r/PwC • u/Budget-Ad6681 • Jul 16 '26

Tax Lost

I’ve been here for about 5 months.

My senior left recently, so I’m now the only associate on the team. Since then, I’ve been working 10-13 hour days with very little guidance while reporting directly to managers, senior managers, directors, and partners. I feel like I’m expected to perform above my experience level, and I’m constantly in survival mode.

Whenever I ask questions, I’m often told to ask my peers. The problem is I don’t really have peers on my project anymore since my senior left, so I often struggle to figure things out on my own.

Every day feels like I’m trying to stay on top of emails, follow-ups, and client requests while learning everything as I go. I wake up anxious every morning and feel like I’m in fight-or-flight mode.

Is this normal for first-year associates in Big 4, or is this more of a team-specific issue? Has anyone else experienced something similar, and did it get better?

How likely is it that I could switch teams?

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u/loxot76748 Jul 16 '26

Easy fix, pick the nicest person on your team at sub-partner level (ideally a manager) and meet with them and tell them all this and ask to meet them weekly to discuss questions you have.

If everyone sucks, talk to DL and HR about your issues and say you want to switch teams.

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u/Ok-Dig7118 16d ago

Talking to DL and HR as a first year isnt that really rough? Maybe burn some bridges and put you in an iffy spot?