Our star letter writer wins a fantastic ‘I love PQ’ mug!

from PQ magazine, August 2023

Dear Karen

What scrutiny?

I was interested to see that the FRC will be putting the accountancy profession under greater scrutiny in the future. Does that mean no one was looking at them before? And does it mean that if I have a problem with the exams I can I contact this Professional Body Supervision (PBS) team as a sort of court of appeal? I would be really interested to discover exactly how much ‘scrutiny’ they will actually do.

The FRC recent said it couldn’t find any systemic issues relating to cheating by some of the Big 4 staff, and those cases seemed to have been quietly forgotten. We must ensure real independent scrutiny moving forward.

Name and email address supplied

Let it all out

It was good to read ‘The crying game’ story about the ACCA exams last month. That SBR June test was tough, and admitting that emotions got the better of you is a brave thing to do. It really helped me too, as I sat alone in shock after sitting my exam at home alone. I did wonder what the examiner and ACCA thought of your story. Are they expecting more resilience from us students, or do they have some feelings about what they are putting student through?

Name and email address supplied

Setting ‘too hard’ exams

So AAT is setting exams that are too hard? I have never heard of

If you have any problems with delivery, or if you want to change anything more bizarre. Surely the AUDT and INAC assessments were tested before they went live. Wouldn’t issues about the right level of testing have come up then? If these assessments are too hard, what is to say that other assessments aren’t too hard, too? Name and email address supplied

How you become an AAT has changed. In fact, it changed last November. However, PQ magazine picked up that many students seemed confused by the new rules. We got in contact with AAT HQ and they provided us with a feature, which we ran last month.

We also pushed out what was happening on social media.

Basically, AAT has introduced a quicker and hopefully easier route to membership, once you finish your final Level 4 assessment. A prescriptive CPD programme now replaces the need to show you have obtained suitable work experience.

All those who have passed the Level 4 exam and completed their fit and proper checks can pay the fee and become a member.

During the first nine months of membership, AATs will now need to undertake CPD modules in ethics, sustainability, and leadership. There are eight modules in all to complete.

AAT believes this move aligns with its desire to create open access to accountancy careers. You will, however, need to complete the CPD pathway to remain a member, and there is no final test at the end of the modules.

One AAT said on Facebook: “I’m really glad to hear this! I think I’II get off the fence and apply. After all, when I bought a frame for my L4 certificate I could only get them in packs of two, so now I have a spare frame…”

Someone else said: “Is it essential [CPD] now with all the software? As employers seem more interested in who can use their software than have AAT.”

Yet another AAT was not so keen: “This is a bad idea.”

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