External audit – get the career you want at RSM

Our external audit programme will give you all the skills and support you need to unlock a future that’s packed with opportunities and new experiences. You’ll enjoy a fast-tracked business career that recognises your potential and rewards your ambition. When you join our team, you’ll enjoy a powerful combination of on-the-job learning and structured training – not to mention an impressive client list to work with. You’ll discover a culture that nurtures individuality and an environment where everyone is supported to reach their potential. With us, you’ll always be moving forward.

What does our external audit team do?

Our team carries out a detailed, risk-based review of a company’s financial records and control environment to form an opinion on whether the financial statements prepared by the directors are true and fair. A robust audit challenges the financial operations of a company and improves the internal workings of the audited business. This is critical in today’s business world as the financial statements are one of only a small number of documents that a company will place into the public domain, and a quality audit gives confidence in what is delivered to all stakeholders.

What can you expect?

At RSM, you’ll be a key member of our team from day one. You’ll get involved in client work very quickly, initially working as part of a larger team before taking on individual responsibility for projects. The depth of services and clients you’ll be exposed to will help you kick-start your career. You could be working with a wide variety of organisations, including large listed financial institutions, national retail chains, and high- profile charities, as well as some of our international clients that operate throughout the UK and beyond. A career in external audit will give you access to top quality career development. Alongside hands-on experience, you’ll benefit from on-the-job training from more senior members of the team and gain access to our internal training courses that will help you develop in the role. With our support, you’ll become a true trusted adviser to your clients in the future.

When you join this team, you’ll work towards the ACA qualification with the Institute of Chartered Accountants of England and Wales (ICAEW), or your Chartered Accountancy qualification with the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Scotland (ICAS).

What we look for

We’re on the lookout for enthusiastic self-starters who are always up for a challenge. Audit is a technically demanding discipline, so we look for students who are quick to grasp new subjects. It’s important you also have confidence with numbers and great attention to detail. You’ll often need to explain complex financial information, so you’ll need excellent written and verbal communication skills. What separates us from our competitors is the financial acumen we demonstrate and we expect that right from the start from our people. If that sounds like you, we know you’ll enjoy being part of our team.

Please note for those who perform well throughout our assessment process, should your first geographic preference be unavailable, you could potentially be offered a role in another location or facility. This would be discussed with you in this instance.

RSM will only take one application into consideration per intake. We do not accept multiple applications to different vacancies.

Minimum Qualifications

Entry requirements

At RSM, we don’t just look for good exam results. We think passion, personality and originality are just as important.

You will need:

112 UCAS (new tariff) across 3 A Levels or 104 (new tariff) across 4 Highers/Advanced Highers or an equivalent level of study (excluding AS levels and general studies);

Obtained honours degree.

UCAS changed their points system so under the old tariff it would be 280 or 260 points respectively.