Application Process
Deloitte isn't for everyone. On top of exceptional academic achievement, it looks for individuals who will work hard to make the most of every opportunity they get. As a result, it's designed the selection process to ensure that you're right for the organisation. And it's also designed to give you a chance to show your intellectual capability and express your values and motivations.
Once you have registered you will be asked a number of pre submission questions. The questions cover academic criteria, work experience requirements and career motivation. Giving you an opportunity up front to assess whether or not Deloitte can offer the right programme for you.
Stage 1: ONLINE
Online Application
All candidates must complete and submit an online application form on the recruitment system. The application form includes a number of sections, including education, career motivation and work experience.
Please note: You need to have a minimum of four weeks employment experience to be eligible for Deloitte's graduate programme. This does not have to be relevant to the position you are applying to and does not have to be four weeks of continuous work experience, but can be made up from various employment and volunteering experiences.
Once submitted, your application will be screened within three working days and if successful you will be invited to the next stage, the online numerical test.
Online numerical testing
Providing you are successful at application stage, you'll then be invited to sit the online numerical reasoning test. There will also be an opportunity to complete practice tests beforehand.
Online critical thinking testing
If successful at the online numerical test, you will be invited to complete the critical thinking test.
As with the numerical test there will also be an opportunity to complete practice tests beforehand.
Service Line Questionnaire
The Service line questionnaire is designed to provide you with an opportunity to tell Deloitte which area of your chosen service line you are most interested in and which / if any professional qualification you wish to study. This stage of the process is purely for information gathering and allows the organisation to ensure you go forward to the interview stage for the area you are most suited. Please note it is not always used so pleased don't be alarmed if you are invited straight from the online stages to interview.
Stage 2: INTERVIEW
This stage typically involves two interviews. Some offices and service lines will allow you to complete both interviews on the same day; others split them into separate stages. Deloitte aims to let you know the result of your interview within three working days.
First interview
If you are successful at the online stages, you'll be invited to a first interview - with a trained interviewer - from the service line you have shown a preference for via the service line questionnaire.
Generally, this interview will take place in the office you have applied to and will last for around an hour. This initial interview has been designed to help you learn more about the firm and culture as well as giving Deloitte the opportunity to assess your suitability via the questions you'll be asked and a case study.
Please note that if you are applying for a role within Consulting (excluding Actuarial), you will also have to take part in a group exercise at this stage.
The organisation will endeavour to contact you within three working days after your first interview with the outcome and if successful you will be invited to a final interview.
In terms of preparing yourself for the first interview think of any activities, pieces of work or projects you have been involved in which stretch out over as lengthy a period of time as possible and where you had a significant role to play. They could be pieces of work you are particularly proud of, or ones that you found quite challenging, but certainly ones where you have invested time, effort and energy into. You need to be able to talk this through sequentially and in a good level of detail, and at all times being able to elaborate on what your role was in this. They are looking to assess you on a range of behaviours including planning and delivery, but also how you interacted with other people and the thought process you went through when deciding on the right course of action.
Final interview
The final interview is comprised of a presentation and an interview with a senior member of staff from your preferred service line. As part of the presentation you will receive the topic before your final interview date in order to prepare. The presentation will last roughly five minutes with ten minutes of questioning. You will need to perform to the required standard in both the presentation and the interview in order to be successful.
They will then be in touch, no later than three working days after your assessment, with the outcome.
Depending on your chosen office and service line you may be invited to attend both your first and final interview in one day, allowing you to complete the remainder of the selection process in one day. If you are invited to attend one of the Interview days your first interview will take place in the morning and if successful you will stay for a final interview in the afternoon.
Final round interview
While the first interview will focus more on your motivations and behaviours, the final Partner interview will concentrate on your values, what matters to you and how that aligns to the organisation as a business. Come prepared by thinking about what you can bring to Deloitte in terms of your core drivers and values, for example by being able to demonstrate how you strive to be the best you can be, or how you embrace working and collaborating with others. Be prepared to talk about yourself and what matters to you, and be ready to back that up with examples
Hints & Tips
A few little hints and tips to help with your application
Before you start, it makes sense to ask yourself why you really want to work with Deloitte. And be honest - it's important that you understand your motives for applying. Next up, make sure you've read their website thoroughly - particularly the client case studies and people profiles which give a great feel for the work it does in each service line and the day-to-day reality of life at Deloitte.
Completing the form
- Before you can apply, you need to register online. Once you've done that, you can log-on to the system with your username and password, revisit your application and track its progress at any time. When you come to complete the form itself:
- Check that you meet the requirements of the particular programme and service line you're applying for
- Keep your answers simple, specific, relevant and, above all, honest
- Bring them to life with practical examples of things you've done at work or university, or in a sports, charity or social context
- Make your answers bespoke - it's easy to spot those cut and pasted from other application forms!
- Before you submit your application, review it for spelling and grammar
The E-Tray test
The online E-Tray exercise consists of two tasks. First you'll need to choose from a series of multiple choice options the most appropriate responses to a series of emails that appear in your Inbox. Then you'll be asked to draft an email about a particular issue in the exercise. Before you start, settle yourself in a quiet place where you won't be disturbed. Make sure you have a good internet connection plus a notepad, pen and calculator to hand.
The inbox exercise
This part takes 60 minutes to complete, during which time you'll receive around 20 emails. There's little you can do to prepare in advance, but on the day, make sure you read the instructions and tutorial carefully before you start. When you do:
- Spend a few minutes familiarising yourself with the Inbox
- Choose the best response to each email by extracting information or making calculations
- Look out for incoming emails, which may relate to ones you've previously dealt with
- Remember not all the information you're given will necessarily be relevant
- Pay attention to the details - avoid silly mistakes with things like units and scale
- Keep an eye on the time.
The written exercise
You'll have 40 minutes to complete this part, which involves writing an email in response to a situation that's presented to you. You'll be given all the information you need to make a reasoned recommendation based on one of three options. But how you present that recommendation is entirely up to you.
- Read the email carefully, so you fully understand what's being asked of you
- Consider who your communication is intended for
- Think about the format and structure of your response
- Explain why your recommendation is more compelling than the other options
- End with a conclusion and clarify your recommendation
- Give yourself time to review your email and check for mistakes before the end.
The interview
Regardless of the particular programme or service line you're applying for, competency-based interviews will be part of the selection process. So it's good to know what they'll be looking for and how to give your best on the day.
Before you go:
- Be sure where the interview is, what time and how to get there
- Dress for the occasion - smart and businesslike
- Remind yourself what you wrote on your application
- Recap on Deloitte and the service line you're applying for.
On the day:
- Shake hands firmly when you arrive, smile, look confident and be enthusiastic
- Look the interviewer in the eye and be aware of your body language
- Listen carefully to each question before you give your answer
- Be clear, concise and specific with your answers - don't waffle
- Use practical examples to illustrate how you demonstrate our core competencies
- But focus solely on your contribution in any examples you give
- Think about the kind of questions you'd like to ask.
This last point is particularly important. After all, this stage of the process isn't just for their sake. It's also a chance to confirm that Deloitte is the right choice for you. With that in mind, here are a few example questions you might want to ask your interviewer:
- What's the most exciting thing about this role?
- What are the biggest challenges?
- Where do you see this opportunity leading?
- What are those who joined last year doing right now?
- Why did you choose to join Deloitte?
- What do you enjoy most about it now that you're here?
- How did you balance work with studying for a professional qualification?
The biggest piece of advice that can be offered, however, is really quite simple and applies to the entire application process: give it everything you've got! That's to say, enthusiasm and commitment count for a great deal at Deloitte. And this could be the first chance you have to demonstrate yours.
