AAT success stories: defying the odds to become a qualified accountant

AAT member Chris Tuck shares how she overcame childhood trauma, by turning her negative experiences into motivation to become a successful accountant.

Chris Tuck at a glance…

Age: 55
Years in accounting: 32
Top tip for students: The basics don’t change. So, once you know how to budget, once you know how to look after your own money, it’s a key skill for life that will help you go far.

Chris Tuck’s start in life was incredibly difficult and drastically different to what most children experience. Having grown up in three domestic violence households and suffered from abuse in all its forms, her first 16 years were extremely unsettling.

She moved homes / schools more than eight times, lived in a tent in rural Wales for six months, and was placed in homeless units on three occasions. At 16 she joined a catering college and worked three different jobs to make enough money to pay her bedsit rent. It was at college where the accounting module caught her eye. It offered a future and financial security.

However, when she attended a meeting at a recruitment agency to discuss a career in accountancy, she was laughed out of the room. That’s when something changed.

She said: “That moment lit a fire in me. It was like waving a red rag in front of a bull. I was tired of being told I would never amount to anything. I wanted to be somebody — and more than that, I needed to be.

“My journey into accountancy was never about numbers — it was about survival.”

Staying motivated during AAT studies

From 18 to 28, Chris worked full time and studied every evening and weekend to pass her AAT exams. She spent her annual leave in classrooms and spare earnings on exam fees. She admits that the journey wasn’t easy, but she found motivation from her past.

“As a child, living on a council estate with no money and going through all the different things that I went through, I wanted better and different.” She said.

“That’s what kept me motivated because I loved the idea of being able to keep a roof over my head and putting food on the table.

“Just because you’ve had adverse experiences in your life doesn’t mean to say you can’t reach your full potential. You just have to go at it in a different way and that’s exactly what I did, because I had no other option.”

Staying connected to the AAT community

A constant battle for students studying remotely with AAT is not only to stay motivated, but also to feel like they’re part of a community of likeminded peers.

Chris admits that her AAT journey was more rewarding when she actively engaged with fellow students to beat loneliness.

“I did a lot of studying on my own with my head in books which became very isolating. However, what I found really helpful for me was going on different revision courses,” she said.

“I would do a lot of studying by myself all day Saturday and Sunday, but I also did a lot of my studying on a Thursday evening at Croydon College, especially around exam time.

“I used to save up the money to attend these sessions as there was a lot of advice from tutors about the upcoming exams, however I made friends along the way by attending these lessons.

“So, whenever I would go on an intense revision course, or to different sessions, I would meet up with people that I made friends with and we stayed friends, too.”

At 23, the hard work and revision paid off as Chris became AAT qualified. In her words, becoming a qualified accountant gave “value and worth” to her life.

She said: “That qualification wasn’t just a professional milestone – it was proof that I wasn’t nothing. That I was capable, intelligent and worthy of a better life.”

The value of AAT membership

It’s the training and validation that AAT gave Chris which has led to her remaining a member for the last 32 years. The journey from student to qualified accountant was just one step, while membership and a career in finance brought new challenges, but Chris realises the benefit of remaining with AAT throughout her working life.

She said: “Because I fought long and hard to get those qualifications, having those letters after my name gives me credibility in the profession and always has done.

“Not only did I get to financial controller level and managed a team of five people, I’ve worked in all different sectors. While I now focus on my charity Survivors Of Abuse, I have come full circle because I do my own tax returns, I am able to do the charity’s accounts, and if I really wanted to, I could get a full-time job somewhere else. All of this comes from being a member.

“I still feel that those letters after my name make people see me in a certain way. I would tell my younger self that you will be ok, the hard work, all of the money that you are investing in yourself, and your qualifications now will pay off later on.”

The future of accounting

The accounting profession is changing. With the immergence of AI, taxation becoming digital and many delivering a successful ESG policy, along with other pressures, those working within the industry are having to adapt.

While Chris agrees that versatility is needed, she encourages young people to master the basics to lay the foundations of what lies ahead.

She said: “I know there is lots of change, and suddenly everything needs to be digitalised, but accounting is still accounting.

“Profit and loss is still a profit and loss. A balance sheet is still a balance sheet. An Excel spreadsheet is still an Excel spreadsheet.

“The basics don’t change. So, once you know how to budget, once you know how to look after your own money, it’s a key skill for life that will help you go far.”

Further reading

AAT success stories: studying alongside playing professional football

AAT success stories: from student to business owner

What to do if you need help with your mental health

Harry Rogers is AAT Comment’s news writer.