accounting options

timetogetfit

I havent really thought seriously about this but I would like to know my options the reason I have considered accounting is because its probably the one option thats most available to study at night that can give you a good well paying career, Im now 29 so time is not on my side here what I was proposing

Start a night degree in tallaght or dbs and do the Accounting degree by night over the next 4 years then apply to one of the big four when im 33

Is there a better/faster option than this?

Please bare in mind ive never done accounting before not even for the leaving cert?

Dbs and tallaght IT both do an accounting degree by night

Am I kidding myself at my age and no previous exp?

Climber

Why bother with a Big 4? It seems like such a long drawn out way of becoming an accountant, particularly as you say 'time is not on your side'

Do you have a degree?

If so, you can start doing ACCA immediately and get a job somewhere in the IFSC doing anything.:rolleyes: After one year hopefully you will have passed 3-5 exams and have one years experience.

By the time you reach 33 you could be a Chartered accountant with 4 years work experience earning 60k!

charba

I don't think that you are kidding yourself it make take 7 years to qualify but you'll only be 36 then so you'll have another 30 years of employment and plenty of scope to reap the rewards of the hard work that you put in but this is just my opinion.

There are many ways in which you can do this from what I see. The first way is the way you are suggesting. Continuing in your current job and completing a night degree. At the end of which you apply to an audit firm (you suggested the big 4) and commit to a training contract for 3.5 years during which time you complete either your ACA/ICAI/ACCA exams. At the end of this you will be a fully qualified accountant wth experience in practice and you also have knowledge of outside accounting from your current job.

Another way that you can do this is by finding a new job in accounts and starting from there however this may have some drawbacks but it has the positive advantage of putting into practice what you are currently studying.
The main down side about this is that unless you can get into the accounts department of your current firm you may be looking at a salary cut to begin with (this should be considered while making your decision as you may have monthly commitments such a mortgage to factor in). You would start work in the accounting world as perhaps an accounts clerk or in administration (I'm not really sure what the first step is)

Then you could do the degree that you suggest. The other option would be do an accounts technician course and from this you could do ACCA/ACA/CPA. You would most likely be granted exemptions from the Institute which you are preparing to be a member of. For example I am studying CPA exams and a potential student who is AITI qualified is exempt from F1 and up to two modules in F2 this leaves a total of 10 exams left to sit out of 16. If you follow this link there are a list of exemptions that AITI graduates would receive for 2007.
http://www.iati.ie/Prospective_Students/Student_Benefits/


In summary there are some things that you need to consider before making your choice.
- If you want to stay in your current job for the time being or if you would rather switch into accounts while you are studying. Perhaps if you have no commitments it may be better to do this earlier as it is likely that you will have to take a pay cut at some stage and it may be easier when you are younger and have not got as many. A benefit of changing jobs may be sponsorship from your new employer for your course as you will be studying to help you in everyday job
- If you want a degree or would you rather go the AITI route and go from there into one of the many accounting institutes.
- Perhaps you should decide if you want to work in industry/financial services/ practice (this could be either audit or tax). This may be easy enough if you consider why you want to become an accountant. I.E. Do you have friends who are accountants and you like the sound of what they do? Do they work in industry or practice? Or is it simple as you want a career where if you work hard the rewards in promotion and therefore pay scales are attractive.

These are just my thoughts please feel free to correct anything I have misposted that may mislead the OP
Feel free to PM me if you have any further questions.

timetogetfit

Basically what attracts me to accounting is if I have to be honest the financel rewards, 2 of my uncles are accountants and one has his own business and is doing REALLY well

My situation at present is that I am unemployed with a ordinary degree in science, I have a few years exp in the pharma industry but if I was to get another job the most I would get fis 30k maybe an extra 20-30% if I did shift.

I also have no dependants, no morgage.

So with this info what do you think would be the best option for me?

Could you go on to the pro exams with a accounting tech qualification, wopuld the big 4 take you on with this.

I though I would have to do a BSc in accounting as I have no previous accounting education

timetogetfit

also is there a home study option?

charba

timetogetfit wrote: »

Basically what attracts me to accounting is if I have to be honest the financel rewards, 2 of my uncles are accountants and one has his own business and is doing REALLY well

Well thats common and once you put in the hard work to pass the exams cos it is hard work you'll be well entitled to any financial gain. What kind of company does your uncle own? Is it an audit firm? If so and you want to do ICAI then perhaps you could do your training there instead of the big 4? It doesn't matter where you trained once you have the qualification.

My situation at present is that I am unemployed with a ordinary degree in science, I have a few years exp in the pharma industry but if I was to get another job the most I would get fis 30k maybe an extra 20-30% if I did shift.
I also have no dependants, no morgage.

Ok so its a good time to make a decision The main options are
to get a job in science and do the night degree
to get a job in science and do the Accounts Technician course
to get a job in accounting and do the night degree
to get a job in accounting and to the Accounts Technician course

bearing in mind that you will have no experience in accounting the salary you start off on will be low enough (probably around 20k but this cut will happen either now or in 3-4 years when you finish the degree or IATI).
I personally would try and find a job in accounts as you will have experience when you start the next part this will make it easier to get a job and it will make the exams easier as you are doing some of the stuff every day.

So with this info what do you think would be the best option for me?

Could you go on to the pro exams with a accounting tech qualification, wopuld the big 4 take you on with this.

I though I would have to do a BSc in accounting as I have no previous accounting education

If i was in your situation I would go down the AITI route and then progress to do either ICAI/ACCA/ACA/CIMA/CPA ( I think I have all the institutes in there). Is there any particular reason why you want to go down the big 4 route. If you do ACCA in practice you will still be a chartered accountant same with ACA. Like Climber posted earlier if you do ACCA you could be qualified 3 years later after the 2 year initial AITI study or you could go directly into ACCA as a mature student (http://www.accaglobal.com/join/acca/entry ) and follow that through I'm not sure how long that would take.
It really does depend on what you want to do audit or industry or financial services. The ICAI is a tough route college 2-3 times a week and at weekends for up to 4 years. Then you come out ac a chartered accountant I would only recommend this to you if you wanted to stay in audit as the other institutes offer a professional qualification that can be obtained quicker.
I was looking around a few websites and it doesnt look like there is home study for AITI or ICAI. However there is home study for ACCA/CPA

Bren1609

See if you can apply directly to one of the big 4 for a training contract.

If that fails, I would do the IATI and get a job in practice.

mkdon05

Just to clarify for the OP, AITI and IATI are not the same courses. I think the replies from people above ment to say IATI rather that AITI.

AITI = Tax Exams
IATI = Accounting Technician Exams




IATA = Tourism Exams (Just for good measure:D)

charba

sorry yes I meant the Accounts Technician Course not tax exams though they are good too

gordotempo

Do ACA or CPA...

I'd give ACCA a miss, I started doing the exams and am looking to jump ship after the summer.

gordotempo

I think they're better recognised too.

The CCAinsider

There are 14 exams with ACCA and you can do up to 4 every 6 months with exams in June and December. Most people want a life so they do them 2 at a time although the earlier ones can be done 3 at a time. You could comfortable be finished in 3 years. The exams are not easy especially the final few but if you complete the first 9 exams you can get a BSc (hons) in applied accounting from Oxford Brookes University, so even if you don’t finish ACCA you have some qualification. You can take as long as 10 years to finish the exams.

Study can be done at home or at evening classes or home and revision only classes. The classes last from mid February to June and September to December. I would recommend classes for the final levels and unless you are very disciplined classes for all levels. Most employers will pay for the classes and ACCA registration.

There are lots of good employers out there screaming for trainee accountants, fund accounting can be repetitive but it is well paid, banking is also well paid and a little more interesting, practice is the most interesting but less well paid. People training in practice get more varied experience and better study leave. Look at the ACCA graduate guide for a list of employers looking for new trainees or the list of ACCA approved employers – to be approved they have to provide good training and study leave packages.

Once qualified the ACCA qualification can take you anywhere, quite often with your existing Irish employer. Even if you have not finished your exams you can finish them while on secondment in Chins or Barbados…although if I was seconded to Barbados I might take a six month break from the study.

smcgiff

gordotempo wrote: »

I think they're better recognised too.

Mmmm - and you found the exams though, eh?

The CCAinsider

ACCA has been placed at level 9 in the National Qualification Framework, that is the same level as a masters degree. So yes the exams are difficult! Personally I did not have a problem with the exams, but when I qualified my 5 study buddies all failed, which sure put a damper on the celebrations. Most of the colleges have pass rates in the late 70 and early 80% but the overall pass rate in Ireland is in the 60’s. This is due partially because there is a higher failure rate for home study students and there are a lot of foreign students studying ACCA and their English is not great so they have a higher failure rate. Foreign students can get a student work visa if they study ACCA and the qualification is recognised in their home country so there are lots of them doing it.

timetogetfit

I think I may do the 2 year accounting techician course by night and then take it from there, one thing I know you need 2 years work experience to qualify as an accounting tech, what kinda of accounting job does this have to be and who would take on a person who is just starting the IATI and especially someone who has never done accounting before not even for the leaving cert.

Also once qualified what route would you personally recomend I take to become a pro accountant, I thought one of the big 4 was the way to go but Im open to suggestion

The CCAinsider

There are 2 accounting technician type courses in Ireland. IATA run by the Institute of Chartered Accountants and CAT (Certified Accounting Technician) run by the ACCA http://www.accaglobal.com/students/study_exams/ . CAT requires 1 years experience and at the end of the course you will be a very competent bookkeeper. The exams are easier than the main ACCA and will give you exemption from some of the main ACCA exams. So if you found that you like it, it is easy to continue on to the main ACCA exams. Finish the foundation level of ACCA and you get an honours degree and finish the finals and you get to be a fully qualified accountant. With this route you get good intermediate qualifications all along the way, so even if you don’t make it to the end so have something. You can home study or class room study CAT all over the country.

timetogetfit

Whats the difference between the IATI and the CAT qualification, which is easier, do they both take 2 years, which would ye recommend

The CCAinsider

The difference is the same as the difference between ACCA and ICAI. CAT is an international qualification, IATI is local. I never did the CAT or IATI exams so I can’t tell you which is easier. To be quite honest your choice will probably boil down the closest tuition provider. Most FAS offices and VEC’s and IT’s will offer both CAT and IATA in the evenings and CAT can be home studied.

Gibbins123

gordotempo wrote: »

Do ACA or CPA...

I'd give ACCA a miss, I started doing the exams and am looking to jump ship after the summer.

I am in first year of ACA and really wish I did ACCA. Would love the option of doing 2 exams at at time. Considering home study ACCA for next year, just trying to get some research on it.

Things I don't like about ACA.... you have to do a book keeping exam (they make it very tricky) and you get 3 attempts at it. If you don't pass, then you can't sit your exams in May! 25% have failed first attempt.

Also, there are 5 subjects in first year.

gordotempo

I'd stick with ACA. Its better recognised and you get better study leave.

Maclyn

Hi,

I was up against this decision last year at 28. I had an electronic engineering degree and zero experience in Accounting. I hadn't even did it for leaving certificate.

I applied for Trainee Accountant position in a private practise and after 3 interviews for the job, got it and took it. That was last march, registered with ACCA, sat 3 exams and passed all 3 so far.

Was the best decision I have ever made and am enjoying the job. The experience is great and i am hoping to be finished my exams and qualified by the time I am 31 (fingers crossed!)

I would reccommend applying for a Trainee position.

smcgiff

charba wrote: »

If i was in your situation I would go down the AITI route and then progress to do either ICAI/ACCA/ACA/CIMA/CPA ( I think I have all the institutes in there).

You'd be surprised. Google IIPA.

charba

smcgiff wrote: »

You'd be surprised. Google IIPA.

I've honestly never heard of them before. And i thought I was doing so well!!!

Hanley

The CCAinsider wrote: »

The difference is the same as the difference between ACCA and ICAI. CAT is an international qualification, IATI is local.

Ummmm.....?

timetogetfit

Am I wrong in assuming if the CAT qualification is the same as the IATI but you only need 1 years work experience with the CAT and 2 with the IATI then the CAT is the better option?

Has anyone got a link to the homestudy option for the CAT?