Let's share our experiences of studying the AAT and finding suitable employment.

Sulew17

Iab

uknitty wrote: »

Hi Su

Just dropping you a note as my employer is looking at funding the IAB payroll course for me, so I hope to be starting it in the next month or so. It would be good to be in touch with someone else doing the same course

Which training provider are you using, and how are you finding it so far ?

Hi Uknitty

I'm home studying IAB payroll through Grove Training. I started the Level 1 manual payroll a couple of weeks ago and, so far, am finding it pretty straightforward and relatively easy.

I chose Grove because they give you the option to only buy the study materials, buy study materials with assessment marking or buy the whole course. As money is very tight I went with the cheaper option which will cost £410 in total plus exam fees.

I was originally quoted £595 just to do the Level 1 & 2 courses including exams - although I have to pay extra as I am nowhere near one of their exam centres.

Since we're now 'friends' it would be good to keep in touch with you! Also, maybe you can help me with Level 4 next year!!

Su

coojee

Sulew17 wrote: »

Hi Uknitty

I'm home studying IAB payroll through Grove Training. I started the Level 1 manual payroll a couple of weeks ago and, so far, am finding it pretty straightforward and relatively easy.

I chose Grove because they give you the option to only buy the study materials, buy study materials with assessment marking or buy the whole course. As money is very tight I went with the cheaper option which will cost £410 in total plus exam fees.

I was originally quoted £595 just to do the Level 1 & 2 courses including exams - although I have to pay extra as I am nowhere near one of their exam centres.

Since we're now 'friends' it would be good to keep in touch with you! Also, maybe you can help me with Level 4 next year!!

Su

Is the £410 for Levels 1 and 2? Or just one level? If it's just one level that's very high, eagle do one level for £375 which includes assessment marking, you just pay the exam and membership fees on top.

Sulew17

Grove

uknitty wrote: »

Hi Su

Just dropping you a note as my employer is looking at funding the IAB payroll course for me, so I hope to be starting it in the next month or so. It would be good to be in touch with someone else doing the same course

Which training provider are you using, and how are you finding it so far ?

coojee wrote: »

Is the £410 for Levels 1 and 2? Or just one level? If it's just one level that's very high, eagle do one level for £375 which includes assessment marking, you just pay the exam and membership fees on top.

No it's for the complete course: Level 1, 2 & 3 Manual payroll & Level 2 & 3 Computerised.

I did look at Eagle (who would have been my first choice) but couldn't afford it. I managed to get £400 funding from the Carers Org so had to go for the cheapest option! Although I need to motivate myself doing the course this way I am so excited about doing it that I seem to be managing so far. I'm doing it alongside my AAT Level 3 but as long as that doesn't suffer I should be able to manage!

Su

coojee

Sulew17 wrote: »

No it's for the complete course: Level 1, 2 & 3 Manual payroll & Level 2 & 3 Computerised.

I did look at Eagle (who would have been my first choice) but couldn't afford it. I managed to get £400 funding from the Carers Org so had to go for the cheapest option! Although I need to motivate myself doing the course this way I am so excited about doing it that I seem to be managing so far. I'm doing it alongside my AAT Level 3 but as long as that doesn't suffer I should be able to manage!

Su

Wow, that does sound like a good deal then. Good luck with it :-)

Sulew17

coojee wrote: »

Wow, that does sound like a good deal then. Good luck with it :-)

Thanks Coojee

Su

A-Vic

Well within a week of receiving my final results i had left my job moved 350 miles away and haved moved away from accountancy work and am now working in a payroll tech postion saying that am 99% sure that having MAAT after my name impressed my current employer.

Makkusu

Waiting for a call to see if I've managed to secure (imo) the dream job.

I feel like I'm about to pass out my heart has been racing non stop since last night! Fingers crossed!

mac1

sadly, for some time, I've had the strong impression that employers (at least in the private sector) don't take any notice of AAT whatsoever...

geek84

Hi Folks

How is everyone's studies going?

I am on level 4 and have got the Financial Statements exam on the 25th Oct and I am definitely not looking forward to it!

Learning the different IAS's is doing my head in!!

janwal

Hi geek84

Have just started level 3' doing AP1, spreadsheets and Ethics, not finding it as easy to fit in with working full time as well. 1st exam on 15th Nov, spreadsheets.

Jan

turbo_sammie

Finally landed my dream job! :-)

I feel like I want to share my experience of job hunting with everyone because I am just so bloody pleased with myself right now! I've been working in the civil service as an administrative grade for 8 years, and decided a while ago that as I've always enjoyed number work I'd give the AAT level 2 a go and see how I get on. I passed level 2 in April and I am now studying level 3, but as I am a civil servant with no accounts work experience whatsoever, I was not particularly hopeful that I would find a suitable role in the private sector that would incorporate my AAT into my work and give me some good working experience.

I spent what felt like years applying for jobs online, registering with recruitment agencies (complete waste of time, snotty bitches!) and posting out over 200 letters and CV's to accountancy firms in my area. Six months later, I get an email out of the blue from one of these accountancy firms asking me if I'd like to be interviewed for a Trainee Accounting Technician role. Needless to say, I jumped at the chance and 3 days later I'd had my interview and received my employment offer letter, it was that quick and easy (and my interview wasn't particularly impressive either! Lots of face-reddening and stuttering!)! They've offered me the same money as I get as a civil servant, pension, healthcare, and they're going to pay for all my AAT studies and give me day release to go to college (which is a massive plus as I'm currently doing distance learning and finding it a bit tricky at level 3).

Anyway, the point of this post is that as difficult as job hunting may be you always need to have hope that something is waiting around the corner. I had given up any thoughts I may have had about finding a decent job doing something I enjoy, and had resigned myself to a life working for the government (oh, the horror!), but now I'm sitting here at my desk with a smug grin on my face knowing that in 2 weeks time I'll be out of here and into a career that I'm hopefully going to love. :-)

PAMDILL

Well done

geek84

Hi turbo_sammie

Many congratulations on getting this job. Did you just apply to accountancy practices?
I hope you don't mind me asking, but what type of things did you include in your cv and cover letter, in order for you to land this job?

I am on level 4 and applied to hundreds of employers, but not had one single interview!!

Thanks for any advice.

turbo_sammie

Hi geek84,

I sent out letters to accountancy firms in my area mainly, and a few to local companies as I was just looking for any finance-related work to give me experience. I sent them out back in June and hardly got any responses, but the firm that I got the interview with kept hold of my letter until they had a trainee role arise (they never replied in the first instance though, they said their lawyer advises against responding to letters like these! Can't remember the reason why though). In my letter I just wrote what job I am currently doing, what studies I have completed, and what sort of work I am looking for. It wasn't a particularly impressive letter or CV, but as I said in my last post I just got incredibly lucky. I can't think of a reason why I might've stood out or why they decided to retain my CV, so I can't really give you much advice or help in that area.

Seeing as I hadn't had many responses and the replies that I had received were negative, I really felt like I had come to a dead end. I'm a big believer of fate, and I think that's exactly what this was. So all I can really say is that you should send out your CV and cover letter to ask many firms as you can, and apply for jobs online (I was spending my lunch hour every day doing this!), and in 6 months if you haven't had many replies, send round your CV again. Persistence isn't necessarily a negative thing, and it shows that you are dedicated. Also, another thing I did was Google the top 20 accountancy firms and apply for vacancies on their websites. I was always unsuccessful with this but seeing as you're studying at level 4 you might have more luck than me.

Hope this helps, and good luck! :-)

geek84

Thanks for the advise Turbo.

amyjayne27

Hi all,
Thought I would offer my experience on here too. I was working as a receptionist for an agricultural firm, and I HATED it. I had been interested in accounting for a while but didnt think I could do it so didnt do anything about it for a long time. Then I decided to take some night classes in my area and got level 1 and 2 City & Guilds Bookkeeping & Accounts. I really enjoyed these courses so paid for the intermediate AAT course. I started working my way through it and enjoyed it, but was getting no luck from any job offers.

I literally sent my CV to every single accountancy firm within about a 100 mile radius. I kept sending letters with my CV, making phonecalls, emails etc for about 10 months and still nothing. So I took a big break from my studies (about a year) which meant I had to enroll on the new standards and pay for completely new books etc. I was about to give up when I got an email from a local accountancy (and when I say local I mean about a 4 minute walk from my house) and was asked in for an informal chat. It went from there and I was offered the job there and then, and I absolutely love it.

So it just goes to show persistance is key, and it really does look good when you take the initiative and do the course off your own back; I am convinced this is the main reason why I got the job.

Good luck to everyone, it can be done!!!

geek84

Hi amy

Did you just write to accountancy firms? If so, wouldn't that be limiting your options?

How about applying to any accountancy related jobs i.e. sales/purchase ledger clerk or accounts assistant roles etc

amyjayne27

Morning Geek,

Sorry I didnt make that clear wrote that in a bit of a rush! Yes I applied to any job role which involved accounting, not just firms.

turbo_sammie

I think Amy is right, it really does help if you do things off your own back. I'd been on a Sage Line 50 and Sage Payroll course the weekend before my interview, and the guy interviewing me seemed to really like this when I mentioned it to him. I think that may be another reason why I got the job, along with the fact I decided to do the AAT on my own. Maybe just try to think of things that you could do to make your CV stand out, because the hardest part seems to be getting the actual interview in the first place!

geek84

Hi Folks

How is everyone doing? I sat the FNST exam today and now going to start studying the Budgeting unit. I was wondering if any of you kind people out there could give any hints or tips about this unit?

Are there any parts that can be slightly confusing or I need to pay particular attention to?

Thanks in advance

geek84

Hi Folks

How is everyone doing? I am doing my ICAS Case Study project at the moment and have got a resit on the FNST exam next week, although I have also been studying the Budgeting unit at the same time.

Is anyone else on level 4?
Thanks in advance

sanju158

Hi geek
My name is Sanjay Mehta, I am a graduate chemist, trying to change careers to accounting, I have completed AAT levels 2 and 4, and I just have to resit PEAF in order to completed Level 3, but despite doing voluntary work I am finding it tough in the job market.
Any advice would be most welcome.
Sanjay

aaron0121

Hi Everyone,
My experience of studying aat

i started studying aat level 2 at 15 and for me at first, i only saw the course as an opportunity to
give me an extra GCSE. The aat level 2 course was held every wednesday evening after school,
which was taught by a tutor who came from a local college. When i was at school, i always thought in order to
have a professional job like an lawyer, doctor, accountant you would need Gcses, a levels then a degree.
When the college tutor starting saying no you don't need to do a levels, no you don't need to do a 3 year degree
to become an accountant, i was so confused at first. However after completing level 2 and doing some research
on the good old google , i was left with the choice of doing solely level 3 and 4 at college or do a levels
or even do both :huh:. As I enjoyed studying level 2 at school, i really wanted to carry on with level 3 this
basicallly gave me the answer to Do i really need to do a levels when i'm not going to uni.
My next step was then to decline a place at a college where I was going to be studying a levels and then accept
a place where i would be studying solely aat. So now i'm 18 nearly finished level 4 and going to start job hunting.
Job hunting is going to be the toughest part, there is people in my class who have nearly passed level 4 and also
have 4 a levels on top!!!!!!:ohmy:
Not many people get the chance to study level 2,3 and 4 through school and college , so i need to make the most
of my early opportunity. I've started my job search today, so we will see how it goes:thumbup1:

Antoinnette

Hi everyone,
I am so happy to find this thread! I am studying AAT level 4 long distance at the moment. I set up a small events planning business in 2007 and with no money to spare started doing the bookkeeping myself. I did the Pitman bookkeeping courses and Sage and passed first time round so decided to do the AAT. I found a bookkeeping job at a Social enterprise whiles studying and learnt a lot from there but left last year to have a baby. I wrote all my level three exams whiles pregnant and passed first time, which was a relief, but doing the AAT with three children is hard.
Now I am doing level 4 long distance and I have written and passed all my level 4 papers except for Financial Performnce and ICAS. Its been a rather lonely journey this year because I dont know anyone else who is studying the AAT.
I am starting out as a freelance bookkeeper and offering Self Assessment returns for sole traders and partnerships because I know it well enough not to make mistakes. Registering with HMRC was the weirdest thing but they were ever so nice.
But ever so often I encounter a problem in accounts and panic because I dont know the answer and have to look at books etc. It makes me wonder if everyone else knows more than I do if you see what I mean....But I enjoy accounting too much to give up. I look forward to passing my last two papers.

mandatory

It's nice to hear everyone's different routes and experiences through AAT!

For me, I graduated in 2008 but found it increasingly difficult to find a job in the area I lived in, and my marks were not good enough for a graduate scheme elsewhere. I did voluntary work throughout my time job hunting, working for a housing association as a volunteer, then in adult education and a local charity. In early 2010 I saw an ad in the paper for a free bookkeeping course at a city centre based college and I signed up right away. It was a two day course and at the end I spoke to one of the tutors about AAT, which was offered for free for jobseekers. I took up this opportunity, starting by doing AAT in the evening but changing to days and reducing my volunteering hours in order to take two level 3 units simultaneously (I had already completed two level 3 units, skipped level 2). Throughout this time I continued to look for work but with no luck.

In late November 2011 I was finally offered a job at a CDFI as an accounts assistant, which I was ecstatic over as they are also a charity. Two weeks later I completed my ICAS project, finishing AAT. I know this isn't the end of my journey; I am now patiently waiting until the day I can send off my AAT membership application and I am studying CIMA. AAT has opened up so many doors for me and I am forever grateful to my former college for allowing me to study with them during those hard times. I had spent three years being unemployed but you do have to be incredibly persistent. You need to work hard at everything you do and accept that there will be times where things don't work out. Good luck to all the AAT studiers out there!