Next week I’ll be heading out to my first client with this firm to do some preliminary audit work. I’m excited about having some real work to do for a few days. I’m also interested to see what the client is like, and how working on an audit at my current employer compares to my internship.

I had an internship almost 2 years ago with one of the Big 4. Following that, I went back to school for my masters, got a job offer from my current employer, and passed the CPA exam. So, a lot of things have happened in my life since I was last out at a client learning how to audit.

My current employer has much smaller audits than Big 4 has, so I’m excited about being able to see more of the whole picture during our audits. Also, my internship at Big 4 was rather unusual in that I got to be on 5 clients while I was there. Most interns were only on 2 or 3. Most staff, from what they told me, seem to have one big client and then a few little ones to fill in the gaps. So, at Big 4 I did get to see quite a few different types of audit tests, but it was still tough to see the big picture of what the client’s financial state is.

We also mostly have manufacturing clients, which I’m excited about too. I like going to plants and meeting the people who work there. It just seems much more interesting to me than going to a client who is involved in banking, or software, or other more intangible products.

Is anyone else heading to their first audit this season? How about you experienced folk? Do you remember your first audit season? Do you have any hints or suggestions for us newbies?