Summer Internship Programme
Our summer internship programme is a four-six week programme designed for penultimate year undergraduate students and is a fantastic opportunity to gain an insight into working at Smith & Williamson. Internships will be run in our Tax and Business Services division and are available to those applicants who are interested in working for Smith & Williamson in a graduate role following graduation.
Throughout your time with us you will be given plenty of opportunity to experience the type of work that our graduates carry out on a day to day basis. You will attend meetings with directors, assist with research projects and visit client offices - there will be a wide variety of work for you to do and an opportunity to be a real part of the department you join.
In order to apply you will need a B grade or above in GCSE English Language and Maths, a minimum of 300 UCAS points in your top three A-levels (excluding General Studies) and be on course for a strong second class in your undergraduate degree. You will also be expected to be committed to your chosen business area and a career with Smith & Williamson.
The internship programme will run from June-July 2012.
To apply for our summer internship programme, please go to the 'Apply' page.
The deadline for applications is 15st February 2012.
To give you an idea of what to expect during your summer internship click on the links below find out what our recent interns had to say.
During the summer of 2011, I was incredibly fortunate to have had the chance to spend four weeks in Smith & Williamson’s corporate tax department in Central London. Having spent three years studying mechanical engineering, I initially knew very little about the UK tax system, but this didn’t matter at all. I was given an excellent induction, which involved being taught some of the basics, such as how to interpret a company’s financial statements and also how to understand a basic tax computation. I was also introduced to the other summer interns and we were given a project to work on as a group – giving a pitch to a ‘mock’ potential client, selling Smith & Williamson’s extensive services.
I was very impressed by how well organised everything was – we were given a large information pack, which included useful websites, who everybody was in the department and where they sat and even ideas of where to go for lunch! We also had whole afternoons set aside for us to prepare for the presentation, which gave us all a chance to gain a deeper understanding of what different departments were involved with. Several social events had also been organised, which gave us a great chance to get to know people outside of the work environment and these were a great success.
Right from day one, everybody was incredibly warm and welcoming and the atmosphere in the office was very relaxed, friendly and inclusive and therefore highly conductive towards successful teamwork. Everything is open plan, and so the directors are not shut away as one would expect, but remain very approachable, easy to talk to and they get involved with everything and everybody. There was constant interaction between all levels of staff, from trainee to director and this seemed to extend out of the workplace too – there was a team of people preparing for a major triathlon event to raise money for charity, which just shows the sort of people that work there.
What I enjoyed most about the internship was that I was able to get involved in such a large variety of real work. Of course without the extensive training that the graduates receive, I couldn’t help out with everything, but by no means was I just a photocopier or tea-maker! I got the chance to help out with a tax computation, do research on interesting and topical areas of tax legislation, research potential new clients, draft correspondence to clients, and sit in on a variety of meetings. I was privileged to be able to attend some very insightful meetings, including those with existing clients as well as one with a potential client, one with an HMRC representative about up-and-coming reforms and also several internal meetings. It was clear that Smith & Williamson have an excellent relationship with their clients, being both professional and personable. I also had the chance to attend internal training sessions, which gave me an insight into one of the ways employees keep up to date with the constantly evolving tax system.
With all the work I got involved with, if I wasn’t sure about anything there were always plenty of people willing to help - no question was too small or too silly. They were also happy to answer questions about work that I wasn’t involved with and it was helpful to be able to talk to many of the recent graduates about what studying for the ACA is like alongside working for Smith & Williamson.
The internship was the perfect length – long enough that I was able to get a really good feel for the type of work I would be doing, as well as deciding that I wanted to come back as a graduate, but short enough that I could still enjoy a well deserved break before my final year at university. I would highly recommend anybody considering a career in accountancy to apply for an internship at Smith & Williamson and I am thoroughly looking forward to returning next year as a graduate.
My four weeks at Smith & Williamson opened my eyes to a number of elements which I was unaware of within the tax departments. The internship gave me the chance to complete an array of work which would typically be completed by a graduate - this was a very helpful insight into what my role would consist of as a full-time graduate. Such tasks consisted of completing Family Asset Summaries, Tax Returns and Tax Computations. Alongside the everyday tasks, I was also able to attend a General Commissioners case with a Private Client Tax Director, attend a monthly training meeting regarding European Offshore Bonds and even had the opportunity to spend a day at a large property client’s head office.
The variation of tasks that I was able to get stuck into was a great part of my internship, but I feel that what really sets Smith & Williamson’s internship scheme apart from the rest is the number of meetings I was able to attend. This not only allowed me to spend an invaluable amount of time with Smith & Williamson Directors, but also allowed me to understand where you can utilise your imaginative and innovative thinking, your creativity skills and your ability to think outside of the box. I personally found the meetings to be the most productive and eye-opening part of my experience at Smith & Williamson.
Being delegated the responsibility of creating meeting notes on very complex cases is just another example of the array of work which you can look forward to experiencing at Smith & Williamson.
From my first introduction through to the end of my experience in each department, the employees were all extremely welcoming and made me feel at home straight away. The friendly team-oriented culture at Smith & Williamson really appealed to me and should certainly be a key aspect for any future applicant to appreciate.
If you are thinking about applying for an internship it is likely that your graduate application will not be far off and therefore you too will appreciate the importance of choosing the best employer for you. I have found that the entire experience at Smith & Williamson has been fantastic and it has allowed me to realise that I will be making the correct decision by applying to Smith & Williamson for a full-time position.
Choosing which firm to undertake an internship at was a difficult decision to make – after completing my experience here at Smith & Williamson, I would certainly recommend applying if you are looking for a firm that will expose you to every element of their daily operations whilst allowing you to obtain a first hand perspective of each level within the various departments.
Undertaking an internship at Smith & Williamson not only opens your eyes to a number of aspects of the professional industry which you can not learn at University, but truly prepares you for a life in the city. I now feel that if I return to Smith & Williamson I will be able to hit the ground running.
My experience at Smith & Williamson has truly surpassed my expectations and I could not imagine a better way to have spent my summer.
I completed an Internship with Smith & Williamson in the summer of 2010, after my first year at Nottingham University where I am studying for a degree in maths and economics. Before then I had spent six months in the audit department of a large accountancy firm but knew nothing about tax. I was keen to learn more about this area of the business and was lucky enough to spend two weeks in both the corporate tax department and the private client tax department of Smith and Williamson.
The teams I worked with were brilliant. I was looked after on every level. Everyone in the team was welcoming and friendly, always willing to help. In addition to that I had a mentor assigned to me in each of the corporate and private client tax departments. The mentors took a genuine interest in my personal development. They showed endless patience in explaining elements of taxation to me, a total beginner, and gave me the kind of work that would stretch me and teach me plenty about the taxation system. I started on actual real assignments right from scratch. I felt supported from the beginning.
In the corporate tax department I prepared corporation tax computations on the firm’s software. I researched areas of new legislation and also areas of international law which was particularly interesting. I was lucky enough to sit in on director and manager client meetings. These meetings gave me an insight that I would not have gained anywhere else and I learned that Smith and Williamson’s good relationship with clients was critical to understanding their client’s businesses. With that understanding they were in a position to offer the best advice to them.
In the private client tax department I prepared tax returns and had them fully reviewed by the team. I was then able to make amendments as necessary and re draft them. This was a great exercise in the understanding of how private client taxation is calculated and the tax return preparation process. I was also given the chance to use graduate training exercises to enhance my knowledge of personal taxation in a short time. Again, I was able to sit in on client manager and client director meetings. Smith and Williamson put their clients first and give sound and considered personal advice which was very apparent from the meetings.
My time at Smith and Williamson wasn’t all work and no play. There were a lot of evenings out and some lunches which enabled me to get to know my teams better, meet many others from the firm and have fun. Everybody was really friendly and made me feel very relaxed in and out of the office. I look forward to keeping in touch with everybody.
Overall I was given a real insight in to the firm as well as the corporate and private client taxation business. The four weeks I spent interning with Smith & Williamson enabled me to understand what happens at different levels within the business. I was able to complete a variety of different work with helpful guidance from my mentors. After four weeks at Smith and Williamson I have a very clear idea of how a career path would progress and of the structure of the examination process as well. I felt I could be successful if I worked there in the future and understood that I would always be supported in what would be an extremely challenging and rewarding career. I thoroughly enjoyed my time there and feel lucky to have had the experience. I would highly recommend Smith & Williamson for an enlightening internship.