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Original poster

AAT/ACCA/accountancy

76 replies

Mog · 01/05/2007 19:51

I know we have a few accountants on here so would appreciate some help. I'm looking to start the AAT qualification in September - mainly for interest and also dh and I are in the process of setting up our own business. I'm always up for a challenge so am looking at how far I can take this if I really enjoy it.
So can anyone tell me - do you enjoy accountancy and what areas do you work in. Also do you think there would be a bias against 'older' people who retrain in this. We know now their can't be (!) but in the real world would it be difficult to get the practical experience as a more mature student.
Would also be interested to hear from people who hate accountancy as want to go in with my eyes open.
Thanks in advance

OP posts:
RoundTheBend · 03/05/2007 00:00

Another bit of good news. I charged between £18-22 per hour. Depending on whose books I was doing and what they expected from me. So the money for AAT qualified is good. If you do decide to run your own business, take out insurance, it is cheap (£36 per month) but well worth it. If you make a mistake, a serious one, it could cost you a lot of money, the insurance is there specifically to cover you for any mistakes. Doing people's books, accounts and tax returns carries a lot of responsibility. If you advertise that you can do it, you have to be prepared to do it right, so do not go looking for work until you feel confident that you can. I started off by doing bookeeping for a local accountancy firm. They would subcontract their VAT jobs to me. That was basically entering all the paperwork the client had given them and making sure everything balanced and if it did not, to note why it did not. That was great experience.

Original poster
Mog · 03/05/2007 10:42

Thank you all for the info - it's very encouraging and delighted to hear so many of you enjoy this kind of work.
I'm thinking the AAT might be better as a mature student. You can still get jobs or work for yourself and then if you want to go further people will know your ability and perhaps age will be less of an issue. I feel if I go straight to ACCA it might be difficult to get anyone to take me seriously and the main jobs would be trainee accountancy ones and think I've very little chance at my age.

OP posts:
Azure · 03/05/2007 10:59

I am ACA qualified but work in industry. Amazingly I managed to go down to 4 days per week as an FD, but I had been working here for years. The downside is that I feel tied to this job as I know I would be unlikely to get another. In my department there are a number of people (of all ages) who have started doing accounts assistant or accounts payable work and who we have sponsored to do AAT and CIMA or ACCA after they have been with us a short while (incl someone part-time). I think starting with AAT is a great idea, but ensure it provides as many exemptions as possible should you wish to progress. It is a long, hard slog doing CIMA or ACCA even for those young'uns without a family, but ultimately it depends on what your final objectives are.

Pamina · 03/05/2007 11:04

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

Original poster
Mog · 03/05/2007 11:08

Do you enjoy it Azure?

OP posts:
Azure · 03/05/2007 11:41

TBH since I returned from maternity leave after #2 my heart hasn't been in it, as I would much rather be at home (but ridiculous mortgage dictates otherwise). That's not a reflection on the role, though. I do normally enjoy it but as subsidiary of a U.S. company the number of reporting deadlines continues to increase, which makes it difficult to do the job in the time I'm prepared to spend at work. All that is very particular to my job, though. In general I am hugely glad I chose accountancy as it gives you a recognised qualification in a field which is always needed.

Pamina · 03/05/2007 12:13

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

crunchie · 03/05/2007 19:41

I work for Hays, but perhaps I am more understanding of your situation as I have kids myself

It is not necessarily down to the agency, more the consultant.

I am in Sufflok if that helps you

CountTo10 · 03/05/2007 21:11

mishw - if you've had zero experience in a finance background and are not going to be doing acca/cima as part of your job then I personally wouldn't advise crashing straight onto acca. I tried it and struggled. AAT/CAT break down the foundation level of ACCA into more manageable chunks and give a broader spectrum - plus they concentrate on a lot of the basics that feed into the foundations and contribute to what you're looking at. It would be worth looking at the acca website which gives details as well as the bpp professional education site as they can give you some good detail as to what's entailed in each syllabus.

weepootleflump · 03/05/2007 21:28

CountTo10, are you doing your CAT qual as home study? I've been looking into this, although I have no finance background (I'm in comms) but can't seem to find any courses except distance learning.

ChasingSquirrels · 03/05/2007 21:48

crunchie - where in suffolk are you? doing any recruitment for baker tilly in bury atm? I hear they are crying out for staff - maybe worth talking to them if you aren't already (i'm NOT with BT, and I'm in cambridge - so no ulteria motive)

crunchie · 03/05/2007 22:02

I don't dea; with practice, I do commerce and industry. I ahve a collegue who is recruiting for B&T in Bury though!!
I cover Ipswich, Bury and Colchester qualified temps

Pamina · 04/05/2007 10:43

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

Original poster
Mog · 04/05/2007 19:31

For anyone who has been following this thread - I spoke to a training provider this afternoon and they gave me some useful information. AAT have brought out a new qualification of Diploma as well as an NVQ. They more or less follow the same syallabus but the Diploma doesn't have such a demand for practical experience so ideal for mums at home.
Can I ask those of you who have studied before - is it difficult to study the Foundation level by distance learning bearing in mind I have no accounts experience?

OP posts:
Original poster
Mog · 04/05/2007 19:33

Roundthebend - how amazing that you created your own business from scratch. Well done you!!
Can I ask how many hours you had to work each week and was it difficult to find clients?

OP posts:
Idreamofdaleks · 04/05/2007 19:50

AAT is a great qualification to hold and you can get some interesting and well paid jobs with it.

I am an accountant who doesn't enjoy accountancy! I stay in my job because it is fairly well paid and part time - and it would be very hard for me to find another part time job on the same money. My job is extremely pressurized and stressful - this is mainly because I am a really creative person and feel like a square peg!

RoundTheBend · 05/05/2007 19:37

I was very lucky in that a lot of my business was word of mouth. Also, I sent my cv to all the local accountants asking for bookeeping work. They are normally crying out for part-timers/contractors so that could be a good place for you to start. They all have different ways of doing it (laying it out/entering data) so I have no doubt that they will go through it all with you first. The accountants also sent me clients too.

From basic bookeeping, I progressed to doing 2 days a week with a local company on their Sage system, doing more and more of management accounts and personal tax returns. Some people are happy to pay £175 for their tax return to be completed.

I found I worked mainly whilst the children were at school, then again after they had gone to bed.

The Foundation level you should be able to do easily at home.

Original poster
Mog · 04/06/2007 16:20

Well much to my amazement I've managed to secure an interview as a finance assistant for a charity. It's a really interesting job and I've already started AAT by distance learning.
Since the job would give me a wide range of accountancy experience do you think I should jump to ACCA? It would be part time so I would have free days to study when dc are at school. Do you think it is doable? (I love studying by the way)

OP posts:
Original poster
Mog · 05/06/2007 12:43

.

OP posts:
gonnaneedabiggerboat · 05/06/2007 21:10

I used to be mish but had a name change to stop Dh from seeing my posts - not that theres anything I'm hidung, but anyway back onto subject!

Someone has suggested to me that it might be a good idea to do a course on book keeping to get me started so I can at least go back to work (well work from home) and earn some much needed money. Is this a good idea or should I just go straight into the ACCA?

I'm totally confused!

gonnaneedabiggerboat · 05/06/2007 23:13

bump

Azure · 06/06/2007 09:13

Mog congratulations on your interview - I hope you get the job. If you feel committed enough to do the ACCA (and it takes several years) I would go for it. It could be worth speaking again to the training advisor. Gonnaneedabiggerboat (what a mouthful!) no practical advice but wanted to bump.

gonnaneedabiggerboat · 06/06/2007 09:17

thanks azure - I know I need to change again I think!

quint · 06/06/2007 09:41

is this better?!

quint · 06/06/2007 09:41

When's your interview mog? Good luck