Do I need to be working in accountancy/finance already to study AAT?

AAT

No. You don’t need to have studied or worked in accountancy previously in order to study the AAT Accounting Qualification, and you can begin your studies at any age. AAT has no formal entry requirements, and is designed to help people with little or no accounting experience reach a level where they can work confidently in an accountancy environment.

Some training providers require students to have passed core GCSEs, but each has a different position on this so it's worth contacting them directly to get confirmation.

AAT Access is our short qualification which offers basic business and finance skills. AAT Level 2 covers basic accounting practices and techniques, from costing and double-entry bookkeeping to computerised accounting. AAT Level 3 and AAT Level 4 introduce more advanced concepts.

A good way to find out which level would be best for you is to take AAT Skillcheck.

AAT offers flexible study options so you can fit your studies around your family/work commitments – you can study full or part-time, and you can also study AAT through distance learning. Whatever your circumstances, there’s a study option for you.

Once you’ve completed the AAT Accounting Qualification you’ll be able to gain generous exemptions should you decide to study chartered accountancy; and you could become a fully-qualified chartered accountant more quickly than someone who has followed the university route.

If you’re over the age of 24, you should be aware that in 2013 the Government changed the rules around funding. Learn more about 24+ Advanced Learning Loans at gov.uk.

Next steps

Would you like to learn more about AAT?









More information/resources

• Ex-personal trainer Gregory Edelston on why he changed career to accountancy in his late thirties.
• How to cope when you haven't studied for years.
• Former supermarket worker Linda Fleet discusses pursuing accounting in her fifties.
• Former Maths teacher Paul Buzzard explains why he decided to change career to accountancy.
• Read about AAT members’ former careers on Facebook.
• Ashleigh Moorcroft wanted a change of career and chose to go back to college to study AAT:
  
  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1JkOiTwqEpE&index=1&list=PLUZEsvFbkOFDa6kajBynI7gCqD5TYdTUW[/video]
  
• Here’s former actor Mark Wong explaining his decision to move into a career in accountancy:
  
  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CeWVNMyycDU