AAT community: “GCSEs are just one chapter of your story, not the whole book”

We reached out to the AAT community to find out what they remember from GCSE results day, and how the experience, no matter how good or bad it is, has to define your career.

Whether you’re a young person just starting out, or a career changer, GCSE results day (or O-levels for some!) is something everyone can remember.

Whether it propelled you into your A-Levels or gave you a false start, the experience is unique to everyone, as our community told us.

Hannah Davies, who begins studying her Level 3 AAT qualification in September, says that as a career changer, failing her GCSEs was just a short step in her journey.

She said: “I failed everything. I then went on to college and passed my English and maths after the second attempt. I worked in hospitality for five to six years where I got a diploma and eventually moved on to AAT.

“Failing my GCSEs has not defined me and actually motivates me even more. I chose to go into accounting because I was in a different job role within the same company I am with now, and I had the opportunity to study. I knew eventually I wanted to go into finance, and I wasn’t sure exactly how to do that, so this was the perfect opportunity for me. My overall goal would be to have my own accounting firm.”

Level 2 student Megan Baird didn’t get the GCSE results she was hoping for but found her calling a little later in life, too.

She said: “I got my results in 1999 and passed four out of the 10 I took. I always remember my mum saying to me: ‘just think, those Ds could have been Cs, and those Cs could have been Bs if you’d worked a bit harder.’ Teenage me was outraged but 43-year-old me now knows she was absolutely right.

“I wasn’t entirely sure what I wanted to do when I left school and floated in between various admin jobs from the age of 18. I then got an opportunity 10 years ago that made me realise I wanted to be in finance. I was given a finance office job in a school two years ago, passed my AAT Level 2 qualification earlier this year, and have just started Level 3.

“I think 16 is so young for a lot of people to know what they want their career to look like, and I am proof that 43 is not too late to come to the realisation of what your ‘thing’ is and how to move forwards with it.”

It’s a brilliant achievement if you get good GCSE results

If you’ve worked hard and you earn what you’re hoping for, it should be celebrated. As Charlotte Lane MAAT recalls, she has no regrets putting in the time and effort into her studies.

She said: “I got my GCSE results 12 years ago and came away with an A in maths and Bs across my other subjects. I was happy with what I’d achieved because I knew I’d done my best.

“I went on to study hairdressing at college for two years, with dreams of owning my own salon. Along the way, I realised I needed more business knowledge, which led me to AAT. From the very first module, I knew I’d found something I genuinely enjoyed, and that’s how my career in finance began.

“Looking back, not once have I regretted the time and effort I put into my GCSEs. They gave me a foundation, but they certainly didn’t define my career. My teachers all told me I should be using my maths and science GCSEs for something and that going to college was a waste of my education, but I had to figure out that decision on my own.

“GCSEs are just one chapter of your story, not the whole book!”

Keira Lake agrees, and having achieved 8/D2(A*) in Theology & Ethics and Health & Social Care, the Level 3 student finds it amusing looking back at how these results didn’t shape her career aspirations.

“I took my GCSE results and used them to study psychology, classical civilisations and art, none of which have a direct connection to accounting which I study now,” she said.

“In terms of the results day itself, I remember it being very overwhelming. My mother had been through it before with my older brother so she very obviously compared my results to his which didn’t do wonders to my confidence – even though we achieved similar results.

“I am a firm believer that your GCSEs and A-Levels do not define who you are and what you end up doing.”

Adapting to find the right career path for you

Many members of the AAT community have told us about how they found accounting and finance later in life. Everyone’s path is different, as Benjamin Jones suggests.

“Your school education does not have to shape your entire future,” he said. “If you’re willing to adapt and change, which I have done throughout my entire adult life, then you can do whatever you want to do.”

Now a Commercial Operation Manager at Bandit UK, Benjamin continued: “School and my GCSE results have little bearing on my career. I qualified with AAT Level 2, 3 and 4 at the age of 41. I was probably a bit late to the party, but at least I have achieved something!”

Level 4 student Chantelle Hughes added: “I wanted to do maths, biology and art at A-Level. On GCSE results day, I found out I had only got a C in biology and needed a B to continue with it, so I groaned and said: ‘I’ll just have to do finance then!’.

“It turned out finance was my favourite A-Level, so I chose to do an AAT apprenticeship after that and never looked back.”

To find out more about broad range of qualifications in accounting and finance, go to Qualifications and courses | Finance qualifications | AAT

Further reading

5 ways to develop your leadership skills from day one

How to stop worrying about your assessment while waiting for your results

Finding the right path when A-Levels don’t go to plan

Harry Rogers is AAT Comment’s news writer.