OfflineApplying to Deloitte is similar to applying to other Big 4 (PwC, Deloitte, KPMG, E&Y) accounting firms. See my posts on the other firms I interviewed for. I got the job at Deloitte but ended up working at PwC. The application process is as follows:
- Online application form
- Online aptitude test
- First interview
- Assessment day
Online Application Form
Tricky to fill out, there are a lot of questions that need fielding, and your answers have to be quite well focussed. You need to use as much of the word limit given as possible, to maximise the amount you sell yourself. You must use proof read and spell check your work; you are guaranteed not to get any further by submitting an application form with errors. Realistically, set aside a whole day for filling in the application form. The application form is not the place for humourous remarks, so don't add any. Accounting is not a humourous business ;)
Make sure you print a copy of your application form so you can refer to it before interview.
Online Apititude Test
Not easy, but not impossible either. Split into two parts, verbal and non-verbal. The verbal part requires you to demonstrate basic comprehension skills. There will be a passage of text, and then there will be some multiple choice questions. The exercise is designed to confuse you with ambiguity. You must answer the questions based on precisely what the text says, not what you could infer or interpret from it. You have 30 minutes to complete the test.
The non-verbal part is a math and logic test, and tests basic math skills, mainly:
- Fractions
- Percentages
- Ratios
- Interpreting data on graphs & charts
- Interpreting data in tables
You should be familiar with the aforementioned topics otherwise you will fail miserably; although it is not a mathematical job, these basic skills are essential for accounting. You will require a calculator and some paper. Once again, there are a few practice questions. You have 30 minutes to complete the test.
Practicing Tests - Read This
The test that Deloitte use is the same as that for a large number of accounting firms, both large and middle sized. It is provided by a third party. The questions that come up are random each test, but there are only so many questions, and once you have applied to a few firms, you will see the same questions appearing time and time again. So much did this help me that one firm I applied to phoned me up to say how unbelievably well I'd done in the test. Not a surprise if you finish a 30 minute test in 11 minutes. I wouldn't really call this cheating; there's no way to avoid knowing the answers after having done a few tests.
You can also disconnect your computer if really stuff up the test and start again.
Honestly though, if you can't get the test right first time then you will struggle in the job & training (in my opinion).
First Interview
I had gotten lost trying to find the office, and got caught in the rain and was soaked to the bone. My suit smelt like a dead animal. I'd also had no sleep, driven for 7 hours the night before, and had another interview booked for the afternoon at Mazars. I felt pretty ill. I was interviewed by an ex-Anderson employee at the London office, in the basement where the graduate recruitment is. He was a pretty useless interviewer, and seemed disinterested, which furthered to my woes. The standard character interview questions came up, almost robotically:
- Discuss 2 examples of when you've been in a team
- Discuss 2 examples of when you've been a leader
- Why do you want to work for Deloitte?
- What is your understanding of Audit? (audit is the process where we gain comfort over the financial statements of a company by selecting transactions on a sample basis and testing them)
- What do you think you will be doing in your first year? (the answer is ticking, studying and working long hours)
- Give me an example of a company you think is good and discuss? (I used Google)
- Give me an example of a company you thought was poor and discuss? (I used M&S; they were having problems at the time)
You must make sure you understand exactly what you will be doing in your first year, what the job is, and what the training will entail. They are looking for commitment to career, and will not admit anyone who has not done their research.
They told me they would contact me in 3 days. I had to call them after 10 days. My interview went terribly, but I was pleasantly surprised that they invited me back for an assessment day.
Assessment Day
The assessment day is split into two main parts:
- E-tray exercise
- Partner interview
The E-tray exercise is a sort of computer based business simulation. Everybody gets a computer, and on it is a simulated email inbox. Over the course of 30 minutes, emails come in, and you have to respond. There a selection of multiple choice responses. Consequent events occur based upon the choices you have already made. Sometimes you have wrestle between conflicting situations, the purpose being to determine what you'd do in said situation. I found the E-tray exercise relatively straight forward and finished with time to spare.
The partner interview is your rubber stamp. Assuming you have made it through the other parts, the partner will be vetting you to see if you are likely to fit in with the firm's culture. You will probably be asked some questions about what you might do in certain situations, and you will probably be asked to discuss your interests and so on. This is a character test, being too up tight will not do you any good, but being too casual will not either. Partners command the highest respect from juniors so you should bear this in mind. They will be looking for social skills, the ability to act professionally and responsibly with clients. Professionalism is really key.
Getting the Job
On the way home I received a phone call from the partner offering me the position. In due course, I actually accepted a position at PwC and declined the position at Deloitte. Looking back that was the correct decision.
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Hi Chris,
I have been reading your posts and find them very useful. I am having a final round for Deloitte Audit London this Thursday. Is there any more specific information/ advice you can give me apart from all those above?
Is the e-tray about the GDT and Trafford Lea example that give on Deloitte website? What is the multiple choice about ( eg: choose someone? calculating something?)
What specific questions you got asked by the partner that you found difficult/ unexpected?
Many thanks
Hello!
Firstly, make sure you've looked over the Deloitte WikiJob profile here:
http://www.wikijob.co.uk/wiki/Deloitte
which will give you an extra insight.
If you've managed to get tho the final round, you're doing well. The e-tray exercise is not that difficult. All the information you need is provided to you in the test. The e-tray exercise presents a bunch of questions or problems, and you have to pick a solution from a choice of answers.
In order to figure out which answer to pick, you might have to calculate something from information provided, or pick someone's name from the organisational chart provided.
With the partner you must make sure that you are trustworthy and thoughtful, such that they would place their clients in your hands. It's more of a chemistry/personality test than anything else. One question I recall was:"Do you think it's a good quality to say what you think in a meeting?" My answer was "Yes, but it's an equally important quality to be able to keep quiet and listen."
Good luck, I hope this helps! Please report back and let me know how you get on!
How did it go?
Hi Crirsm2671, I am attending deloitte assessment centre soon and to be honest really want this job so badly. Do you mind sharing your case study with me, as I understand you have been recently and hopefully they will still use the same one. English is not my first language. I do what I can to prepare in advance.
1) what are 3 companies you have to choose from? Does torrini ring your bell?
2) which one did you choose and why?
3) and why didn't you choose the other two?
4) what questions they asked you following your recommendations?
I will greatly appreciated your help if you can.
Thank you
Which case study are you talking about? There are two main sections, a business case study (which if I remember rightly looks at the take over of another company) and then also in the interview you talk about a company you think is doing well and a company you think is doing badly.
If you're talking about the business case study, it doesn't matter which company you pick for the divesture/takeover - there are pros and cons of all of them - all that matters is that you can explain your reasoning for your choice when asked about it.
Did you take a look at this:
Deloitte Interview Questions - WikiJob
You will probably need quite good English language skills to make it through the interview. For all front office staff, it is important to be able to communicate clearly with clients, and your interviewers will want to see evidence that you can do this.
Dear Chrism2671
Thank you for your reply. Yes, I am talking about a business case study where you have to advise a client which company they should acquire. I believe you have to choose one out of three. Basically I am trying to think of motivations for acquisition in advance. I consider my english to be quite good as I have never had problems in previous interviews. My problem is that I am not a very quick reader and I am worried I won't be able to finish it.
However, for these 3 targets do you remember what they are? I read from another forum that one is mailing order, one is internet presence and shops and one is traditional book shop. Is that something like you had on your day?
Thank you ever so much,
J
Hi,
I don't know what everyone else think but you don't need to read massive essay for this case study. most of the information were in table form...
good luck
Kimi
Dear Kimi,
Thank you for your reply. If that is the case, I should be ok.
Thank you again
Jx
be self confident, you know all of those stuff from your graduate studies. so what is left for worry? nothing. just be yourself. good luck
thank you for the info chrism2671
hi,
i have got a final assessment day coming up and i'm getting really worried over this. i dont know what to expect, can anybody help me out? Thanks! =)
Dear chrism2671,
I got the job!!! so thrilled! I would like to say thank you for your useful advice. It was tough but I believe through preparation and being confident, you guys can do it!
If anybody has any questions, ask away! i will be more than happy to help:)
J
That's what we like to see! Well done!
hi chrism2671 and everyone,
I'm applying to an Audit position in Deloitte Lebanon. I did the interview and it was quiet good, however, the officer called me and set me up a test. I have read what u guys have wrote about the test and stuff.
Can you tell me if it is difficult? I mean I will finish my BS Economics & Finance soon and I dont have a specific problem with mathematics but I just want to know if it is achievable by an average person...
Another thing, is there any websites where I can practice?
Thanks for your reply...
Hallo,
Congratulations on getting through to the tests. There are some practice tests here for you to try out:
CubiksPractice
Example Questions
These two companies make most of the tests used in the UK, not sure about Lebanon sorry.
They are achievable definitely by a maths and economics graduate, I haven't done any maths since I was 16 (10 years) and I managed them so you should fine! The most important thing is practice speed and accuracy (better to leave a question unanswered than to guess as some firms mark negatively)
Good luck :-)
I can't say what tests there are at Deloitte Lebanon, but generally speaking the tests wherever aren't too difficult, so I wouldn't worry. All you need is a basic grasp of maths: reading tables, graphs, percentages, fractions, currency conversions that kind of thing. If you can do that you will be fine.
Thank You standardcrow and chrism2671...
I appreciate your answers.
I'll keep you updated : )
Hi Chris,
I have been asked to take the verbal and numerical test. I had done the practice test on the Deloitte website and was just wondering if the standard of the actual test is the same.
I have done test with other firms where the practice test is much much easier than the actual test.
Deloitte uses the GTIOS tests:
GTIOS psychometric test | WikiJob
The practice questions are a bit easier than the real thing, but it's otherwise OK.
I don't think there's a written test when you get to Deloitte, but you do have to do an E-tray exercise.
Hi everyone.
I have recently carried out the e-tray exercise for Deloitte (in January) and noticed that the example given in the wikiJob Deloitte profile may be out of date. I wouldnt worry though since it is really not that difficult and you are given all the information you need on the day. Most of the first part of the e-tray exercise is administrative stuff (for example: who should you assign to a task).
Its really REALLY worth checking out the e-tray exercise example provided on the civil service fast track website. This is very like the one in the test.
Also, I answered all the questions in the first part of the test just in time, or at least I though, one last question popped up when I clicked the last one about twenty seconds before the test ended so watch out for this! If you are dyslexic you can get 25% extra time in all your tests which could really make a difference.
The etray is a really achievable task, those who dont do well do so because they panic, be confident and self assured and that is the best advice I can give anyone!
Hope this (rather lengthy post) helps!
Hello everyone! pls i need help. i have an assessment centre with deloitte on tue. ive been there before but failed cos of the etray exercise. can any one advise me on what the report writing is and how it should be formatted? thanks alot
Have you seen the wiki?
had my deloitte assessment centre recently, then had the partner interview, and then by the time I got home I got a phone call from the partner telling me I'd got the job. Totally chuffed!
thought i should repay the ppl on here that had helped me with my prep and talk about my experience.
the day started with an informal ice breaker between the candidates, then we moved onto the e-tray exercise.
E-Tray exercise:
- inbox starts with about 6 emails in it
- then you start choosing multiple choice responses to the info in the emails
- the choices you make determine the next emails that arrive
- you have to cross reference the responses with a number of attachments located in the reference folders in the e-tray to give the correct answer
- tip is to open all the attachments right at the start and leave them open so you have easy access to them when you need them
- I don't know if there is a right/wrong answer for all the questions but there definitely is for the calculation questions, so make sure you get those ones correct!
- the general thing is to make sure you are logical with you approach to answering the emails, don't jump from one to another, move through the emails as they arrive
- I found it really pretty easy as it is similar to the civil service fast track one you can practice with (see previous link) and finished with 5 mins to go
Written exercise:
- this relates slightly to the e-tray exercise but not really, so don't worry too much
- read the overview on the Deloitte website for some background reading, it helps
- when the exercise starts you are given some info about a company that wants to expand, and there are three ways it can do this, you are there to advise which route to take
- options are to buyout an Internet firm, catalog firm or another store based company
- once you have made your choice you have to write an email to your "pretend" boss to voice your opinion
- I chose to write my email in sort bullet point format following the sections you advised to cover
- I think this is a great way to do it, clear, concise, easy to follow which is exactly what a manager want to see, so leave out the long paragraphs (plus bullet points are quick!)
- after speaking to the partner, it turns out it doesn't matter which option you choose but you have to put together a good argument for your choice and then stick my it
- sometimes they quiz you hard and throw new info at you but all they want to see is that you can justify your answer and defend you choice when plans change
- my partner was pretty relaxed and this went well
Partner interview:
- this started by going over my written exercise
- discussing my choice and backing up my choices
- then we talked a bit about my previous experiences
- then moved on to a bit about deloitte/career expectations
- there weren't really any competency based questions but there were some commercial awareness questions mainly focused on how deloitte is trying to become a "one-stop" financial services company (search deloitte 360 advertising campaign)
- bare in mind all partners are different so it is always down to luck on the day
- again be confident and friendly and i dont think you can go wrong.
Hope all this info helps! Good Luck!
Just done AC today. Quite straight forward. E-tray and then partner interview. E-tray is still about the same case introduced on Deloitte Website. At the begining I had problems with concentration and then after a while it was ok. Finished a few mins earlier. Should take it easy. So if you find it difficult at the beginning do not panic, stick to it and be calm. Partner interview was mainly about your application form.Do read it again and make sure you have examples to support your experience. Also a couple of competency questions. Waiting for the result!
Was it like it says on Deloitte Interview Questions?
I would greatly appreciate it if you could post the link to the case, I tried to find the case on Deloitte Website but was unsuccessful.
Thanks
It might not be there any more. There's a good deal of information on Deloitte Interview Questions - did you have a look at that?
Found the link. Thanks
Do you know if there are any more E-tray exercises available online, as I was able to only one and it was an a sample from KPMG.
Thanks
Yeah, there's a link at the bottom of here : E-tray exercise - right at the very bottom. It's the same style as Deloitte- exact same software I believe. Have a go and let us know what you think!
Hey chrism2671 thank you very much for sharing your experience. Can I ask why did you choose the PWC offer over the Deloitte one?
They both offer similar sorts of experience but PwC offered much better exposure to FTSE100 clients and the financial services industry- they have clients that no-one else is big enough or specialised enough to audit.
In retrospect, this can be a good thing and a bad thing. I would have liked to have worked for BDO Stoy Hayward- if I had the chance again I would applying there.
Am I correct to say that the PcW offer the ACCA qualification where as Deloitte offer the ACA qualificatoins? If that was the case I was just wondering why did you chose ACCA over ACA.
Sorry for being abit nosey ;)
No that is not correct. Both offer the ACA.
Don't both offer both?
Yes, however if you are a university graduate you should be applying for ACA.
Why BDO over BigFour Chris?
I can't answer for Chris, but I can say that BDO seem to be much more down to earth than the big 4. For example, they don't make videos like this - http://www.wikijob.co.uk/forum/accounting-professional-services/ernst-young-oh-happy-day-oh-terrible.
I've met people from several different accountancy firms - everyone who works at BDO has been friendly, they seem to love the company, and even when they leave, they still rate it as a great place to work. This is less common of big 4 employees!
Thanks...makes sense !!
hi Chris and others,
I applied for Deloitte's summer internship Actuarial and insurance department next year, and had passed the on-line tests. I have an interview and e-tray exercise coming up this friday, so nervous. I have a few questions, hope you can help me.
-for the interview, if you get ask why you choose Deloitte rather than other big 4 such as PwC, how should you answer it? do you criticise its competitors. I really want to work for Deloitte!!
-Can anyone tell me how Deloitte differentiate itself from the other big four? bigger consulting department?
-how long should i structure my answers?
-For the e-tray exercise, i have done a practise one on the civil service, just wondering, in the real one, do you have to do the written exercise, like write a report to your manager? or is it just an exercise where you choose your answer from the multiple choices.
-how long is the e-tray exercise and how many e-mails will you get? how long is the reading time? i am slow reader, a bit worry that i can't finish reading on time
-is there a right answer?
sorry for asking so many questions. Thank you very much.
I can answer a few of these...
-for the interview, if you get ask why you choose Deloitte rather than other big 4 such as PwC, how should you answer it? do you criticise its competitors. I really want to work for Deloitte!!
Never, ever, ever, criticise any potential employer in an interview. Whatever you do, DO NOT criticise Deloitte's competitors. If you get asked about them, say you admire all big 4 firms, but are a particular fan of Deloitte - this could be because you think it would suit you, or your personality, or help you achieve what you want to achieve, more than other top accountancy firms. If asked "Why Deloitte?" in an interview you should talk about specific points that you like about Deloitte, e.g. particular things about the training the firm offers, particular clients the firm has, particular ways of working you've found out about that you consider to be exceptional. ...you need to do your research about the firm to find out about all these things.
-Can anyone tell me how Deloitte differentiate itself from the other big four? bigger consulting department?
ChrisM? I don't know enough about this myself...! Bigger consulting department is true. I'd also look at how Deloitte took the initiative after Arthur Andersen.
-how long should i structure my answers?
Do you mean interview answers? They should be as long as they need to be. You don't want to waffle on, but you must also give full answers. Roughly speaking, an answer should be 45 seconds minimum - but this varies a great deal. Remember, an interview is a lot like an examined conversation.. don't plan/structure things too much. You don't want to sound too artificial.
Good luck!
Thank you very much. the information is very useful!
I agree with Redsuperted. For the first question, also mention all the charitable work Deloitte does.
In order to differentiate itself, talk about:
that kind of thing. In truth, there is very little difference between the big 4 but they don't want to hear that.
Make sure you look at Deloitte Interview Questions - many of your queries are answered there.
You do need to do a written exercise (30 minutes)- if I recall correctly you have to write a letter- it should all be on the Deloitte Interview Questions page.
hi, Chris. Thank you for your advice! Thank you very much!
hi, Chris. Thank you for your advice! Thank you very much!
hi guys,
Thank you soooo much. Thank you Redsuperted and Chris, I got in Deloitte's summer internship. sooo happy, got the call this morning! Thank you! I will work hard!
Congratulations yinadingaling!! :p ....great work! ..will you let us know how it goes and keep us posted on your progress?!
Well done!
Hi everyone!
I have an assessment day at Deloitte coming up and really really want to work there.
I was wondering if anyone had attended an assessment day since bright_future did in June (see post above)
Can anyone offer any advise either the E-Tray exercise, written exercise or partner interview?
Thanks so much, I would appreciate any help!
to Redsuperted,
of course, i will let u know my progress.
to skittles246,
the e-tray is a reasonable exercise, just work through all the e-mails as it comes along, don't rush it. the written exercise, make sure you write all the pros and cons and then state the one you choose the buy and back it up! gd luck
Thanks very much for the advice.
For the written exercise how much do you have to write and how long do you have to write it???
Thanks