Nicola

Office: London
University: Loughborough
Degree: Accounting and Financial Management

Nicola Wiggett has been with our London office since September 2006 in our Business Advisory Services department. She recently achieved 91% in the ACCA’s ‘Professional Accountant’ exam, the highest mark in the world.

Can you describe your typical day in your department?

I work in the Business and Advisory department and a typical day can vary depending on my workload at the time. If I am working on an audit, my day could either consist of planning the audit on our computer systems or I could be on-site physically undertaking the fieldwork – gathering evidence from the client’s books and records to support the accounts.

If I’m not working on an audit, I could be working on an accounts preparation job, which involves collating a clients records into a set of accounts. I could calculate and complete VAT returns or intrastate returns; or help with management accounts for clients, including completing reconciliations.

Who would you say is suitable for ACCA training?

Anyone who is prepared to work hard and is interested in accounting and business. Working full time and studying can be very demanding, so, being highly motivated and having the ability to manage time well is paramount.

What type of people does UHY Hacker Young attract?

All sorts! The staff at UHY Hacker Young are motivated, happy, friendly and sociable. When I first started I was made to feel welcome instantly, people take the time out to get to know you and tell you about working here.

What opportunities can stem from an ACCA qualification in the future?

There are many opportunities that stem from an ACCA qualification. You can continue to work in practice on accounts preparation, audit or other areas. You could also move into industry, working for a company’s in-house accounts department in a particular area such as management accounts. There is also the option of changing from accounting to other finance based careers, such as banking. The ACCA qualification offers a good base of business and accounting knowledge that can be applied to any finance based job.

What do you like most about your role?

The variety of work I get to do. I get to work on all different sizes of clients and varying types of work including basic accounts preparation, VAT returns and audit. I also enjoy working out of the office at clients premises, it allows me to put faces to names and see how the business operates. This helps increase my understanding of that client which I can then apply to the work I need to do for them.

Why UHY Hacker Young?

I didn’t want to work for a big 4 firm. I wanted to work in a medium sized firm with a more personal and friendly environment, and where the variety of clients was such that I would not be doing the same thing day in day out. Everyone is very friendly and willing to help if you need it.

You recently achieved 91% in your ‘Professional Accountant’ exam, the highest mark in the world, how does the firm support you with your exams?

The firm is very supportive through the exams. They give time off for college courses, revision courses and the actual exam. They allow you to study in a pattern that suits both you and the firm. UHY Hacker Young appreciate the time and effort that is needed to pass the exams, and take this in to account when planning work during the exam period.

How does UHY Hacker Young support your development?

You are given a mentor when you start who is there to help you through your training. They will help you meet your Practical Experience Requirements (PER), and review these, which make up your professional experience for the ACCA membership requirements. The seniors, supervisors and managers are always happy to help if you need it. The clients you are given to work on change as you progress through your studies giving you more challenging projects to test your knowledge and to learn from.