By Christian Doherty ApprenticesHow one AAT apprentice is building a rewarding career28 Jan 2025 Celebrating Stephanie Goodsell’s outstanding progression, and the work that made it possible.Stephanie Goodsell’s career is off to a great start. She completed her AAT Level 3 as an Accounts apprentice, was nominated for the FAB awards Apprentice of the Year in 2024 and won AAT Apprentice of the Year 2024.Stephanie has maximised her development by leaving her comfort zone and embracing new opportunities.“When I joined my employer, I had limited understanding of what the journey was going to be,” she says. “The position I am in now with the range of responsibilities I have is more than what I envisaged, and the variety in accounts work that I see was not expected.”That breadth of work includes joining a second office alongside her initial one as an opportunity to adapt to new approaches and to gain more experience.Find the right apprenticeship for youWe’ve launched the UK’s only dedicated accounting apprenticeship job board, where employers post listings for all sorts of qualifications and career goals.Search nowApprenticeship elementsStephanie says she initially found it hard to manage the two core apprenticeship elements: class and work.However, that changed within the first 8 weeks. “I began to look at schedules that build year-end accounts – I started to see the full picture on how the bookkeeping classes linked,” she explains. “I was pleased with how my first exposure to accounts work was quite soon.”Stephanie eventually found that blended learning suits her best. “I am gaining much more knowledge than if I was just classroom-based, and I am pleased I did not consider studying finance as a degree course. The experience from an apprenticeship is hugely beneficial as I also have quality, proven work experience.”Since finishing Level 3 and starting Level 4, she has been supporting the company’s new apprentices. Acting as a mentor, answering questions and delivering training has grown her confidence hugely. She’s gone from being very quiet to discussing, leading and directing where her mentees’ work needs to change.My communication with clients has surpassed what I imagined I was capable of. I am much more confident to deal with a client directly; I now know how to handle each client on an individual basis and will adapt my approach to each.Wider perspectiveMuch of Stephanie’s work as a Level 3 apprentice involved dealing with a broad range of accounting tasks for clients. For instance, she mastered the art of producing VAT Returns for different currencies, including working with a large client who deals in USD, a process that required carefully handling invoices and payments.“I really like the variety of accounts. And while all jobs are different, it is the same process in a way, but each client has different needs and will need different reports that relate to industry-specific clients,” she says.Stephanie has good knowledge of accounting software. She’s helped one of the offices she works in move from a more paper-based approach to a more digital one, introducing software such as Xero, Hubdoc, Sage and Taxcalc to support clients. And it’s not just clients who have benefitted from Stephanie’s tech skills: her experience of software-based accounting procedures has led to her supporting many senior team members, even training some on these procedures.Taking opportunitiesIn doing so, Stephanie has shown that get ahead in accountancy, it helps to build a strong network both within the business and beyond.“The chance to physically work across the two practices after the acquisition increased my knowledge significantly,” she says, reflecting on the challenge of adopting and addressing the different practices’ approach.“One was much more traditional, so I know the level of exposure I have been given is not very common and not a chance all apprentices get. I had to work hard to get used to two environments – one very manual, where the team helped me deal with the challenge of clients by showing me how I can work hard to get their trust.” That was especially important with longstanding clients, some of which had dealt with a single contact for over 10 years.Extra effort – and supportive managementStephanie deftly managed building new relationships, embracing different approaches and settling into new environments. She navigated these challenges in spite of her autism spectrum disorder (ASD), which makes handling changes to routine especially taxing.For instance, dealing with ad hoc tasks in the apprenticeship can disrupt the routines Stephanie is most comfortable with. Since beginning her apprenticeship, however, she has worked hard to set up a process of personal and professional development that accounts for possible disruptions. This helps her adjust without being overwhelmed. She also recognises the help her employer gave her when settling in.“I definitely feel the general support started on day one and continues – at the beginning I was very nervous and they recognised this, slowly drip-feeding me clients to work on,” she says.Personal recognitionSam, Stephanie’s manager, says “Steph has shown remarkable development, both professionally and personally. In her professional capacity, she has grown into her role with confidence and competence, consistently excelling in all areas. Her strong accounting knowledge is clearly reflected in the high standard of her work.”It’s not just Stephanie’s colleagues and clients who have been impressed with her impact.Claire Bennison, AAT Executive Director of Customer, Partnerships and Innovation, says Stephanie “is an exemplary role model and it’s amazing to see her commitment to supporting others by showcasing leadership in her workplace.”And while Stephanie remains modest about her achievements, she does allow herself a hint of pride. “It has been good to have external recognition – it shows what determination and a strong work ethic, commitment to the apprenticeship/studies can give anyone,” she says.She also points out the value of the recognition as someone that did not set out to work in finance. “I had a journey to get to my first role, and I had been advised by a recruiter to look at business admin apprenticeships.”Shared successStaff at Peak Accountancy Training, Stephanie’s Training Provider, work hard to meet student needs. Tutors there adapt their style of delivery to all students and individualise taught sessions, and Stephanie’s work-based advisor Suzanne Hardy quickly established a working relationship that suited Stephanie’s style.Suzanne says it feels “incredible” to see one of her students achieve so highly. “I believe in apprenticeships and the opportunities they provide – I am lucky to work with not just Steph, but an amazing bunch of young and mature learners.“Apprenticeships are not as valued as I think they should be. Personal development is important, and to see the journey Steph has been on has been incredible.”Finally, Stephanie credits the vital role of her support network: “That includes the family around me that have helped with studies and adapting to a full time role, my employer for giving me the opportunity to work on many varied projects, and giving me the time to develop my knowledge, and the tutor support team at Peak Training, who showed me what can be achieved, and how to get success.”Find the right apprenticeship for youWe’ve launched the UK’s only dedicated accounting apprenticeship job board, where employers post listings for all sorts of qualifications and career goals.Search now Christian Doherty is a business journalist and freelance writer for AAT.