Zoe's an International Business and Management graduate from the University of Strathclyde. She secured a Graduate Audit Trainee at KPMG through Bright Network. 
First, we’d love for you to tell us a little about yourself.
“I’ve always been interested in business and entrepreneurship since I was in high school. As a result, I decided to study International Business and Management at university.
Within that course, I learnt a lot about business models and practices, and at an even larger scale, economic systems. As someone who is quite detail oriented, I wanted to learn the intricacies of business, which is what led me to accounting, where I’d be given the opportunity to really understand the language of business and flesh out my skill set.”
What motivated you to apply for the role?
“The opportunity to work for such a reputable accounting firm with their huge client base. I knew this would allow me to gain a level of industry understanding and know-how that is not possible at other firms.
I am somebody that strives to continually push myself to work to the absolute best of my abilities and I feel this sort of environment will foster that sort of dedication and ambition.”
What the application process like?
"There are a lot of steps to the process and I felt that the online psychometric questioning was definitely the part that I found the least enjoyable. I really like meeting with new people and so an interview-style setting I feel much more confident within.
The assessment centres were nerve-wracking, but in an entirely different way. Personally, I found the day actually quite enjoyable once I was there, but it was mustering up the confidence beforehand that I found more difficult.”
How did Bright Network help you secure your role?
“I found Bright Network's advice on how to successfully take on assessment centres extremely helpful.
Assessment centres were the one point of the process that I was particularly nervous about, so Bright Network’s resources helped me to feel confident before the day.”
What are you most proud of about your journey?
“Remaining optimistic and positive is one thing I am very proud of! Trying to find a graduate job can be discouraging at times, as it will inevitably involve setbacks and there were days where I felt down about the whole experience.
It’s important to remember that you can’t take rejections personally and to maintain a positive attitude and feel confident about your skills and abilities, as that’s what will secure you the job.”
What have you learned from going through the process?
“Confidence is absolutely key. I heard this piece of advice so many times, but it is so true - you have to trust your ability. It is also important to remember that outward confidence can be faked. I found that if I pretended to be confident for long enough, eventually I just felt confident.”
What are your tips for people looking to follow in your footsteps?
“My advice would be to utilise the resources available to you. I found Bright Network’s advice for assessment centres and psychometric testing extremely helpful. The "What to expect from an assessment centre" article helped me to settle my nerves, as I felt more in the know with what I was walking into.
Also, remember that each stage of the recruitment process you make it through is such an achievement that you deserve. When I was initially invited to the assessment centre, my first thought was "This has to be a mistake", but I immediately had to expel that thought and remind myself I was worthy of the invitation.
And with that logic (and the right preparation) you have just as much of a chance of succeeding as everyone else in the application process.”
Tell us about the future. What’s next?
“The first few years of my graduate programme will be very exam heavy, but I'm excited to get stuck into the work. Additionally, getting to meet clients and build relationships with them was a big reason I was attracted to the job, and so I'm excited to actually be able to do that!”
Find insight schemes, graduate jobs, training contracts and more at Bright Network.
