How to Start a Career in Accountancy

If you’re looking for solid, steady work, then you can’t go wrong by becoming an accountant. Accountants have famously high job stability, and not without reason. Every industry needs accountants, while the skill set to become a successful accountant requires specialised training and expert knowledge.

But how do you get that training? Where can you learn that specialised knowledge? And how do you start a career in accountancy?

Becoming an Accountant

You do not strictly need a degree to become an accountant in the UK. The profession offers flexible entry pathways catering to everyone from those just leaving school to people looking to change their career.

Now that’s not to say you don’t need any qualifications. In order to break into this industry, you’ll need to pursue one of several specific chartered qualifications depending on the branch of accounting you plan to work in.

For most people entering the field without a degree, that’ll mean the AAT (Association of Accounting Technicians). They offer several levels of qualification and have no specific entry requirements. You pay an upfront fee (around £600-£3000 depending on your level and provider), complete a course of tuition, and must pass a series of exams.

Once you’ve got your AAT, you can progress to more targeted qualifications. You can skip the AAT if you already hold a degree, though you’ll probably want to pursue further qualifications down the line. It’s quite normal to pick up more qualifications over the course of an accountancy career as you follow a direction and begin to specialise.

All told, becoming an accountant does come with a fair few up-front costs, but for many it’s still far more affordable than a traditional university path.

How To Make a Career in Accounting

When looking for entry-level opportunities, you’ll want to target assistant and trainee roles. Accounting is very much an industry where you learn the practical side of things on the job, shadowing those with experience.

That said, recruiters do expect a baseline level of understanding going in. You will need to demonstrate strong numerical skills and attention to detail when interviewing. If you’ve passed your AAT/degree, then this shouldn’t be too much of a concern, but make sure to brush up on your skills if you’re entering the industry after a long break.

Over the first few years of your career, daily work largely involves tasks like processing invoices and managing payroll – fairly simple admin, though with a relatively high level of responsibility. More experienced accountants split their time between tasks like high-level financial analysis, tax planning, and client advisory services.

Is Accounting a Good Career?

The answer to this question will depend a lot on your career outlook. Put simply, what are you looking to get out of your career?

If the answer to that question is purely financial, then accounting can certainly be a worthwhile career. In a relatively short period of time, you can progress from minimum wage to earning a comfortable salary in the £30-40K range – more if you’re willing to work in London. As a senior accountant, your earnings can go even higher, with some reaching into six digits.

Furthermore, compared to other high-earning roles, accounting is relatively low stress. For the most part, it’s a standard 9-5, and so long as the numbers all add up correctly, you’ve very little to worry about in terms of job security.

If what you prefer is independence, then setting up your own firm can be a path to exponentially higher earnings. Of course, the tradeoff here is that you’ll no longer have either the job security or the work/life balance a standard accountancy role can offer.

As an independent accountant running your own firm, the sky is essentially the limit in terms of earnings, but you’re not on rails anymore. There’s no safety net if things don’t work out, and starting an accountancy practice isn’t easy. There’ll be a lot of late nights and more than a few moments of doubt before you see real success. 

Ultimately, accounting can be an excellent career choice so long as you go in with clear objectives in mind.