Ellie AAT trainee
AAT accountancy apprenticeships are level 3 and 4 qualifications, they are perfect for school leavers or career changers who left education at 18.
It’s likely you’ll join us in one of our Business Advisory teams, but you could join in Audit. You will learn all you need to know to gain your professional qualification and become a qualified accountant. We’re the largest independent chartered accountancy firm in the South West, so you have the opportunity to specialise or pursue a broader role.
The typical tasks undertaken by an AAT accounting apprentice include:
During your AAT accountancy apprenticeship, you’ll develop a broad range of accounting skills, and you’ll get a flavour of some of the specialisms that you might opt to get into in future. For example you could specialise in work in a given sector such as energy, food and drink or property; or in a service such as corporate finance, cyber security or tax; or pick a path that will see you working with a broad range of clients.
You’ll do lots of on-the-job training, supported by day release for study – either online, with a local training provider or a blend of both.
If you want to continue to develop once you’ve achieved your AAT qualification, we can support you with further professional training. You can move on to the ACA qualification to become a Chartered Accountant or the CTA route to become a Chartered Tax Advisor.
Both are level 7 qualifications, equivalent to a Master’s degree at university. Again, with these routes you earn while you learn and we fund your studies.
Entering the world of work can be daunting – we’re here to support you. We encourage a strong sense of belonging with an open, caring team culture, so everyone feels valued and respected.
As you start your career, we understand that making friends and having a great social life are important and you’ll get that here. There are lots of socials, team days and volunteering days. You really can love your job and live your life.
That depends on what you want. The pros to doing an AAT accounting apprenticeship are no tuition fees and that you’ll be learning on-the-job from day one and talking to clients.
The pros to going to uni first are that you get to study something you love, and you get to enjoy the university experience. If you go to uni you can go straight into a level 7 accounting apprenticeship, or a tax one. Anyone who holds the level 4 AAT accountancy apprenticeship can then progress to the same level 7 qualifications that graduates start on. All roads lead to Rome and all that.
You don’t need a degree to reach the top of the profession. Do whatever feels right for you.
PKF Francis Clark rank 28th on the Top 100 Apprenticeship Employers list for 2023, compiled by the Department for Education.
You’ll start out on our internal induction programme learning the basics of the work you’ll be doing. It also explores wider topics such as communication, your personal brand, and professional ethics. You’ll meet your fellow trainees and colleagues from across the firm.
As an AAT trainee you’ll then spend 20% of your time training with an external training provider. This could be in person or online. You’ll have access to a tutor to get one-to-one support with any queries.
You’ll be assessed through exams which are sat in person and the firm pays for your exams and training. You are expected to do independent study in your own time, our current AAT apprentices say this is typically around five hours per week.
Beyond gaining a qualification, our wide-ranging AAT apprenticeships programme spans apprentices’ complete developmental needs, through the involvement of buddies and managers. Our internal learning and development team collaborate with you to ensure you have the support you need.
Level three and level four take around 15 months each to complete. If you join us without prior accounting experience, you’ll start with level two bookkeeping. See the AAT website for the latest syllabus.
Our commitment to hybrid work means that our people have the option to work in any of our offices at any time, and to spend some time working at home (or wherever they want to work!). The exact details of what hybrid working looks like varies from person to person, depending on the exact operational needs of each role.
Our commitment to hybrid work means that our people have the option to work in any of our offices at any time, and to spend some time working at home (or wherever they want to work!). The exact details of what hybrid working looks like varies from person to person, depending on the exact operational needs of each role.
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