ACA or CIPFA- Choosing a grad employer

I have an offer on the NHS graduate scheme to do the CIPFA qualification. I also have another offer with a mid tier firm to do audit with the ACA Qualification.

I am really struggling to choose which qualification would be better for me long term, starting pay isn't a deciding factor for me. For context both the job roles are in west Yorkshire. I do have hopes of climbing the career ladder and being a finance leader in the next few years

I would be interested in knowing your experiences with the CIPFA qualification and whether it's worth considering over the ACA. Thanks

Reply 1

Miah11

Original post

by Zeeyo

I have an offer on the NHS graduate scheme to do the CIPFA qualification. I also have another offer with a mid tier firm to do audit with the ACA Qualification.
I am really struggling to choose which qualification would be better for me long term, starting pay isn't a deciding factor for me. For context both the job roles are in west Yorkshire. I do have hopes of climbing the career ladder and being a finance leader in the next few years
I would be interested in knowing your experiences with the CIPFA qualification and whether it's worth considering over the ACA. Thanks

There’s a new route to dual membership / qualification with CIPFA and ACA where if you complete one of them you only need to do one specific module of the other to gain this. Worth looking into.

Reply 2

Zeeyo

Original post

by Miah11

There’s a new route to dual membership / qualification with CIPFA and ACA where if you complete one of them you only need to do one specific module of the other to gain this. Worth looking into.

yes that is what I was considering if I chose the NHS one,

When I had my interview at the mid tier firm, they gave me a good vibe of the place and the team seemed nice,

with the NHS scheme being national, you don't know what you get . But I do know that I will rotate across the hospitals finance functions wheres the mid tier firm, I will be staying with the same team and doing the same work

In terms of my aims, I want to be a finance business partner and know that private sector probably pay more in the long run, so can gain the experience of public finance and convert to ACA to move to private sector