Frances Holmes
I joined Mercer and Hole in September 2006 as an audit trainee in the St Albans office. I read Mathematics at Warwick University until 2004 and then worked and travelled until I joined Mercer & Hole.
You start almost straight away at both college, work and out in the field, so before I knew it I had been here a few months. The work is always varied and you can sometimes be out of the office for weeks on end working out of different offices across various parts of the country. Jobs can be so different that you get a much broader experience early on than you might in other accountancy firms.
All jobs depend on a combination of factors: who you work with, what the work is like and what the company ethos is. The audit department in St Albans has a really friendly, supportive atmosphere; everyone has been through the same experiences as you at work so are really helpful and understanding. The social side of the department is also great; we go for lunch most weeks and are always willing to go for a few drinks after work.
The actual audit work is interesting as there are numerous types and sizes of companies that offer completely different audit experiences. And the company ethos is really helpful for trainees. The flexi time makes it easier to organise your life whether for exam revision or just socialising and around exam time the managers are really accommodating as everyone wants you to pass.
College is a nice alternative to office life you get to meet the trainees from our regional offices and trainees from other firms and the classes are quite relaxed. The teaching is really good and the revision courses before your exams are brilliant and geared to help you pass.
It gives me a massive sense of achievement knowing I’ve passed the professional stage. It’s hard work coming home from a full day’s work and then sitting down to revise and takes a lot of will power and determination but it’s a great feeling when you finally finish your exams.
