EY has teamed up with three UK universities to launch an ‘earn as you learn’ employment programme, giving students the opportunity to study for a degree while receiving financial support and work experience from the Big Four firm
The EY Assurance Scholarship programme builds on the firm’s existing partnership with Lancaster University, and EY will also be partnering with the University of Bath and the University of Warwick to offer funding and job placement opportunities to 60 students across the three universities.
Students studying for a degree in Accounting, Auditing & Finance at Lancaster, and Accounting and Finance at Bath and Warwick will be eligible to apply, with £5,000 a year on offer to help with the upfront costs of attending university. Students will also benefit from a paid summer work placement at one of EY’s UK offices in their second year, and a year-long industrial placement in their third year of study.
Hywel Ball, EY’s managing partner for assurance in the UK & Ireland, said: ‘We already offer school leaver, graduate and undergraduate programmes, but we are expanding the range of career entry routes in response to growing demand. It’s a great opportunity for students to earn while they learn.’
Ball said the programme is designed to appeal to those who are focussed on starting a career in accountancy, but who also do not want to miss out on the university experience.
Students will also study towards becoming an ICAS or ICAEW qualified chartered accountant and will qualify faster than if they had entered EY through the graduate programme. Successful candidates will join EY’s assurance practice.
The EY Assurance Scholarship will provide students with up to £40,000 in financial support in total, broken down into £15,000 over the three years of study, in addition to earning a salary during both the summer and industrial placements. A further £1,000 per year will be offered to selected students who meet the criteria for widening access to higher education.
Ball said: ‘Many of today’s graduates enter the workplace with sizeable student loan repayments that last for a large part of their working lives.
'The EY Assurance Scholarship will give students a financial leg-up, to ensure they are able to focus on making the most of their time at university.’
More information for students is available here http://www.ey.com/UK/en/Careers/Students/Schools---EY-Degree%20
