Wellington School Sixth Former Jade Clarke has been offered a coveted opportunity at high flying London accountancy firm KPMG.
Jade has turned down unconditional offers at several Universities to take up the place on KPMG’s school leaver scheme. On the six year programme, Jade will split her first three years between Durham University and working at their prestigious Canary Wharf office. In year four, she will be a full time university student and complete her degree in accounting and finance. In years 5 and 6, she will focus on becoming a Chartered Accountant back at the office in London.
“I applied for this scheme online completely separate to UCAS,” commented Jade. “After my application was screened and I had completed two online tests, I was invited to a first round interview, where I was assessed by a recruiter and completed a written task followed by some intense questioning.”
“The final stage was an interview with the partners, where I had to give a presentation on a recent business news story – I chose Tesco’s accounting scandal. After a mock interview with four teachers I felt well prepared and confident after being given many useful tips and pointers; and it turned out that the partner interviewing me was at the table in KPMG’s negotiations with Tesco, which lead to some interesting in depth questions on the topic!”
“I had a good feeling after the interview and received a call later that day to say I had been successful, and that provided I meet the grades of ABB I will start the scheme in late August, with a chance that I will have to take a gap year. Many thanks to the school for supporting my application, in particular to Mr Bareham who gave me some great interview advice which I will carry with me in the future, and to the teachers who gave up their time to give me a thorough mock interview to ensure I was fully prepared.”
In addition to her academic prowess, Jade is also a National Fencing Champion, having represent Great Britain on several occasions.