Info on taking up accountancy

james.xix

Hi, would anyone have information or links for details on accountancy. I've been considering a change of career from IT for a while but have always put off taking the plunge to do something and move away form the career path I'm on right now. Is it possible to get into accountancy without giving up employment and having to become a student full-time. Helpful advice is welcome, thanks

steamsey

Yes - it is possible to qualify without studying full time - subject to conditions. Before you consider moving into accountancy, you need to decide which qualification suits you best. Your main options for qualifying as an accountant are as follows, and these are all with different bodies / institutes that are giving you the qualification.

CIMA - Managment Accounting - very difficult exams. You don't come across too many of these in Ireland relative to ACA / ACCA. You would do this is you are planning to be a Management Accountant.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Differences_between_management_accounting_and_financial_accounting - I've read this and it is accruate enough.

You would do either of the below if you are planning to be a Financial Accountant or Auditor.
ACCA - Most globally recognised, can do exams while working, very flexible, slight lack of prestige compared to ACA but that depends on the employer / industry you are interested in.

ACA - Chartered Accountancy. You used to have to do a 3 or 3.5 year training contract with a registered firm (many would have done so with one of the Big 4). You also had lectures in the evenings and weekends and got study leave during the summer to prepare for exams. Pay was crap, hours were a nightmare and most people got pigeonholed into pensions, funds etc and their "broad" training came from exam studying only. It is basically slave labour in exchange for them certifying that you did you 3.5 years with them and they paid for exams, study leave etc - which was the best part of it. The good news is that you no longer need a training contract to become an ACA - you can check out their Elevation Programme - http://www.elevationprogramme.ie/elevation.html.

pog it

Is there a good finance careers guide out there at all? Something that covers the wide breadth of niches and financial roles that exist?

Juicyfruit

steamsey wrote: »

ACA - Chartered Accountancy. You used to have to do a 3 or 3.5 year training contract with a registered firm (many would have done so with one of the Big 4). You also had lectures in the evenings and weekends and got study leave during the summer to prepare for exams. Pay was crap, hours were a nightmare and most people got pigeonholed into pensions, funds etc and their "broad" training came from exam studying only. It is basically slave labour in exchange for them certifying that you did you 3.5 years with them and they paid for exams, study leave etc - which was the best part of it. The good news is that you no longer need a training contract to become an ACA - you can check out their Elevation Programme - http://www.elevationprogramme.ie/elevation.html.

Sorry to hijack the thread but this is something I've been interested in for quite a while too. I'd like to go down the Chartered Accountant route and just had a read through the link you supplied steamsey - very interesting but I'm a bit confused by the entry requirements for non graduates?
On one hand it looks like you can have 4 years work experience in any field, on the entry form it looks like you need to have certain results in your leaving cert - I did my LC 8 years ago and have worked full time since then but in Administration not Accountancy.. it's always this type of thing that puts me off, can't make head nor tale of it, but then maybe that says more about me
Anyone shed any light on that?

steamsey

Juicyfruit wrote: »

Sorry to hijack the thread but this is something I've been interested in for quite a while too. I'd like to go down the Chartered Accountant route and just had a read through the link you supplied steamsey - very interesting but I'm a bit confused by the entry requirements for non graduates?
On one hand it looks like you can have 4 years work experience in any field, on the entry form it looks like you need to have certain results in your leaving cert - I did my LC 8 years ago and have worked full time since then but in Administration not Accountancy.. it's always this type of thing that puts me off, can't make head nor tale of it, but then maybe that says more about me
Anyone shed any light on that?

Hi - I think the best advice I could give would be to contact the Institute yourself and speak to the right person to find out about your eligibility. This might be the right starting place - http://www.elevationprogramme.ie/faq.html. They are pretty good normally with enquiries etc. I didn't do the Elevation programme myself so I don't have any insights into it - but I will say that the final goal, i.e. the ACA qualification, is well worth it.

Juicyfruit

steamsey wrote: »

Hi - I think the best advice I could give would be to contact the Institute yourself and speak to the right person to find out about your eligibility. This might be the right starting place - http://www.elevationprogramme.ie/faq.html. They are pretty good normally with enquiries etc. I didn't do the Elevation programme myself so I don't have any insights into it - but I will say that the final goal, i.e. the ACA qualification, is well worth it.

Thanks a mill - I've fired off an email to them anyway so hopefully they'll be able to fill me in!

Mouth of the South

Don't do ACA unless you do Elevation programme or train in one of the "Big 4". For the latter, it will also help if you are a grovelling lickspittle ( they use the term "team player" for this in the job description), as vast majority of employers want you to have come from one of them if you have trained in practice. Be prepared to emigrate if you train in a small practice. You are far better off with the hands-on experience you get in CIMA or ACCA, it opens up more doors in industry/multinationals than when you finally escape the training contract sentence of ACA, though I don't know much about Funds/Finance as these jobs are concentrated in the poxy, stinking hole that is Dublin ( so never had any interest in any of them). Institute of Chartered Accountants is also a money-grabbing institution that charges exorbitant membership and CPD fees ( multiples of the other bodies) and is sooooooo tooooooootaly (south) Dublin-centric in terms of outlook and "helping" members find (Dublin) jobs. If I had it all to do again, I wouldn't touch ACA with a barge pole. That's my tuppence anyway.

Yours bitterly

Mouth of the South
ACA ( non grovelling or lickspittling)