The AAT is a good solid entry into accountancy firms, they have heard about it and they know what they are getting. Also as a member in practice you can do pretty much what you want other than audits and insolvency work. It is also a good stepping stone to further qualifications getting exemptions from ACCA and ACA. However, if you are really serious about this industry you would probably want to keep the ACCA/ACA as your ultimate career goal. There is nothing wrong with the AAT on its own but there is a lot more options (and rewards) if you go that step further.
ATT is another excellent qualification, if you want to specialise in tax. It is also the only non chartered route into CTA. However, it will restrict you in the work you can do as it is only tax based, not that this is a bad thing.
CTA, is an excellent qualification and there isn't anything higher in relation to tax. It isn't easy and there aren't that many firms that can justify having a CTA, when an ACCA can do the majority of what they need plus alot more, so you wont see so many jobs asking for it. It depends where you are, big cities may give you more options but in a small town their arent that many high net worth individuals/companies that would require the specialised knowledge.
CAT, is an excellent qualification, and gets you lots of exemptions from ACCA, however, (in the UK only) it is not recognised as much as the AAT.
IFA, Shaun is the expert on this, and i haven't had any personal experience of them but from what i have seen they are definitely going places and it looks an excellent qualification.
ICB level 4, is a really good syllabus, it covers some really good material but it isn't really recognised by employers or other awarding bodies as much as say AAT or CAT is. You will gain plenty of really good knowledge but might find your options are not as great as they could be based on the work you have put in and the knowledge you have gained. It really is an accounting qualification, and would be good if you wanted to set up in practice under the ICB banner, but i don't think you aim of a big firm of accountants would be helped by doing it. Also it is relatively new, and awareness is low, although probably growing, so there isn't mocks for all the exams as yet. It would build on your exams you have passed with the ICB and you wouldn't have to jump ship to another awarding body if you did go down this route. Saving you from paying two membership fees if you kept practising under the ICB. So don't disregard it.
Just my thoughts.
Nick
edited for illiteracy.
-- Edited by NickCraggs on Thursday 11th of July 2013 12:14:19 PM
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Nick
Nick Craggs FMAAT ACA AAT Distance Learning Manager
I have been trying to decide for ages which qualification to do next & have changed my mind a million times!
I am currently an ICB member (level 3), with Payroll and Self Assessment diplomas. I work part-time self employed under ICB practice licence, with the majority of my income from personal Self Assessments. I have a small toddler & expecting again in about 4 weeks, so for the next 5 ish years I want to keep working freelance for myself & not have to work in a practice.
However, once little ones are in school I don't want to write off working for a big accountancy practice.
I want to be able to increase my knowledge & offer more services under my business i.e. corporate tax returns.
I initially decided to do the IFA level 4 & 5 and obtain a practice licence under them, however, I understand that IFA is not recognised by employers, so if I started in an accountancy practice at a later date I would have to start from the bottom.
Then I read that you can get IFA licence under a ACCA PQ, but when I emailed IFA this week they said I needed to have the full ACCA professional qualification to obtain a practice licence. Which I wouldn't be able to do as I would have to work for a practice for 3 years before being fully qualified.
Just looking at my options & what services I could offer under these qualifications. Whether they are recognised by industry & transferable for exemptions under different qualifications (preferably eventually obtaining full ACCA). I really can't do anything that I need to have practice experience at the moment.
It would seem that the IFA have changed the rules then.
The conversion is worked out on a paper by paper conversion basis.. When I applied I was able to become a Dip FA but not an AFA which is only abvailable after passing all of the ACCA papers and becopming an ACCA affiliate.
There seems to be no link at all to the ACCA experience requirement.
At Dip FA level you can apply for a practicing certificate and MLR cover.
I don't know how PQ you are. Sorry, you may have told me in the past but my brains just too full of other stuff at the moment.
As you know not all PQs are equal. Generally institutions such as the IFA and AIA would become interested only after you have passed at least the first nine papers (foundation and skills levels).
On the wider question about which route to go.
ACCA will place the restrictions of regulation 8 on your bookkeeping business BUT, the ACCA qualification is second to none and is well respected by employers so if your intent is accountancy accept n substitute.
The thing that you need is not only to consider which qualification to obtain but also in what sequence you obtain them!
You have ICB
If you are not yet far enough through ACCA to gain an IFA practice certificate then you could take a serious look at converting accross to IAB for an easier stepping stone to IFA than the ACCA route.
But there raises another issue. If you are working towards ACCA why become IFA in that you would not be allowed under regualation 8 to ofer the services that you could if you were only IFA (that answer assumes that you do not have direct qualified accountant supervision to keep your ACCA obligations sweet).
So basically, in order to use the IFA practice licence properly you would have to give up your aspirations towards ACCA and step down your ACCA membership
What I was talking about above about sequence of qualifications was once you attain ACCA status you will be expected to earn CPD points each year. One way to do that is by taking additional qualifications.
To my mind the best sequence to do in order for a practice based career path would be ACCA then ATT then CTA.
CTA's are always in demand but the downside is that it will take you years to get from where you are now to there.
This reply has probably just raised more questions than it answered, sorry. sure that I'll do better in the follow ups.
kind regards,
Shaun.
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Shaun
Responses are not meant as a substitute for professional advice. Answers are intended as outline only the advice of a qualified professional with access to all relevant information should be sought before acting on any response given.
I probably totally misread Lyndseys post but I answered from the perspective that she was already PQ ACCA which the bit about writing to the ACCA seemed to indicate.
Actually, come to think of it I know that last year Lyndsey was only thinking of ACCA so even if she has started down that path it wouldn't be far enough to get the required IFA exemptions.
I think that you are right about the IFA going places but I still wonder whether AIA would have been a better option for me as my second qualification.
Completely agree re CTA. Its top of the tree tax and even being accepted to study it is a major achievement involving passing a suitable quality qualification first of which ATT seems the most accessible of their list.
I'll be honest. Whilst I'm pretty confident that I could do ATT, no matter how much time I threw at the excercise I do not believe that I would be able to pass the CTA exams as my mind seems too cluttered... Shame that you can't just have a spring clean or even run a defrag on the old grey matter.
kind regards,
Shaun.
p.s. actually Fraukes the IFA expert but she hasn't been around for a while. I think that I know ACCA much better but mainly out of the frustration of having to walk on egg shells to stay within the remit of regulation 8 whilst still earning a living.
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Shaun
Responses are not meant as a substitute for professional advice. Answers are intended as outline only the advice of a qualified professional with access to all relevant information should be sought before acting on any response given.
Interested to read your comment re considering whether AIA would have been a better second qualification rather than IFA. I was wondering what the reasons were. I don't mean this in terms of being critical of either or both qualifications. I am happy being a member of the IFA but am aware that there is an obvious difference between it and CCAB level qualifications [ which I still include CIMA].
I am focusing on the tax side at the moment, and really enjoying it, but am interested in your asessment of the relative strengths of IFA and AIA and their qualifications.
makes for an excellent read which some interesting figures as to where the professional bodies derive their income.
But I digress.
The thing that stood out was that the FRC treat the AIA as part of the club but IFA doesn't get a mention.
That made me start looking into it a little and it comes accross that worldwide AIA is a major player where IFA is not.
The above said, from my little practice perspective I am more than happy with the IFA and my comment was not meant as any refelction of them or their professionalism but purely down to an original misconceived perception of their current position in the market place.
I actually feel that the IFA is a serious contender to be huge but was surprised that at the moment at least AIA seems within the profession to be held in higher regard.
I am very happy with the IFA and have no intention to change but all things considered, including that I may not always be UK based and that AIA has an audit option I do think that I should have looked closer at it and weighed up the two before making my decision to go IFA.
My appologies if my post came accross at all negative towards the IFA as such was not all my intent as I do think that it is a very good qualification. My musing was purely down to although it being a very good one, was it the right one.
Anyway, decision is made and I see no reason to go back and change it.
The only reason that I could see for me leaving the IFA would be if I ever managed to get a practicing certificate through the ACCA.
kind regards,
Shaun.
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Shaun
Responses are not meant as a substitute for professional advice. Answers are intended as outline only the advice of a qualified professional with access to all relevant information should be sought before acting on any response given.
I certainly didn't take your post as being critical of the iFA. I was just curious in respect of the AIA as I hadn't heard them being mentionned in a while
