PKF first interview: What were your experiences?

I enjoyed it. It was focused more on talking about your grades and extra curricular activities. I would make sure you know a lot about PKF and the services it offers as well as the qualification and why you want to work at PKF and do that qualification. Other questions asked weren't really competency based in that it wasn't 'tell me about a time when...' but 'what would you do if..' which I preferred as no need to adjust examples to fit when you don't really have a concrete example.
My interview was with 2 people from the department I applied to and someone from HR but I think it varies. Only the HR person asked me questions.
Just be yourself and be clear about why you want to work for them specifically. I think they will definitely ask who else you have applied to so make sure they know why you think they are best.
I found out I was through to the next stage on the train on the way home.
Good Luck!
(Also some questions I got asked are under a thread on GT first interview and it seems others have been asked things very similar)
What office have you applied to?

What did you say regarding why you think they are better than others?

I completely agree with everything Rachel said!
My interview was with three people, one HR and two managers from assurance, though the HR person asked all of the questions with a chance for the others at the end.
It was a really informal discussion based on what id done in the past and how I coped with certain situations ie: if i had a large workload or if i knew id fail an exam in advanc of taking it.
I personally found this interview to be the most relaxed ive had in terms of feeling at ease to discussion aspects of my life.

As for why I think they are better I focused on client relationships and various industries etc...although I see this question as something quite personal to an individual and I guess it shows how you can also adapt to be different with the company.

I also heard on the train home that id passed the first stage and now have the case study to do.
if I could give one piece of advice and thats to be yourself!

Yeah people can't really tell ou why you want to work for them. That comes when you start doing more research into them. Generally just make sure you are motivated for a career with them and show your enthusiasm.

Which office have you applied to?

Manchester for me. I can say with enthusiasm why I want to to work for them, but I'm not sure they're any better or worse than other accountants...! :) Are there competency questions in the second round interview?

That's the main thing, why you want to work for them. By wanting to work for them you have obviously decided they are better in one reason or another for your career to work there. That's all I mean. I have my 2nd round interview on the 29th so will let you know. Anyone got theirs before then?

Mines on the 29th too! So I dont have much idea about the second stage apart from the case study, so not sure on competency based questions....the way i see it is the first round is where u make the impression n they decide if they like you and whether you have the potential qualities they are after.

I didnt look at it as whether they were better than others but what they offer in comparison, may be something really small but i found by reserach the company, what they do etc and using the press as a guide I could see differences between them.

Hope it goes well for you.

How strange! Mines in Sheffield is yours Manchester? I'm a bit worried about the case study and interview in general as its the day after my exams finish. I have 6 exams in 6 days so just hope I can find some time in there to prepare!

mines sheffield 2! 1:00pm.
Ouch i feel for you with those exams tho im sure you will be fine and it wont be as bad as you think and you will fit it in somewhere!
Im intrigued about what to expect tbh obviously the case study but do we discuss it as part of the interview ...im unsure. Also im wondering how much info they will send for us to prepare or if we have to do the majority in the 75 mins.....i guess im just thinking about it too much and all will be revealed when we get more info next week.

mines sheffield 2! 1:00pm.
Ouch i feel for you with those exams tho im sure you will be fine and it wont be as bad as you think and you will fit it in somewhere!
Im intrigued about what to expect tbh obviously the case study but do we discuss it as part of the interview ...im unsure. Also im wondering how much info they will send for us to prepare or if we have to do the majority in the 75 mins.....i guess im just thinking about it too much and all will be revealed when we get more info next week.

Mines at 11am. So I may see you on the way out!! I hope it will mean I can't get as stressed and nervous about it because it will just be right after exams and ill still be in the mode of revising and preparing and stuff. I think we discuss the ideas we have thought about in the case study for half the interview and then the rest is competency questions and general partner stuff. eeek!

Yep more than likely we will see each other!
I know what you mean it wont be as much of a chore for you...im sure it will be easier to manage your time than u think ...its amazing how much stuff you can fit into a day when you need to!

Im trying to stay calm about it for now and not worry im sure it wont be as bad as i imagine!

hey guys!!! i just found out ive got to the second interview!!!

Please can you be so kind to give me any tips for this! i really am liking the look of PKF and just want it to go well as I have been unlucky in the past!!

thanks

also did you guys all have to do more tests on the second interview i.e numerical or verbal thanks

hey guys

i have a first interview coming up on the 26th and i was wondering if there were any tips or particuluar questions I should prepare..i would really appreciate the help!!!

do i need to go into a lot of detail in knowing pkf???

how long were your interviews??

I really liked the people, but was so shocked when they offered me £16000 for a grad rolw, in which i had to relocate and needed to purchase a car, that I decided to turn it down :(

oh really where was dat?? i dont understand why they are offering so lil :s

wat was ur first interview like,,,do u remember your questions

thanks

It was Norwich, which isnt exactly a cheap place to live. It probably reflected to the size of the office.

My first interivew was very informal, it was really just a couple of compenancy questions (team work and motivation i think) and asking me what I knew about PKF (Histroy, who their take client our, how they are different to Big 4 ect)

There were really interested in how I would cope with the ICAS. TBH that took up 50% of the interview time. I think as it was a regional office it wasnt really scripted so your could be completely different

thast shocking...i am applying for aca in manchester...
jus trying to think of what they mite ask me...how long was ur interview for?

my 1st interview was about 40 mins and got a reply the next day??

I researched what industries PKF specialised in, (hotels and leisure centre) how it stays competitve (targeting AIM listed companies), how does it differentitate itselfs (its smaller enough to provide besoke, cost effective services but has a large enough global network to still offer specialism), why do you want to work for PKF (They hold an unique position in the market in terms of size, one of the only mid-term companies that offer such a expansive training contract).

I spoke about my motivation for accountancy in general (it was my degree topic)

OH they asked for THREE negitive aspects of my personnel. This throw me as I had only revised two. I said;

I am sometimes too passionate about my work, but only cos I cared

I am very honest, which can intimidate some people, but it offen improves my output and office relation

I am a perfectionist which can hinder my sometimes, (I know bit of an obvious one lol!) but it cos I have an eye for detail

thanks for that did u go into much detail about the industries or did u jus mention that they work with hotels, real estate, medicals etc

did they ask you about commerical awareness??

btw wat positon did u apply for...what u doing now then since u have turned the offer down

It was for an audit and advisory. It was a small office hence why it was 2 service lines. I turned it down after I got a big 4 in the same city.

As I did Accounts at A-LEVEL, Degree and had an accounts internship I really didnt get any commercal awareness questions. They just asked about my course and work expereince. However, obviously that might not apply to you.

It didnt go into a great deal about what client they had and what industry they operated in as I found the info hard to obtain. I just padded it out with a bit of common sense :)

Hey so i had my first interview n i passed :) they have now invited me to the final stage and the case study is next week :(

i am really nervous as this is my first assessment centre and I dont no wat to expect :(

how did u find the case study?? what level of difficulty was it??

In terms of the case study interview how many questions roughly were you asked/?? and were they hard aswell??

i have had a email thru and it states mine is with 3 people :(

Hello .. i have my first interview at the end of the week, and was hoping you could share what it was like

what questions did they ask?
was it difficult?
is it competency based?

I'm really nervous :(

heya,

i have my AC v.soon in like 2 days so I was wondering whether you could give me some tips on the case study.
what were the main points you poicked out and what type of questions were u asked by the partners when it came to the case study?

thanks so much for your help