Accounts Assistant Review

The role of an ABA assistant involves the preparation of financial statements that comply with government regulations and standards. As an apprentice, training is provided on-the-job and externally - when you first join the team you work towards the AAT professional qualifications. This learning is then reinforced when completing jobs at work.

As much of our work is computer-based, skills in applications such as Excel really develop as training is always offered and you are always practicing what you learn when completing jobs. As well as this, social and professional skills are developed through interacting with clients and colleagues on a variety of different tasks.

The apprenticeship programme at RSM has a good balance between off and on-the-job training, this helps to get started working on jobs as soon as you start the programme. As an apprentice you are constantly learning new things everyday and building on the things that you have already learned. This makes the work more varied and enjoyable as no two jobs are the same.

Since starting the apprenticeship, the training provided by RSM has been very well structured with a variety of external training courses and CBTs - these have been helpful as they relate closely to what we do at college and at work. The Kaplan college courses have been really good and structured for the training days however, we have had issues with course enrolment and exam bookings.

The support from RSM has been really good - we have an Exam Training Manger that helps us to organise college, exams and external courses. This is really useful and helps us to answer any questions we have about the process. The support from colleagues is also really good and everyone is always happy to help with any queries we may have when completing jobs.

Support from Kaplan has generally been good, the workbooks and college resources are really useful and are organised well for learning and revision. The online resources are also really useful and can be accessed before the course starts which is helpful. College tutors and student services can be contacted outside of college hours which is good for any queries we may have.

The topics and skills that we learn through the college courses are very relevant to the skills that we need when completing jobs at work. This helps as we have a better understanding of the process and by practicing these skills at work it acts as another method of revision.

RSM have lots of activities to get involved in, these include SCASS events for students where casino nights and wine tasting events are organised. We have a social committee that organise office related events such as quiz nights. A regional sports day is held annually as well as a summer ball and Christmas party.

Yes

The support and training provided from both college and RSM has been really helpful and relevant to the day-to-day tasks that we carry out at work. As well as this, the school leaver programme is a really good alternative for someone wanting a career in accountancy/tax without going to university.

Use the website to fully research the role before applying as this has lots of information about the application process and different roles within the departments (audit, tax, accounts). If possible, attend events that RSM attend such as school/college careers fairs and speak to current staff/students as this is a really good way to find out about things that you might not think to ask.