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Finding Out About Internships
June 6, 2002

I first learned about accounting internships at the beginning of my sophomore year [fall 2000]. 

Around October of every year, the major accounting firms come to PC to recruit senior accounting majors for jobs.  I remember a friend of mine going through the interview process.  At the end of a couple weeks worth of interviews, I recount talking to her about how everything went.  She told me how stressful the process was because it seemed like she was constantly going to interviews, on top of having to deal with midterms.  Then she said that she had wished that she had done internships with some of the firms over the summer.  

By doing an internship or even a mentor program over the summer you get exposure to the accounting profession, in addition to the fact that I found out that many people who are able to participate in these programs are often offered jobs by the end of the summer, before the regular job recruiting happens.  So she recommended that I think about doing an internship, if not for that coming summer [2001], but definitely for the summer before my senior year.  

I was not sure how I would get in contact with the firms, but Career Services at PC answered my questions around the end of January [2001] or the beginning of February [2001], when it sent me flyers about on campus interviews with various accounting firms for internships.  Even though most firms were recruiting juniors I decided to apply anyway because I figured at the very least I could use the interviewing experience.  I submitted my resume to Career Services for interests in the Arthur Andersen, Ernst & Young and PricewaterhouseCoopers programs.  

About a week later, I was told that Arthur Andersen was interested in me and I was to schedule a time to interview with them.  After the on-campus interview, the Stamford office contacted me for an office visit, which consisted of three more interviews:  2 with managers and 1 with the office recruiter.  I was very impressed by the amount of training they put their interns through, as well as the experience that is gained through the program.  While I was not offered a regular internship because I lacked enough accounting hours at that point, I was offered their Leadership Program.  

The program was definitely beneficial for me, and would recommend anyone who doesn’t get a regular internship, but is offered some kind of leadership/mentor program to take what is offered to you.  You’ll learn a lot about the company and its people, and you end up getting a feel for whether or not it is a place that you would like to work.

Questions for Andrea?

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