Sonali
Why did you choose to study at Exeter?
I chose to study at the University of Exeter as my mother graduated from Exeter in Accounting and Finance. I chose to follow in her footsteps and pursue the same experience. Situated in a city rich with history helped me achieve my academic goals whilst experiencing traditional English life and culture.
What did you enjoy most about your programme and what was the biggest highlight?
The Business School helped me a lot with my career development. I can definitely say that the biggest highlight of my programme were the tutors and lecturers. Both Professor Bill Peng and Dr Chen V Lim were really good mentors and guided me towards my goals.
What skills and experiences have been most useful for your career?
Being an auditor requires good communication and leaderships skills as we are always dealing with new clients and have different teams. I developed these skills during my programme as we also had to work in groups.
What have you been doing since leaving Exeter, and what are you doing now?
After leaving Exeter, I was offered a position in EY Singapore as full-time auditor. I also registered with ICAEW to complete my ACA exams. After a few months, I was offered a position in PwC Mauritius and joined their audit team. As I was doing a degree in Accounting and Finance, the next natural step was to become a qualified accountant. Working in one of the Big Four was a great opportunity to learn and complete my ACA. While working in this sector, the main benefit was having an exposure to the different type of businesses and meeting new clients.
What advice would you give to a current student who wishes to pursue your career?
Having worked in external audit, it has been extremely rewarding as it improves your leadership and communication skills and your understanding of different types of businesses. I would advise anyone who wishes to get an exposure in different sectors to start with audit.
