“Studying AAT gave us a career in finance we never thought we’d get”

Five AAT apprentices and trainees at Worcestershire County Council explain why they choose to learn on the job, and how they switched to finance after careers as varied as journalism and teaching.

For the past four years, Worcestershire County Council (WCC) has run a successful apprenticeship scheme, which has helped them plug the accounting skills gap by building its own pipeline of AAT-educated apprentices.

WCC attributes much of this success to recruiting apprentices from a wide range of backgrounds: not just school- or college-leavers, but also trainees in their 50s with vastly different experience.

Here some of these apprenticeships talk about how they started their AAT apprenticeships, the challenges of balancing work and study, plus how working in accountancy makes them “feel like Miss Marple”.

“If I’d known about apprenticeships at sixth form, I’d never have gone to university”

Charlie Spain, Audit Assistant; AAT Level 4 apprentice

Every lad my age wants to work in sport, which could explain why I ended up studying a sports, exercise and health science degree. However, I soon found out it wasn’t what I was looking for, dropping out halfway through.

Having done some number work as part of my degree, I started thinking about working in finance/accountancy, went onto the government apprenticeships website and found WCC were offering AAT apprenticeships. I applied and got on the scheme.

Fast-forward to now, being an AAT apprentice suits me down to the ground. I’m working full-time, getting a salary, plus gaining experience and qualifications. Some of my university friends are now doing two-week work experience placements, whereas I’m interacting with senior staff with 20-30 years’ experience.

AAT is great: it covers a broad range of topics you’re likely to come across in the workplace. There’s also so much info on aat.org.uk that I never feel under-equipped entering exams. I joined WCC in May 2023, finished Level 3 just over a year later and am now about to start Level 4 this month [December].

As a young person coming into a big office like WCC, it can be intimidating. But WCC’s buddy scheme has been a big help: having somebody two years older than me give me insight/advice has been invaluable. It’s also taught me the best way to learn is to ask questions – there’s no such thing as a silly question.

I now work in Audit, looking at financial controls at schools in Worcestershire, which covers everything from cybersecurity to treasury management.

Looking back, if apprenticeships were pushed to me at sixth form, I might not have even gone to university. I’m really happy with how everything has panned out.

“I’m an ex-journalist who studied AAT in my 50s”

Claire Prescott, Senior Finance Officer

In my late 40s, I found myself at a crossroads. Having worked for much of my career as a journalist for [national/regional newspaper publishers] Media Wales, I spent 10 years away from the profession when I had children. I returned to find journalism had moved on. It was now about blogging and vlogging, not the old-school printing presses I was used to!

Most of the jobs out there were either in finance or IT. When I looked at finance roles, they all either required two years’ experience or… AAT. It seemed like such a recognised qualification that you couldn’t go anywhere [in finance] without it, so I bought five books for Level 2, signed up to become an AAT member and started teaching myself. What I really liked about Level 2 was that it wasn’t too difficult: the learning is in nice, incremental jumps.

This knowledge helped me get my first finance role as an accounts assistant at a practice midway through Level 2. Not long after, I applied for a job at WCC, who funded me through Level 4. Today, I work in Service Finance, monitoring the budgets of WCC’s services and forecasting their expenditure/income.

I’ve always had a little voice in the back of my head saying ‘I’m a words person! What am I doing in a numbers-based job?’ But having done my AAT qualifications, I realise it’s not just about the producing a perfect spreadsheet – you’ve also got to be able to analyse it too. AAT sets you up become this rounded professional – it’s even forcing me to learn about Excel modules and cloud software!

The exams are hard though: I get butterflies walking into the assessment venue. One of my daughters is currently doing her A-levels. We end up revising at the same time, meeting for cups of tea in the kitchen. She told me, “If I’m still doing exams at 50, I won’t be happy!” But with AAT you know if you put the work in, you’ll do well.

Just because somebody’s young, it doesn’t mean they’re the most ambitious person. I’m as enthusiastic as any 21-year-old: when you hit 50, there’s no reason your career should suddenly stop dead.

“I didn’t want another degree, but something I could actively use in my career”

Yen-Hua Tseng, Accountancy Assistant; AAT Level 4 apprentice

I’m from Taiwan where we don’t have apprenticeships (or AAT!). When I found out about apprenticeships, I was impressed there was something available where you can study and apply the knowledge directly at work.

Before joining WCC as a Level 2 apprentice, I graduated with a master’s degree in international business from the University of Birmingham. It included an accountancy module, where we learned about P&L and balance sheets, but I didn’t really know what to do with it.

This isn’t a problem I have at WCC, where I’m constantly applying accounting knowledge. Since starting as an accountancy assistant in September, I find storytelling is an important part of my job too. Because we need to know whether a company is financially healthy or not, I look on Creditsafe and observe shareholders’ funds and P&L. In the next three years, I’d love to do my chartered qualifications, maybe CIPFA.

I have two daughters and when I think about their future, it’s good knowing university isn’t the only option. For me, one of the best things about AAT is that it’s a meaningful qualification. I didn’t want to study another degree, another piece of paper, but something I could actively use in my career. If I had known AAT apprenticeships were an option 10 years ago, I probably wouldn’t have done my master’s.

“I started my AAT apprenticeship after spending 22 years working at WCC”

Sian Killoran, Senior Finance Office; AAT Level 4 apprentice

I’ll be the first to admit I’m not a typical accounting apprentice. For a start, my degree was in psychology. Secondly, I’ve been working at WCC since 2001, mostly in assisting roles, but not accountancy. Last year, I was approaching my 50^th year and went for a promotion. The job spec said I should have AAT, which I didn’t.

Fortunately, WCC offered paid AAT apprenticeships, which is how I found myself studying Level 2 in May 2023. Suddenly, all the things I’d observed my colleagues doing over the previous 22 years, such as T-accounts and double-entry, made sense. The light really did click on. 

Since then, I’ve sped through the levels and am about to start Level 4 this month [December]. Working in accounting, there’s always a feeling of ‘Am I doing things right?’ but doing an AAT qualification gives me that reassurance.

Initially I was worried about walking into the class [at training college] thinking I’d be the oldest person in the room. But you mix with people from different generations and get a different outlook. So never think you’ll be the oldest student!

However, one big challenge has been juggling family life, studying and work. I’d often find myself studying on Sunday afternoons or in the evenings once my son had gone to bed. You just need to be good at organising your time and have a very understanding partner!

As for my next steps, I’d love to work as a senior business partner. In fact, I’m currently shadowing my manager in that role. Sometimes, I wish I had the opportunities some of the younger people have now. Knowing what I know now, I would have done AAT years ago.

“Working as an audit apprentice is like being Miss Marple!”

Maria Regla Garcia-Bernal, Assistant Internal Auditor; AAT Level 4 apprentice

“Until AAT, I’d assumed finance was the opposite of my comfort zone. I’m from Málaga, Spain, have a history of art degree and worked for many years as a teacher. In fact, my worst subjects at school were English and maths! And now here I am living in England working in a financial job!

I joined WCC six years ago working as a PA for WCC’s finance team. During this job, I discovered more about auditing and decided to apply for an AAT apprenticeship.

I love working in audit. With every project, you change teams and learn a new job. One day you could be working with a school, the next revising contracts for the motorways, the next visiting a warehouse. It means you’re constantly putting yourself in others’ shoes, finding solutions: I feel like Miss Marple! For a people person such as myself, it’s perfect.

Working in audit you need to know what you’re talking about. AAT really helps me in this regard. The bookkeeping element has been indispensable, especially when looking into invoices/payments to see if everything has been done correctly. The Business Awareness unit is essential for auditors too.

When I think back to starting Level 2, my knowledge of accounting was limited: my brain just wasn’t wired in that way. If you’d asked my course leader if I was likely to have mastered bookkeeping, she would have laughed!

But AAT gives you confidence and makes you less stressed about situations. It teaches you what is right or wrong in the job. AAT’s content – the newsletters, webinars, the Facebook page – has also been great. When I attend college one day a week, I’m studying alongside people who work in factories or in family businesses. Seeing how accounting knowledge can be applied in these sectors really helps me understand the material better.

Some people might be unsure about a finance career, but doing an apprenticeship gives you an opportunity to see if you like it. It’s a real win-win situation.”

Read more about WCC

A case study in running a successful AAT apprenticeship

Why AAT is the perfect fit for our trainees

Building a pipeline of talent

The magic of mentoring trainees

Christian Koch is an award-winning journalist/editor who has written for the Evening Standard, Sunday Times, Guardian, Telegraph, The Independent, Q, The Face and Metro. He's also written about business for Accounting Technician, 20 and Director, where he is contributing editor.