After AAT (thats if i actually pass!)

alicemaylara

Hiya,
Im looking for a bit of advice on what to do after AAT. I have thought about doing ACCA just to up my wage/job opportunity but I don't actually want to do it! I would have to use all my £10k savings to do it. I don't realy want to have the repsponsibility og being a top accountant. I'd rather work in the lower end. But am i being a but stupid and will it mean I'm stuck in a really low paid job? Ermmm any advice/your experiences would be helpful really!
Thanks :huh:

Sonny_L

If you are looking for senior level pay without senior level responsibility you may struggle.

Remember that as you become more experienced and in turn more competent, the idea of being 'top accountant' will become less daunting. Working 'lower down' meanwhile will be frustrating, boring and lack challenge.

Is a CCAB going to payback that £10k long term?

I'd say if you have the drive and ambition to use it, yes.

alicemaylara

Maybe its just my lack of confidence at the moment. I seem to get so much wrong at work and at college there are some people in the class who just 'get it' while im completed lost! Anyone else feel overwelmed sometimes? How oldish are you! I am 20 but i look about 17 so i feel really young and intimidated at work!:(

Jan

Maybe its just my lack of confidence at the moment. I seem to get so much wrong at work

Alice, this is probably just a temporary thing - we've all felt this way at some point in our lives. Is there a collegue that can help you out if there is something at work you don't understand? Better to ask & get it right than go blindly on doing something wrong. And remember we are human (well most of are!) and make mistakes sometimes. I was once told I was more human than most..nice!

and at college there are some people in the class who just 'get it' while im completed lost!

.. which means that not everyone gets it first time and don't be fooled by someone appearing to get it. I learned that a long time ago after coming out of an exam, my friend said it had been easy and I didn't.....funny that 'cos I got far more marks than she did :laugh: Again if you don't understand, ask. If you're embaressed to ask in front of everybody else, try to have a quiet word with your tutor. They won't mind, its their job.

Now your op said you didn't know what to do after AAT. At what stage are you at? Where are you working at the moment, in a practice? What do your employers want you to do and what do you find easiest to understand? Look at your strengths and that may show you which way to go. ACCA isn't the only option. I worked with someone who did ATT after AAT and with her experience was (&still is) better at her job than some ACCA qualifieds. Not everyone is cut out to be a "top accountant" as you put it. And success does not necesarily mean earning lots of money..if it makes you miserable what's the point?

Sonny says

if you have the drive and ambition to use it

But not everyone has great ambitions, mine was to be happy, so some days I am more sucessful than others! I fell into accounting in my 30's & choose not to continue studying after AAT, which I finished when I was 46 (I am now an oldish 51 :ohmy:) I make a reasonable wage bookkeeping. Some may think I have wasted my qualification, but I find that having the understanding of what happens next helps me to do my job better (and I always say, makes it easier for the accountants:001_smile:) Does that mean I am working 'lower down' and am frustrated, boring and lack challenge? OK, maybe I am boring

Is there any need to decide what you need to do now? Don't rush into anything if you are not ready. However I do agree with sinny

Remember that as you become more experienced and in turn more competent, the idea of being 'top accountant' will become less daunting.

Hope this helps, and I haven't waffled on too much!.

As ever, good luck in wherever life takes you....and it may not be where you think you are headed.

alicemaylara

Aw thank you for that reply. It is reassuring to know that some people value life more than work. My dad is rather pushy and always expects us to go on to higher and higher positions in work. Its like that is the only thing that matters but for me its not!

'Does that mean I am working 'lower down' and am frustrated, boring and lack challenge?'

Exactly what i thought when i read it! And as you said no its not its just a different way. (maybe its a male/female thing here)

Anyway what you said made alot of sense so thank you. Oh and I am the only employee so it is rather intense and there are no collegues i can go running to! Your right there is no rush.
What would i do without these boards!

Sonny_L

You offer someone advice and get a subtle dig in return.

Ambitious and career motivated does not equal dull workaholic. Different things.

Work hard and play hard.

The term 'lower down' was coined in the OP also.

alicemaylara

I apologize I didn't mean to offend you. I appreciate your views and I never thought that workaholics were dull! We just want different things. Sorry

Sonny_L

Thank you apology accepted and sorry for snapping at you.

Good luck with your exams and whatever you decide to do afterward. : )

Ponder

Thats good advice Jan..you reminded me as well! thanks..different things for different people work for them and we are all happy with different things.
Key of happiness has to be said is a good one! and for some people the only right key that fits for them in life.

"one step at a time" is good saying i have received/listened to in my life and remind myself of.

Good luck with it and see what works for you.

Bluewednesday

I would say that if you don't really want to do ACCA - don't do it, it's hard enough if you are desperate to pass but if you have no interest in it in the first place it will be worse.

However having done my ACCA I certainly wouldn't term myself a 'top accountant', I work in a OMB practice and love every minute of it, doing my chartered gives me the extra knowledge and back up that I wanted, doesn't mean I can take on the world!

There is plenty you can do with AAT - if you dont' want to study further - don't!

mark057

Hi Bluewednesday.

I noticed you have got through ACCA. I'm considering it after AAT.

What sort of difficulty level are we talking about?

Mark

Bluewednesday

I would say that the fundamentals level is about the same jump up as technician was from intermediate and then professional level is yet another jump up.

Don't let me put you off, it's achievable and (with the exception of audit) found something useful and interesting in each of the papers!

Jan

My dad is rather pushy and always expects us to go on to higher and higher positions in work. Its like that is the only thing that matters but for me its not!

Alice, I would add that your Dad is probably only thinking what he thinks is best for you! So don't be too hard on him. I've noticed with my daughters friends (she's 22 next month) whose parents try to get them to do courses/take careers paths that the parent wants rather than the son/daughter just come unstuck. Unfortunately parenting doesn't come with a manual, we've just got to do what we hope is the best at the time!

(maybe its a male/female thing here)

No, don't think it is. I have female friends I was at school with (yes, we are still in touch) who have high powered jobs, one works for a company trying to find a cancer cure and travels the world. She was always ambitious and worked extremely hard to get where she is.

On a lighter note, I see you had a gap year in Oz. How did you find it, my daughter is out there now? Might have to come back early though as she is running out of money and finding it difficult to get work. :thumbdown:

alicemaylara

Oh I no my dad is just being a dad!

Yes Aus was good. But i was going to stay out there for 6 months but i got VERY homesick! It's very far away milage wise but also (it sounds weird) but you feel very far away from anyone so it was a bit scary. As for a job, i gave up after realizing i wouldnt be staying that long, but people i know did manage to get jobs, there are plenty of places/people to help you but i did go offpeak so maybe because its know peak season that is why your daughter is finding it hard. Im sure she is having a fab time out there. I know lots of people who have decided to stay longer and i think im definitely in the minority when i say im quite happy in rainy old Yorkshire!
Its a beautiful country though and everyone is always happy!(I actually found that quite irritating!) I spent most of my time in youth hostels which is a bit of a nightmare if you like your own space but on the other hand its a great place to socialise. I'm sure your daughter is having a fab time. Is she in Sydney?

Jan

Oh I no my dad is just being a dad!

Well she was in Sydney, now making her way up the east coast to Cairns, got a txt this morning 2 say had a 14 hr journey. :thumbdown: Will be spending her 22nd on Whitsunday island and snokelling at the Barrier Reef, so def having a fab time. She's gone with a couple of friends and so far they haven't managed to fall out. She went away to college at 16, so is used to being away from home. Only time she was homesick then was when she started her degree course and I think she missed her boyfriend more than home!

Hope you're having a better time of it, if you ever get stuck there is always plenty of techie help on here, as well as "mumsie" advice!

And it doesn't always rain in Yorkshire! I had a beautiful drive home tonight, sun shining on the hills. God's own county you know!

alicemaylara

Yorkshire is the best

Oh well if she is with friends she will be fine! I went on my own, which in highnsight might have been a little too brave!

I also went from Sydney to Cairns! Then i made my way down the east coast, its a classic route. The bus journeys are so long! You just drive and drive and drive and you think your there and then you drive and drive and drive again! Sweets and sleep were my way of getting through those journeys but actually it was a great way to see the wilderness of the place. There is so much sparse land with just nothing on it. Very odd, a bit like the moon!

Oh these boards are great! Lots of advice and help :thumbup1:

Jan

And there you are saying you're lacking in confidence! I wouldn't have dared go out there on my own at your age, not sure if I would have liked to do it now! A friend of mine did a around the world trip in her 30's and dare I say it, I was more worried about her than I am about my daughter now! It was before mobile phones so I guess it was just a matter of we couldn't get in touch when we wanted.

Actually I had bought my first house at 18, so maybe I was having my own bit of confidence at the time! Not grammatically correct, but you know what I mean.

alicemaylara

Confidence comes in all different shapes and sizes (I dont think thats grammatically correct either) So the fact i went traveling doesn't mean I'm confident at work! I wish I could my own house, thats all i want!
Mobile Phones/internet mean you always in contact with people, its never been easier/safer to travel

[Deleted User]

Some people just get it quicker than others. The process that works best for me is to get the methodology in place first. Rather than memorising everything, I find it best to break the information down and understand why it happens as it does. You can’t rely on memorisation because as soon as the question changes format, you end up being completely lost.

The more experience you get the more responsibility you will get in the working environment. I speak to some of the top level people sometimes and I am completely blown away with how much they know about accounting and general business globally. I think to myself, “How am I meant to take over your job one day?

You have to understand that these people weren’t born with this knowledge. They gained it over the years by working their way up the ladder.

A top accountant role seems scary to everybody at this level but one day you will find it as easy as simple double entry.

I would definitely recommend progressing to a CCAB qualification but if you don’t feel comfortable, start by taking one exam at a time and build your way up. :thumbup: