Company: EY
Date: 2008-05-24
Overall rating: 5/5
Employment status: former

I am proud to be part of the EY family!!!
Pros: Ernst & Young is extraordinarily flexible and accomodating.  I am the poster-child for Ernst & Young flexibility.  After an internship in the Atlanta office, I was offered a full-time job.  Due to changing life circumstances, I was unable to accept the position.  However, the firm arranged for me to interview with its Baltimore office and I was offered another full-time position at that location.  

Ernst & Young was truthful about my job requirements and delivered on every promise made to me during the recruitment process.  

Ernst & Young had outstanding training programs that I participated in during my orientation period.  I felt I was well-prepared for the work I was performing and I was surrounded by supportive and competent people.
Cons: Public accounting is a tough industry/profession.  My internship lasted from January-March, so I got a taste of just how tough working sixteen hour days in a high-stress environment can be.  Valuing a work-life balance and my time outside of work, the "busy season" is truly the downside of working for Ernst & Young.  However, there isn't a public accounting firm in the world that doesn't have that same downside.

Additionally, because the firm and its clients are so large, I was unable to get a sense of the "big picture" of many of the engagements that I participated in and did not see a great deal of "important" or "diverse" work.  While I worked on only financial statement audits of public companies, I had peers who were involved in compilation and review engagements, government and not-for-profit engagements, actually performing analytics and substantive tests.  I mostly footed, cross-footed, and recalculated balances.  I also made a lot of photocopies, faxes, and coffee.