How to Become an Accountant

An accounting career can vary hugely, ranging from completing tax returns to tracking company expenditure.

While strong numeracy skills are essential for an accountant, you’ll also need an analytical mind, an ability to solve problems methodically and an eye for detail. Being a good communicator is equally important, as you’ll have to gain your clients’ trust, explain complex financial concepts and write up recommendations and analyses.

In a world that no longer promises a job for life, accountancy roles tend to be relatively secure. But this doesn’t mean that they’re not challenging. As financial deadlines approach, accountants often have to cope with working in a dynamic, pressured environment, knowing that the smallest error could harm their client’s business.

Both financial accountants and management accountants have to know how much a company is earning and spending. So they both track payroll and tax payouts, as well as expenses.

Each of the roles involves a high level of analysis when preparing reports. That said, many accountants in bigger businesses specialise early on in their careers, going into audit, tax, corporate, forensic accounting, and more.

If you’re looking to keep your options open, working for a smaller company generally means you’ll get to do a bit of everything, which is an excellent route into self-employment and freelance accountancy.

There are many paths into accountancy, varying from degrees to AAT qualifications and apprenticeships. However, once you have one of those, you will need to follow it up with a professional qualification from an accounting body. 

Technically, no, becoming an accountant does not require any work experience. However, experience can help you stand out to employers and proves that you already understand how to apply accounting principles in the real world. So, while it’s fair to say you don’t need work experience, it is advantageous if you have some.

It might feel daunting trying to get work, but the ACCA (Association of Chartered Certified Accountants) recommends that students try to shadow qualified accountants to get a good idea of how they work day-to-day.

Elsewhere, completing an apprenticeship will give you on-the-job experience while you train. Alternatively, you could opt for applying to positions like Accounts Assistant or Junior Bookkeeper.

As with any CV, it’s essential to highlight any skills you have learnt on your educational journey, including your accounting work experience. If you have taken up a junior position or apprenticeship, list your main duties and demonstrate how the skills in those will be useful in a more advanced position.

If you’ve shadowed someone, make sure you point out the skills demonstrated to you on your CV, and ideally, how you then went on to improve your competency in those skills in your own time. Begin with your most recent experience and work backwards from there, with a separate section for any education.

However you become an experienced and qualified accountant, there’s plenty of scope for career progression. As you gain experience, you’ll be able to apply for roles such as senior accountant, finance manager and finance director. Fancy working abroad? You’re in luck, as UK qualifications are accepted globally.