Should DS do a Big 4 Apprenticeship or go to Cambridge?

[StressedaboutUni]

DS has managed to get a Big4 Apprenticeship in Accountancy and he has also managed to get an offer to read economics at Cambridge. Assuming he gets the grades, he is not sure which one to pick. Going to the apprenticeship would give him the opportunity to save 60k over three years vs 45k debt. He would also be able to become fully qualified accountant in 4 years. He would not get a degree though.
Cambridge would open doors for him in other industries that he may consider in the future such as Investment Banking or Management Consultancy.
He is really confused on what to do.

@cantkeepawayforever We will be able to top up his maintenance loan but not much more than that- hence he will need to get the tuition loan and the part of maintenance he is eligible for.
The debt won’t be real if he doesn’t get a high paying job, but if he does hopefully manage that then he will pay it off so at that point the debt is realised. However you do raise the good point that perhaps it is not that much of a monthly salary.

Cambridge without a doubt. Having that behind him will open doors

Sorry, I was distracted by my toddler and pressed post before providing any helpful content!

For me, the benefits of having a degree are huge in particular one where you have to write essays. Those transferable skills from my degree - researching, writing, being challenged on your arguments in supervisions - are skills are I use every single day. Very few accountants end up dealing with numbers all the time, especially at a Big 4. Being able to present your ideas coherently to clients, partners etc is far more important and it's a skill that I often felt was really really lacking in our apprentices. They were often great and smart people but they didn't have the experience of the intellectual rigour of a degree and it was really obvious in the quality of their work, especially written work.

I totally understand the financial concerns these days as the debt is higher than when I was at uni back in the early 2000s but I tried to look at my debt as an investment in my future. I moved a little bit sideways a few years ago and now work in an associated policy type role and there's no way I'd be able to do the job I do now without my undergrad experiences and education.

With a Cambridge economics degree some very high earning jobs will be open to him. Massive flexibility for future direction.

Please excuse typos - my son is shouting at me while I'm trying to type. I promise I really do have a Cambridge degree!

PS both my DDs did MML degrees at Cambridge and are now pursuing legal opportunities successfully. That might in part be due to the Cambridge name, as big City law firms are still swayed by the name and it does seem to open doors. This may be less so in other professions or sectors. I don’t think he will regret the Cambridge degree given he has a curious mind.

With an ACCA qualification you can write a dissertation and get a degree from Oxford-Brookes. Big 4

I'm an accountant, and with an averagely bright young adult who specifically wants to get into accountancy I'd advise the apprenticeship route every time - manly based on that debt v earning equation you mention.
I've strongly suggested this to my 17yo who is very interested in accountancy.

But, your son isn't averagely bright if he's got an economics offer from Cambridge. I think from the things that you have said the degree should be a very strong contender.

My ds1 wants to go into investment banking. He is currently in yr 2 of an econometrics degree at Exeter, having not received an offer from his first choice of LSE. He's been applying for summer apprenticeship but hasn't got anywhere with the IB ones, he has secured a big 4 Economic Consulting one. His aim has always been City salary, and an accountancy apprenticeship would not have secured that for him.

@mynameiscalypso Thanks, you do raise the valuable point about the skills learnt in the degree and how they can be useful in the workplace especially in accountancy. That isn’t something I had considered

I’d go for the degree - my dd started a graduate apprenticeship with a Big 4 in September. Despite passing all her audit exams very well she loathed every minute of it, and gave her notice in at Christmas.

The Big 4 will still be there after he graduates, and hopefully he’ll have a lot of fun before graduation.

Sorry pushed post too quickly 🤦‍♀️ was going to say big 4 would be my choice as it still gives great earning potential without the huge student debt.

Cambridge, without a doubt

@Chasingsquirrels Yes DS is definitely bright as he did get an offer from Cambridge. He just thinks will he regret it if he ends up doing the same job as he would have done with the apprenticeship if he doesn’t get into IB as it is very competitive as you mentioned.

Careers are so long, the Cambridge degree will be opening doors for him throughout his career - so even if he starts out in the “same job” initially, he doesn’t know what the subsequent branches will be, but for sure the degree will only be an advantage.

And education is about so much more than just this job vs that job. It’s a whole world of experience, of new ideas, of expression, of friends etc to explore.

Absolutely the degree!

As I said Ds1 was initially applying for the IB internships, but then started reading around more and was interested by the Economic Consulting ones, applied for a few and that's what he's got for this summer.
The degree will open far more options for your ds than the apprenticeship.
But I agree the cost is a major issue, my ds has full tuition and maintenance loans so is going to come out with £60k debt.
That's obviously a massive amount, but the repayment is a % of salary above a certain level and it isn't viewed in the same way as other debt.

I'm a Cambridge grad and big 4 trained accountant. I'd do the degree, no question. In career terms, a Cambridge degree stands out much more than ACA qualified accountant. It genuinely opens doors.

But beyond career, if your DS is intellectually curious, he will love the experience of Cambridge. You're surrounded by really interesting people, students and academics.

I've interviewed a fair few recently qualified accountants over the past 10 years and I do wonder why some of them have bothered with an Accountancy and Finance degree from a low ranking university, instead of going straight for an apprenticeship or other work route. But the ones with strong degrees from well known universities seem to bring something extra that makes the degree feel worthwhile.

A relative read maths/economics at Cambridge, dropped maths as it was difficult. Ended up seconded to IMF and rather high up at the bank of England, then into the City with their address book.
I'd go to Cambridge first. If he wants to get his ACA he'll only be 24 and only have to do a 3 year contract, not 4. I'm an FCA but no degree, just prof quals.

See it as about the journey. The people your DS will get to learn from at Cambridge will be amazing (mostly). So what if he ends up doing the same job as someone who did the other route? You can’t look at too may ifs or planning a life of regrets. He may just as easily do the apprenticeship and wonder what might have happened if he took up the Cambridge role.

Cambridge. No question.

I have an Oxbridge degree and an ACA.

Agreed.

Cambridge, obviously!

I would personally choose Cambridge

Cambridge it’s a no brainer. Even with inflation £100k will be nothing when he’s older and earning in his career.

Also don’t think of life as just a job. Cambridge will be an amazing experience

The degree.

If he still wants to work for the Big 4 and be an accountant, that path will likely still be open to him after the degree. The experience and opportunity to study at Cambridge can’t be beaten and he might have a different perspective and wants at the end of the degree, or take the original path but it gives him lots of choices.

(well done to your DS).