Back to school? Try the AAT alternative
It’s time to go back to school and across Scotland young people are facing difficult decisions about what to do next. We asked Lucy Park from French Duncan Chartered Accountants, why she took the AAT route into an accountancy career.
AAT: What did you do before you began studying with AAT and working in finance?
Lucy: I originally applied to university to study English literature, but ended up leaving university in the first year as I didn’t enjoy the course. After withdrawing, I heard about the opportunity to apply for a job with French Duncan as a trainee accountant who would help to put me through my qualifications. This really appealed to me as it meant I could work full time and improve my education simultaneously.
AAT: Why did you decide to start studying for AAT?
Lucy: I decided to start studying for AAT as my aim was to become fully qualified and having not completed university, AAT was the ideal alternative that allowed me to achieve this.
AAT: Tell us about the job you have now?
Lucy: My job involves the preparation of VAT Returns, Year End Accounts and Management Accounts. I get to work with a wide variety of clients from small businesses to larger companies. I am constantly learning at work and have found this invaluable to my success with my AAT studies as I get to put into practice the concepts learned at each level of the AAT. It has helped me to progress in that it has proved to my managers that I am competent in what I do and this has been reflected in my increased and varied workload.
AAT: Would you recommend AAT to other people in a similar position to you?
Lucy: Yes, I would definitely recommend AAT to anyone who wishes to have the best of both worlds – working full time but improving your education simultaneously. It is hard work but I feel that this route was much more suited to my needs than university and now AAT qualified I know I have the same opportunities as graduates to progress onto further studies to become a fully qualified accountant.
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