Accounts / finance apprenticeships

[information 10]

Hello.

 

My son is looking for an apprenticeship in accounts / finance. Asking for any ideas of company's to approach?

 

Thanks.

[dalerobinson 10]

http://www.thesourceacademy.co.uk/events/15/have-you-got-the-s-factor-apprenticeship-bootcamp

Loads of live jobs available - advice on how to prepare and support to apply. Immediate interviews available, The Source Meadowhall - 10 am until 8pm

[turtles 10]

Just use the apprenticeships . org website. You will find the larger companies will want A levels though.

[Sillysod 10]

Accounts / finance is obviously a hugely broad area encompassing all sorts of jobs and there are plenty of different routes for qualifications. So I am speaking from only my experience of the accountant apprenticeship route I took.

 

I would start off by looking at the AAT qualification, its well recognised and covers the basics which are common across all the different types of accountancy jobs. It also provides exemptions for the ACCA / CIMA etc if he chooses to become fully qualified and get the letters after his name.

I did AAT as a 3 year course with 1 day a week at college, I think you can basically do it as quickly / slowly as you want but obviously employers are going to have certain expectations.

 

I did the course through Babington Business College, I highly recommend getting in touch with them.

 

The process was to basically enroll with them, take a basic numeracy test and give them my CV.

Companies get in touch with Babington looking for apprentices, they send them your CV, and hopefully you get a job (and it is a job btw not a work experience placement which is what I thought it would be when I set out)

Or you could obviously just find your own job (I still work for same company 10 years later!)

 

For me it was part of my employment contract that I would be allowed day release for college and the employer would pay all course and professional fees which I think is the norm. So if he decides to go job hunting himself bear in mind that this would need to be agreed with them.

 

So yea, my advice is study AAT and approach Babington (they are based in city centre, near where suggs used to be)

[steveroberts 10]

Hello.

 

My son is looking for an apprenticeship in accounts / finance. Asking for any ideas of company's to approach?

 

Thanks.

 

To what level is he educated?

 

I'd think he will need, at the very least, a good grade at GCSE (probably A-Level) and be very aufait with Excel.

 

Good luck to him in his quest.

 

PS; he should be asking the question, not you (although I know it's hard not to being his mum/dad!)

[Sillysod 10]

To what level is he educated?

 

I'd think he will need, at the very least, a good grade at GCSE (probably A-Level) and be very aufait with Excel.

 

Good luck to him in his quest.

 

PS; he should be asking the question, not you (although I know it's hard not to being his mum/dad!)

 

Not necessarily true, obviously its not a career path for someone who is hopeless with numbers but you don't need anything spectacular, certainly not for AAT and after that its the NVQ that will be giving you exemptions not the GCSE's.

 

You can certainly do it with a C grade in maths, I seem to recall some people who either did not get C grades in Maths / English or where they had started the course later and their GCSE had expired had to do some extra coursework to get a key skills or something, but it wasn't anything too painful.

 

Getting to grips with Excel is very good advice, at school I did my work experience at an IT training company and being pretty good with computers I decided on a whim to rattle through an ECDL course. It was a piece of cake, cost me nothing and gave me a nice certificate which was definitely a big help getting my job.

[Adenufof 10]

...I'd be a little cautious about entering this profession as it is saturated with candidates at the moment.

 

For entry level, it is likely that there will be a firm of Chartered Accountants out there who would be keen to utilise a school leaver for cheap labour. They'd probably be happy to pay the costs of AAT etc although your son would likely be 'locked in' with the firm for a duration of time. (cheap labour).

 

Unfortunately, from personal experience, companies are starting to streamline their departments, relying more on technology. This is therefore leading to lots of people looking for work, with few places available. It is also therefore driving down salaries.

 

I know this as only 4-5 years ago I was able to command a higher rate that what I can now. Recruitment agencies aren't even touching part-qualifieds like myself despite having far more expertise than what I did 5 years ago!

 

I stress again, stay away from this profession!!!