this role - as cliche as it may sound - is that whenever you have doubts about something in your line of work, it's best to ask for a second opinion. Especially when you're new to the role, it can seem a little embarrassing having to ask a question every five minutes (for me, the one that stands out is having to ask whether I was allowed to use the office milk with my afternoon cup of tea), but there's really nothing to be afraid of. Everyone wants to see you do well - your manager wants to see you develop; your team want you to contribute effectively to the engagement; and the client wants to make sure that they're getting as much as possible out of your audit. Something to keep in mind is that you'll be working with people who were in your shoes not too long before you! On my first engagement, I've been lucky enough to work with my assigned "Buddy" (a member of staff a year ahead of you in your programme/apprenticeship), as well as a "Senior" (a newly qualified member of staff, usually with about 3-4 years of experience). They've been really good at reminding me that they had the same questions a year or two previously. You'll also have other graduates/business apprentices at the same stage as you - make sure you help each other along the way!

I've only been at EY for three months, and so I've not really had the opportunity to gain any huge personal achievements. Having said that, I still think I've managed to achieve a lot within my role so far. It's really satisfying knowing that I've contributed a lot to my engagement team - we're quite a small team, and have a lot of work to get through, so I've definitely had to hit the ground running from day one. At first, this was really daunting - I'd spent years studying accountancy, but having to actually apply those skills on a large company was a completely different kettle of fish. Looking back now, though, I can see how much progress I've made and how much I've helped the team - which is an achievement I don't think should ever be underestimated. Away from EY, my biggest achievement is possibly hosting an awards ceremony in my previous job. As someone who was terrified of speaking in lectures when I started at university, I didn't think I'd ever be able to speak in front of over 100 people, much less enjoy the opportunity. It was a moment which let me reflect on how much I had developed in my previous role, and it filled me with confidence for starting my EY journey!