By Andre Atallah, CEO of EP Advisory
Risk and Compliance graduate · UK · September 2027 start
Open on 15 October 2026 · rollingThis year’s ads have closedCheck each office’s ad for its closing date
Short answer: Apply now.This year’s ads have closed.Check your office’s ad for its closing date. There is no ad called Risk and Compliance. You apply once to PwC’s Audit, Accounting, Tax and Finance programme for one office, then choose Risk and Compliance as a preference. When we checked on 15 October 2026, six offices had a Risk route, with no fixed closing date.PwC gave no closing date. It filled roles on a rolling basis.We last checked the ads on 15 October 2026. You train for the ACA or CFAB, by office. SHL tests, a video interview, an assessment centre and a senior leader interview follow. PwC does not sponsor visas.
Where are you now?
Independent guide. EP Advisory is not affiliated with PwC.
PwC’s Risk and Compliance graduate route sits inside its Audit, Accounting, Tax and Finance programme. You apply to that programme and choose Risk and Compliance as a preference.
For nearly 10 years, we’ve helped more than 5,000 professionals get hired. Want to know if your CV will pass screening in the UK? Check your CV for free: a score in 30 seconds, then a fix for each problem.
01/10
Your route to an offer
Pick your stage and tick each step when done. Rules and dates are PwC’s, checked on 15 October 2026. Prep times are our suggestions.
1. Apply now: rolling, no deadline1. Apply (this year’s ads have closed)1. Apply by your ad’s closing date
One online form for one office, with Risk and Compliance as your preference. Prep 1 to 2 days.
2. Online tests: usually 7 days per invite
A values activity, a behavioural test and a reasoning test, all on SHL. Prep 1 to 2 weeks.
3. Video and assessment centre: usually 7 days per invite
A recorded video interview, then a virtual assessment centre. Prep 1 to 2 weeks.
4. Final interview: in person, in your office
Matching, a recruiter call, then an interview with a senior leader. Prep about 1 week. An outcome can take up to a month.
Your ticks save on this device.
02/10
The programme at a glance
A job helping clients see where risks could arise and how controls protect them.
RollingClosedSee ads
No fixed closing dateThis year’s ads have closedEach ad gives its own date
Sep 2027
Start date
6 offices6 officesSee ads
With a Risk route on 15 October 2026Had a Risk route in our checksCheck each office’s ad
ACA or CFAB
Set by your office
Any subject
Degree, passed or on track
No
Visa sponsorship
The work, in PwC’s words
- The aim. Helping clients “understand where risks could arise, how controls protect, and what good governance looks like in practice”. It also means “translating requirements into practical action”.
- The tasks. “Supporting control design and assurance activity” and “helping manage issues, strengthen processes and prepare for operational disruption”. PwC says the roles “are about more than checking boxes”.
- Office time. “A minimum of three days each week in the office or on client site.”
- Grade and pay. The ads list the grade as “Associate”. Salary is not published, so ask your recruiter (PwC FAQs).
From the Risk and Compliance tab on PwC’s programme page, checked on 15 October 2026.
Your qualification: ACA or CFAB, by office
Your office sets your qualification. PwC’s Risk tab names none. The office ads do. Both come from ICAEW, the chartered accountants’ body.
ACA: Belfast, Cardiff, Leeds
ICAEW’s Chartered Accountant qualification. It “is made up of 14 exams spread over three levels”.
CFAB: Birmingham, Edinburgh, Manchester
ICAEW’s Certificate in Finance, Accounting and Business. Six exams, with a duration of “12 months or less”.
CFAB’s six modules “are the same six modules as the first level of” the ACA. ICAEW calls it “a clear progression route onto the ACA qualification” (ICAEW). PwC does not say whether it moves Risk trainees from CFAB on to the ACA. Ask your recruiter.
The first exam that fits Risk, and the format
- The six exams. Accounting Fundamentals, Assurance and Risk Fundamentals, Business Insight and Performance, Business Law, Sustainability and Ethics, and Tax Fundamentals.
- The Risk link. Assurance and Risk Fundamentals covers “the assessment of internal controls”.
- The format. These exams “take between 1.5-2 hours”, “have a 55% pass mark” and “can be sat at any time throughout the year” (ICAEW exams).
03/10
What PwC looks for in Risk and Compliance
PwC accepts any degree subject and names no degree class. The Risk ads and tab describe the person they want.
Numbers and technology
“Comfortable and enjoy working with numbers and technology.” Show it by: a CV result with a number.
Teamwork
“Build strong relationships and thrive in a team.” Show it by: a group result you helped deliver.
Curiosity
“Curious to learn the financial management behind every type of organisation.” Show it by: how one organisation you know runs its money.
Good questions
“Asking the right questions, spotting emerging risks, making processes better.” Show it by: a problem you spotted early and fixed.
The ads also ask you to “research your chosen business category and business area thoroughly”, and to know the qualification for your preference.
PwC scores six behaviours at every stage. It calls them the PwC Professional. Your stories should show each one.
Trusted Leadership
Inspire: “I understand my impact and people want to work with me.”
Empower: “I coach and work side by side with others.”
Evolve: “I grow as a person and guide us into the future.”
Distinctive Outcomes
Champion: “I commit to quality, integrity and inclusive behaviour.”
Build: “I apply a business mindset to my work to increase PwC’s success.”
Deliver: “I collaborate across PwC to deliver quality and distinctive client experiences.”
From PwC’s behaviours page. Your examples can come from study, part-time work, volunteering or clubs.
04/10Stage 1 · Apply
How to apply
Apply now: thereThereThere is no ad called Risk and Compliance. Risk is a tab inside PwC’s Audit, Accounting, Tax and Finance (AATF) programme. You apply to AATF for one office and state Risk as your preference.
1
Pick an office
One of six with a Risk routeOne with a Risk routeOne with a Risk route
2
Open its AATF ad
“Graduate – Audit, Accounting, Tax and Finance – Leeds”, for example
3
State your preference
Risk and Compliance, in the form
4
Online tests
Invite usually open 7 days
PwC, on each ad: “preferences are considered but not guaranteed”. PwC sets a first-choice rule only for Actuarial, not for Risk.
Offices with a Risk and Compliance route
| Office | Qualification | Ad status on 15 October 2026Ad statusAd status |
|---|---|---|
| Belfast | ACA | OpenClosedSee the ad |
| Birmingham | CFAB | OpenClosedSee the ad |
| Cardiff | ACA | OpenClosedSee the ad |
| Edinburgh | CFAB | OpenClosedSee the ad |
| Leeds | ACA | OpenClosedSee the ad |
| Manchester | CFAB | OpenClosedSee the ad |
| London | Not shown | Not visible on PwC’s job site when we checked. Check it before you apply.This year’s ads have closed.Not visible when we checked on 15 October 2026. Check PwC’s job site before you apply. |
Each ad we checked listed a Risk and Compliance route and said no visa sponsorship. PwC says roles “may close without warning”, so check PwC’s job site before you apply.This year’s ads have closed. Check PwC’s job site for the next ones.Check each ad on PwC’s job site for its closing date. The other nine AATF offices we checked listed no Risk route.
More on the form and the one-application rule
- One application. PwC says: “We’ll only consider one application for our 2027 programmes.”
- Grades. Do not “be vague or lie about your results”, because PwC checks them later.
- AI. No AI tools, “unless explicitly authorised by PwC”. Ask for adjustments when you apply.
Your CV: do and don’t
Do
“Checked 240 club expense claims against the rules and fixed 9 errors”
Show care, rules and a result. Give each role one number.
Don’t
“Detail-oriented team player”
A claim with no proof. Show what you did instead.
Our CV achievement examples show how to write those lines. Getting ready to apply for jobs in the UK? Check your CV for free: see it the way a recruiter does, then fix each problem.
Save PwC and over 2,000 other UK schemes to one free calendar. See what closes next and what you have applied to.
Track my schemes freeFree account, no card.
Not this year, or not for you? Your other routes
- 2028 programmes. If you are unsuccessful or withdraw, you wait for 2028. PwC had not published a date when we checked on 15 October 2026.PwC’s 2028-start ads were open when we checked on 15 October 2026.PwC has given an opening date.PwC has not confirmed a date yet.PwC had no open 2028-start ads when we checked on 15 October 2026. Watch its job search.
- Summer Internship 2027. Paid, four to eight weeks, for students in the “penultimate year” of a degree. A Risk route runs in London, Edinburgh and Birmingham. It “can lead to a graduate job offer” (PwC).
- Diversity in Business. Three national Risk and Compliance programmes: Black Talent in Business, Women in Business and Advancing Social Mobility. Each is a “three-day programme” for first-year students, or second-year on a four-year degree. London hosts all three (PwC).
- Cyber or financial crime instead? In the ads we checked, Technology and AI listed Financial Crime and Forensics in Belfast and Cybersecurity in Birmingham. It uses your one application, so it is a choice, not a second try.
- PwC Audit. Our PwC Audit playbook covers the audit route.
05/10Stage 2 · Online tests
The PwC online tests
PwC’s online stage runs on SHL, in three parts. Only the last part is timed. There is no Risk-only test.
Not assessed
1. Values activity
Untimed
2. Behavioural test
Timed
3. Reasoning test
From PwC’s selection page. The timed test covers numerical, inductive and deductive reasoning. PwC uses no situational judgement test and names no verbal test. No PwC page or Risk ad names a controls, regulation or Excel test.
Likely, not named by PwC: SHL Verify Interactive G+. SHL’s factsheet describes one timed test of these three abilities: 36 minutes, up to 24 questions. PwC publishes no timing, so check your invite.
Step through each test
Behavioural: untimed
PwC’s practice asks “Which statement best describes you?” and shows three statements. You pick one. One from PwC’s practice: “I do not reveal other people’s private information”.
PwC’s advice is “Go with your instincts”.
Your moves
- Answer as you are, not as you think PwC wants.
- Take your time, since there is no timer.
Numerical: timed
Build the chart
Read the facts on the left, then drag each bar to the right height or type the total under it. Employers set their own version, so yours may differ.
Split the pie
Work out each share of the budget, then drag the handles round the pie or type the percentages.
Sort into order
Work out a value for each row of the table, then drag the items into order from highest to lowest.
The classic version
SHL also offers a multiple-choice version. Read the table and chart, then pick one of five answers.
Your moves
- Drill percentage change, ratios and totals from tables.
- Keep paper and a pen for working, as PwC’s practice suggests.
Inductive: timed
Fill the next grid
Spot how the pattern moves from grid to grid, then click squares in the big grid to draw the one that comes next. Employers set their own version, so yours may differ.
Join the points
Each step adds a line. Find the rule, then drag from point to point to draw the lines that finish the sequence.
The classic version
In the multiple-choice version you see a row of figures and pick the one that comes next from five options.
Your moves
- Track one change at a time: shape, position, then count.
- Say the rule in words before you answer.
Deductive: timed
PwC publishes no deductive example. SHL’s sample gives you facts and asks which statement must be true.
Your moves
- Write each rule as a short note.
- Start with the item that has the most rules.
- Check every rule again before you move on.
Our own simplified drawings of SHL’s screens, not screenshots. Numbers on them are examples. PwC’s version may differ.
For more on reasoning items, see our tips for psychometric tests.
The rules: allowed and banned
Allowed
- Practice tests sent with your invite
- Adjustments, if you ask when you apply
- A laptop or tablet, as PwC recommends
- A calculator in PwC’s practice. Check your invite for the real test.
Banned
- AI tools, unless PwC authorises them
- Help from anyone else
- Duplicate accounts
- Copied answers
From PwC’s selection page. PwC checks for “highly similar responses” and signs of AI-assisted support. It withdraws applications it flags.
On the day: practice and deadline
- Practice. PwC offers practice tests after your invite. Its own guide warns its samples are “slightly different to the actual tests”.
- Deadline. Each stage is “usually seven days from receiving the invite”.
Go further: the best outside help
Our own picks, checked on 15 October 2026. We are not linked to any of these sites and earn nothing from them.
From PwC
- PwC’s own guide to the online testsPwC Careers · up to 45 min · no account neededPwC’s practice questions for each test, with its own tips.Free
Practise
- SHL’s free practice testsSHL, the test maker · free SHL account neededThe test maker’s own practice. PwC links to it.Free
- SHL’s example questionsSHL · no account neededSee the formats before you sign up. Skip verbal and SJT.Free
Watch
- 15 SHL reasoning questions solved, step by stepAptitude-Test-Prep on YouTube · Mar 2025 · 54 min · the host is a JobTestPrep affiliateInteractive numerical, inductive and deductive items, worked through.Free
Skip leaked PwC questions and AI helpers. PwC checks for copied answers and AI help, and withdraws applications it flags.
Next: build your speed on numbers and logic with our guide to psychometric and logic tests.
06/10Stage 3 · Interviews
The video interview and assessment centre
Two stages: a recorded video interview, then a virtual assessment centre. Both test the six behaviours. PwC publishes no extra interview for Risk.
Video interviewSHL, on demand
Questions on screen · Recorded · Reviewed by PwC
Assessment centreVirtual
Human and technical skills · Exercises not published
PwC says: “we do not use AI to assess candidate performance”.
PwC says the video questions “will focus on how you typically approach your work, for example at school, university or any prior work experience you may have”. It does not publish the exact questions, timings or the assessment centre’s exercises.
How to answer: PwC’s STAR method
PwC’s interview guide recommends STAR. Build each story in four parts:
Situation
Set the scene in one or two lines.
Task
What you had to achieve.
Action
What you did, not the team.
Result
What changed, with a number.
Follow-ups to rehearse
What would you do differently?Which PwC behaviour does this show?Why risk and compliance?
PwC’s tip: “you can use notes as prompts, but don’t read from them”. The follow-ups are ours.
See our guides on how to pass a job interview and the toughest interview questions.
Practise: one question at a time
Motivation questions
The first two come from PwC. The rest, and all answers, are ours.
Motivation
“Why do you want to join your preferred employer?”
PwC’s own practice question, with two minutes to answer
What they’re testing: a clear, specific reason.
Show a strong answer
- Give one reason about risk work, one about PwC and one about you. Record it, then watch it back.
Why PwC
Why are you interested in joining PwC?
PwC says its final interview covers this
What they’re testing: that you researched PwC, not just the industry.
Show a strong answer
- Name something specific: a PwC behaviour that fits you, or a Risk task from its programme page.
Why risk
Why risk and compliance?
What they’re testing: that you know what the work is.
Show a strong answer
- Name one task from PwC’s Risk tab: control design, managing issues or preparing for operational disruption.
- Link it to a time you checked rules or fixed a process. Show you know the work is “about more than checking boxes”.
Your exams
How will you handle professional exams alongside client work?
What they’re testing: commitment, and that you know your office’s qualification.
Show a strong answer
- Name your office’s qualification, ACA or CFAB. Mention Assurance and Risk Fundamentals, which covers “the assessment of internal controls”.
- Add a time you kept up hard study alongside other work.
Behaviour questions
These prompts and answers are ours, one per behaviour.
Inspire
Tell me about a time people chose to follow your lead.
What they’re testing: influence.
Show a strong answer
- A role you earned, how you earned it, and what the group achieved.
Empower
Tell me about a time you explained a rule to someone who found it hard.
What they’re testing: coaching.
Show a strong answer
- Who needed help, how you made the rule simple, and what they could do afterwards.
Evolve
Tell me about a time you learned a new tool or skill fast.
What they’re testing: whether you grow.
Show a strong answer
- Why you needed it, how you learned it, and what you did with it next.
Champion
Tell me about a time you raised a problem others had missed.
What they’re testing: quality and integrity.
Show a strong answer
- What you noticed, why it mattered, how you raised it, and what changed.
Build
Tell me about a time you made a process work better.
What they’re testing: a business mindset.
Show a strong answer
- The old way, your change, and the saving in time, money or errors.
Deliver
Tell me about a time you worked across groups to finish something.
What they’re testing: teamwork.
Show a strong answer
- Who was involved, how you kept them aligned, and what the end user got.
Your story bank: a worksheet to print or copy
Two STAR stories per behaviour, plus your Risk answers.
| Behaviour | Story 1 | Story 2 |
|---|---|---|
| Inspire | ||
| Empower | ||
| Evolve | ||
| Champion | ||
| Build | ||
| Deliver | ||
| Why risk, and your ACA or CFAB |
Go further: the best outside help
Our own picks, checked on 15 October 2026. We are not linked to any of these sites and earn nothing from them.
From PwC
- The six behaviours PwC scoresPwC Careers · no account neededMatch one story to each behaviour.Free
- PwC’s interview guide, with a 2-minute practicePwC Careers · no account neededFilm a two-minute answer, then review it with PwC’s checklist.Free
- PwC’s guide to assessment centresPwC Careers · no account neededCommon exercises and tips for a virtual centre.Free
- What Risk and Compliance trainees doPwC Careers · open the Risk and Compliance tab · no account neededPick one task, such as control design or preparing for operational disruption, and say why it interests you.Free
From ICAEW
- How the ICAEW exams workICAEW, the body that sets them · no account neededPwC links to this page. Your first six exams include Assurance and Risk Fundamentals.Free
Watch
- PwC recruiters answer the top questionsPwC UK Careers on YouTube · Oct 2026 · 5 minAnswers on AI, one application and practice tests.Free
07/10Stage 4 · Final
Matching and the final interview
The final interview is in person, with a senior leader from your matched business area.
Matching
After the assessment centre, PwC matches you to a business area and office. Preferences “are considered but not guaranteed”.
Recruiter call
You book a call with a recruiter. It includes a recap of your feedback so far.
Senior leader interview
In person, in your matched office. PwC wants to hear “why you are interested in joining PwC”.
Outcome
The PwC UK Careers team gives you feedback and the result. It could take up to a month.
If you are matched to Risk: name one Risk task and your office’s qualification in your “why” answer.
Offer checks and start date
- Checks. Fit and Proper and Independence assessments, background and criminal record checks, and Right to Work. PwC also checks “your grades and job history”.
- Travel. PwC pays travel from outside the UK to its in-person offer holder event only if agreed first. Then it pays economy fares only.
- No deferrals. PwC does not offer deferred starts.
Key dates: September 2027 intake
14 and 16 Sep 2026
Risk office ads posted
17 Sep 2026
Applications opened
15 October 2026
Ads open, no fixed closing date. Apply now
This cycle
This year’s ads have closed
Your ad
Apply by the date on your ad
Each stage
Invite usually open 7 days
Each stage
Invite usually open 7 days
Sep 2027
Start date, in your matched office
08/10
Visa sponsorship
PwC does not sponsor visas for Risk and Compliance. All six Risk ads we checked said so. You need your own right to work.
No
Sponsorship, on all 6 ads we checked
Not listed
On PwC’s October 2026 visa list
18 months
Graduate visa, if you apply from 2027
On a Graduate visa? PwC says your right to work must cover “the full duration of the position”. A Graduate visa you apply for from 1 January 2027 lasts 18 months, and you cannot extend it (GOV.UK). So ask PwC before you apply.
PwC’s immigration page, “correct as of October 2026”, leaves Risk and Compliance off its sponsored list. The Risk internship and diversity ads we checked also said no sponsorship.
Visa details: Graduate visa length and PwC’s sponsored list
- Graduate visa by 31 December 2026. GOV.UK gives “2 years if you apply on or before 31 December 2026”. Still ask PwC whether that covers the position.
- Where PwC does sponsor. Its October 2026 list names Audit and Assurance (London, Reading, Watford), Deals (London), Workforce Consulting PQ (London), Strategy Consulting (London) and Tax Services (London, Reading, Watford). Any of these uses your one application.
- Visa cut-off. For those sponsored roles, the September 2027 intake cut-off is 1 June 2027.was set for 1 June 2027. Risk is not on that list, so this cut-off does not apply to Risk.
See our guides to staying in the UK after studying and UK companies that sponsor visas. This is general information, so check GOV.UK.
09/10
Key takeaways
Before you apply
- Risk and Compliance was open in six UK offices when we checked on 15 October 2026, with no fixed closing date. So apply now.This year’s ads have closed. PwC filled roles on a rolling basis, with no closing date.Check your office’s ad for its closing date, and apply before it.
- There is no Risk ad. Apply to PwC’s Audit, Accounting, Tax and Finance programme and state Risk and Compliance as your preference.
- PwC considers one application for all its 2027 programmes.
- Belfast, Cardiff and Leeds train for the ACA. Birmingham, Edinburgh and Manchester train for CFAB.
- The SHL tests are an untimed behavioural test and a timed reasoning test. There is no Risk-only test.
- Your “why risk” answer should name a real task, such as control design.
- PwC does not sponsor visas for Risk and Compliance, so you need your own right to work.
When a scheme gives a close date, we email you a few days before it closes. Save PwC once and the reminder is set.
Set my reminders freeFree account, no card.
10/10
Frequently asked questions
Is there a separate PwC Risk and Compliance graduate scheme?
No. Risk and Compliance is a business area inside PwC’s Audit, Accounting, Tax and Finance programme. You apply to that programme for one office and choose Risk and Compliance as a preference. PwC says preferences are considered but not guaranteed.
Which PwC offices hire Risk and Compliance graduates?
Belfast, Birmingham, Cardiff, Edinburgh, Leeds and Manchester had a Risk route for September 2027 when we checked on 15 October 2026. London’s ad was not visible on PwC’s job site, so check it before you apply.Belfast, Birmingham, Cardiff, Edinburgh, Leeds and Manchester had a Risk route for September 2027. This year’s ads had closed when we checked on 15 October 2026.Belfast, Birmingham, Cardiff, Edinburgh, Leeds and Manchester had a Risk route for September 2027 when we checked on 15 October 2026. Check each office’s ad for its closing date.
Which qualification will I study in PwC Risk and Compliance?
It depends on your office. Belfast, Cardiff and Leeds train for the ACA. Birmingham, Edinburgh and Manchester train for CFAB, ICAEW’s six-exam certificate. PwC does not say whether it moves CFAB trainees on to the ACA.
What online tests does PwC use for Risk and Compliance?
The tests run on SHL. You start with a values activity that is not assessed. Then you take an untimed behavioural test and a timed test with numerical, inductive and deductive reasoning. There is no Risk-only test.
Does PwC sponsor visas for Risk and Compliance?
No. All six Risk ads we checked said no sponsorship, and PwC’s October 2026 visa list leaves Risk and Compliance out. You need your own right to work for the whole programme.
When does the PwC Risk and Compliance scheme close?
PwC publishes no closing date. It fills roles on a rolling basis, and they may close without warning. So apply as soon as you are ready.PwC published no closing date. It filled roles on a rolling basis. This year’s ads had closed when we checked on 15 October 2026.Check your office’s AATF ad for its closing date. PwC may also close roles without warning.
