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AAT apprenticeship

I think I should firstly start by mentioning that I have a degree in History and received a 2:1 (not sure if that's relevant).

I initially went into accounting wanting to start AAT at Level 3. I started my role with my current employer for an accounting firm but I was recommended to start at Level 2 as I had no previous accounting experience. I ended up deciding to do the Level 2 apprenticeship.

I have now finished all exams for AAT Level 2 but I no longer want to take the apprenticeship route. The issue I have with apprenticeships is that the minimum duration of an apprenticeship has to be 12 months and I didn't like the time spent waiting between each exam. I felt as if I could have completed the exams quicker if I had paid for the AAT course myself and booked the exams at my own pace.

Would it be strange to tell my employer that I want to continue with AAT but I would no longer like to take the apprenticeship route? Can I tell her that I would actually like to pay for Levels 3 and 4 myself due to the above points I have mentioned?

I'm not sure if there are other people who work full time in accountancy and pay for AAT themselves. Can anyone help me with this please?

Reply 1

aatwizard

Original post by imnotsureyet

There is absolutely nothing unusual with what you'd like to do. Take the path that is most suitable to your needs/abilities. Apprenticeships are very rigid in their compliance requirements (as you have already discovered) and they do add to the workload. By taking the commercial route, you'd be eliminating Synoptic and Portfolio of evidence/Professional discussion. But, if your employer is levy paying, you might meet with some resistance of going it alone.