What Qualifications Do You Need To Become An Accountant

What Qualifications Do You Need To Become An Accountant What Are The Different Accounting Qualifications? ChaptersWhy Should You Consider Becoming An Accountant?The AAT or Association of Accounting TechniciansThe ACCA or   Association of Chartered Certified AccountantsThe ICAEW or Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and WalesThe CIMA or Chartered Institute of Management AccountantsFind An Accounting TutorIn the United Kingdom, only a few regulatory bodies issue certified accounting qualifications. None of them requires specific GSCEs, BTECs or A-levels to be taken.Within accounting exists specialities such as management accounting (focusing on budget forecasting and cost reports and statistics), financial accounting (focusing on producing financial statements based on market trend and companies results) or tax accounting (that focuses on advising companies on how to complete their tax form and maybe claim some taxes back along the way).Though you don't need a specific degree to become an accountant, a good analytical mind and a knack for numbers will definitely go a long way as you will probably spend a fair amount of time reading accounting reports.From accountant to finance manager and maybe one day Chief Financial Officer of a listed company, the road may be long but not impossible.You will have to learn how to analyse financial reports if you hope to be a certified accountant., Deloitte Touche, KPMG and PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC). Combined those four accounting firms audit most of the 350 biggest British companies and employ more than one million people around the world.High salaries, recognised and sought after skill and the possibility to work anywhere in the world is what an accountant career could have to offer.The AAT or Association of Accounting TechniciansThe Association of Accounting Technicians was created following the merger of  the Institute of Accounting Staff and  the Association of Technicians in Finance and Accounting in 1989.Today it counts more than 140,000 members worldwide, and it provides the minimum qualification for anyone wa nting to start their accounting career.The AAT is also a member of the International Federation of Accountants, giving its provided certification recognition everywhere on the planet.The AAT qualifications  are divided into four different modules:A Foundation Certificate in AccountingA Foundation Diploma in Accounting and BusinessAn Advanced Diploma in AccountingA Professional Diploma in AccountingThe  Foundation Certificate in Accounting will prepare you for an entry-level accountant position. You will learn the basic accounting principles, how finance administration works and rudiment of bookkeeping and costing. You will also be taught how to use accounting software. It takes one semester to a year to complete.The Foundation Diploma in Accounting and Business is reserved for 16 to 19 years old. It will deliver the same teachings as the  Foundation Certificate in Accounting along with business communication skills. It takes six to twelve months to complete.The  Advanced Diploma in Accounting approaches more complex accounting specialities such as final accounts, ethical practices and intricate bookkeeping. Again this qualification can be achieved in six to twelve months.The  Professional Diploma in Accounting is the highest qualification the AAT provides. It takes up to 18 months to get and covers highly specialise accounting skills such as  managing budgets and evaluating the financial performance of a company or performing internal and external audits related to business or personal tax. You will also learn how to manage cash flow and treasury.This qualification is the equivalent of a High Education Diploma in the UK.Budgeting is an important part of management accounting.Technical Skills, Business Skills, Leadership Skills and People Skills.In total, the 12 professional qualification exams will take you four years to complete including the three years of work experience needed to validate the certification.Most students have gained enough work experience b efore registering as a CIMA student.Hard Work, High RewardsThe journey to becoming a chartered accountant can be long and daunting. You will most certainly have to juggle between working a 9 to 5 job and studying at the same time. However, the reward of obtaining such certification is almost always worth the effort.Following qualification, a chartered accountant in the UK can expect to earn around £56,000. Once a chartered accountant has five or more years of experience, the average salary raises to £90,000, and most of the chartered accountants will also receive a yearly bonus (around £20,000).Besides the salary rewards, this certification is also a guarantee of finding a job in pretty much any industry you wish to join.If you are struggling with your accounting studies, hire a tutor to mentor you.Find An Accounting TutorIf you need tutoring accounting or help to study for any of these qualifications, our tutoring platform has over 4,000 Accounting tutors registered and based al l around the world. They can help you pass any of the exams you wish to take and some of them have success rates as high as 98%.Every support you can get helps!