When there’s a will there’s a way

When there’s a will there’s a way.

I was interested in studying accounting for a long time but studying from a book all by myself was daunting. I tried it but it never worked for me. I found it difficult to motivate myself and there was no one to ask if I needed help. Studying in a college is not possible for me as working full time, in shift patterns so to get a specific day off in a week was never an option. So when the time arrived I looked into distance learning. I compared everything from price, the support provided to tutorial videos. Read all the reviews available. Researched all the providers. Took my time. I chose Premier Training. I have to say I am very pleased with my decision.

Initially, I was scared. I haven’t studied for a long time, since leaving school, did a couple of NVQs but that was it. I have no experience in accounting only basic banking experience in a retail environment. I wanted to know if accounting is something that I want to do in the future, therefore, I chose level 2 only even though I could have saved a lot of money if I choose level 2 and 3 combined.

MyPTA is very simple to use. Keeps me on track. I can see the percentage going up as I complete chapters and send assignments. I love that I have a timetable. I changed jobs while I was in the middle of the course and I work even longer hours now than before. I still managed to keep to the timetable. My tutor is only an email away and always got a reply the very next day. Marked assignments are back very quickly too. One came back in a few hours after submitting. The feedback always positive and gives a substantial explanation of tasks that I get wrong.

These are the little things that keep me motivated and I’m flying through the course. I enrolled in June and I am waiting for my last assignment to be marked. I will book my last exam for the 25th this month and I will be done with level 2. If I would have more time I could have finished it a lot quicker. The material is very easy to understand and the way it is broken into chapters and the regular assignments made it easy to get through the whole course. I tried studying by myself and never got far. I gave up after a few chapters. To actually finishing a course is a big achievement for me. I haven’t studied for a long time

I realised that I do enjoy doing accounting. I took the advice of other students on Accounting Student Network and I found a small charity job where I do bookkeeping once a week. They asked me to go on their board as a Treasurer. I’m planning to carry on studying and gain experience in accounting before applying for paid jobs. My husband is starting up a business with his brother so I should be able to gain some experience in payroll and tax in the near future.

Career change still in full swing. I’m not in a rush but I will get there. When there’s a will there’s a way.

 

Ildiko Valent
AAT Level 2