There’s a common misconception that all accountants spend their workdays staring at, and forecasting, numbers. In reality, accountants usually work in teams to analyse a report and interpret it, and then present their findings to stakeholders and decision-makers.

As such, it can be argued that numbers and profit margins aren’t the actual core of the accountancy profession, although they play a large part. Instead, communication and interpersonal skills – the ability to transfer information verbally and through the written word, clearly and jargon-free – is.

It’s no secret employers in the accountancy and financial management industry look for certain traits in graduate jobseekers. For instance, KPMG hunts for resilience in candidates, and leadership skills on the part of EY. BDO even makes it a point to emphasise that they only want to bring on applicants who are good with “teamwork and trust”.

Whether you’ve graduated or not, when mentioning your interest in the banking and financial services industry, you might’ve been faced with plenty of questions. Namely: “Which bank do you want to work for?” to “Are you going into insurance or wealth management?” or even whether you’re considering going into loans.

Except, while banks and insurance institutions are very visible and viable areas of work, they’re not the is-all-and-end-all in this sector. In fact, there are plenty of other options out there!

Whether you’re applying for a graduate or internship programme in accountancy or financial management, this sector is so broad that employers will ask you if you have a prospective specialisation in mind.

If you don’t have much of an idea of where you would like to go, there’s help out there. For instance, KPMG’s graduate website offers applicants a test to help them assess which areas of accountancy they’re best suited for.

What are the skill sets you look for in fresh graduate applicants?

The Siemens vision is Ingenuity for Life! We are looking for graduates who are and want to become Future Makers and help Siemens to “make real what matters”.

We seek characteristics such as change orientation, curiosity, and an open mind, as these are needed in times of constant change.