Private practice accountants provide accountancy services for businesses or individual clients. They may work for large or small accountancy practices, or freelance.

In general, accountants manage and monitor financial systems and budgets, and offer business financial advice to clients. Day-to-day activities vary according to the size and type of practice they work for, but may include:

• preparing financial statements, business plans and budget reports
• producing annual and monthly accounts
• auditing financial systems and investigating any irregularities
• managing spending, costs, credit, payroll and investments
• advising on and dealing with tax 
• advising on financial and business issues to non-financial members of staff or to clients
• financial planning and forecasting
• helping businesses to improve their finances, or dealing with insolvencies
• finding and preventing fraud (known as forensic accountancy).

A key role for private practice accountants is carrying out audits, which are independent assessments of a company’s financial position. During an audit, accountants examine the company accounts, look at the company's current practices and recommend improvements.

Private practice accountants deal mainly with audits, tax and accounts for fee-paying clients, whilst management accountants deal more with strategic financial management within companies (see the Management Accountant profile for more details).

Hours and Environment

Accountants normally work 9am to 5pm, Monday to Friday. They may need to work extra hours at busy times. Flexible working is common. Part-time work and job sharing may also be available.

Accountants are office-based. They may carry out audits at clients' premises, so they may need to travel and spend time away from home. Dress code is usually formal.

Skills and Interests

To be an accountant you should:

• have good mathematical skills
• be able to plan and present information
• understand business and economics 
• enjoy analysing data and solving problems
• be able to create a good rapport with clients
• have good negotiating skills and be able to act on your own judgement
• have information technology skills
• be discreet, tactful and assertive.

Entry

To become a private practice accountant and be legally allowed to conduct audits, you must qualify as one of the following:

• an associate chartered accountant (ACA) with either the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales (ICAEW), ICAS in Scotland, or ICAI in Ireland
• a chartered certified accountant with the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (ACCA)
• an international accountant with the Association of International Accountants (AIA).

Before starting your training, you will need to decide which professional body to study with. You should consider your age, qualifications, experience, and whether you want to train on the job or pass exams before looking for work.

You will usually need the following standard entry qualifications to study with any of the professional bodies:

• three GCSEs (A-C)/S grades at (1-3) including English and maths, plus
• two A levels/three Highers, or any other qualifications that a university might accept for a degree.

Please check with the accountancy organisations about other qualifications that they might accept.

Training

In general, the training for each professional body follows a similar pattern: you must pass examinations at two or three levels and also complete three years' supervised work experience. If you have a relevant degree or any previous accounting qualifications, you will usually be exempt from some or all of the exams in the first stage - see websites for advice.

ACCA
To qualify as a chartered certified accountant through the ACCA Professional Scheme, you must pass exams at three levels: Part 1, Part 2 and Part 3. You have ten years to complete the exams after registering. You could study full- or part-time, or through distance learning providers. You can also buy textbooks and study independently for exams if you prefer.

You must also get three years’ supervised practical accounting experience and keep a training record to prove it. You can do this before, during or after your exams. For example, you could take Part 1 exams before looking for work, then apply for a job as a part-qualified accountant and take Parts 2 and 3 whilst working.

After qualifying as an ACCA member, you must also take some further training to qualify for a public practising certificate. See the ACCA website for more details and a list of training providers.

ACA with the ICAEW, ICAS or ICAI
To qualify as an associate chartered accountant (ACA), you must pass:

• exams at Professional and Advanced stages with the ICAEW (England and Wales), or
• Tests of Competence, Professional Skills and Professional Expertise with ICAS (Scotland), or
• Professional 2, Professional 3 and Final Admitting Exams with ICAI (Ireland).

You must also gain practical experience by having a three- to five-year training contract with an authorised firm. You could possibly begin to study for first stage of ACA training without a training contract, but you must have one in place before starting the advanced stages.

AIA
To qualify with the AIA, you must complete three years’ supervised training before, during or after passing exams at Foundation, Professional (I) and Professional (II) levels. You can study flexibly, either through distance learning with a tutor, or independent home study with books and online resources.

All of the accountancy organisations normally advertise jobs with training contracts on their websites or through mailing lists. See Further Information section for contact details.

After qualifying as an accountant with any of these professional bodies, you can choose to take further training to qualify as an auditor. See the Auditor profile for more details.

Opportunities

Job prospects are good, and there is scope to move into industry and commerce or the public sector. See the Public Finance Accountant and Management Accountant profiles for more information about working in other sectors. Accountants often move between firms of different sizes to gain promotion and experience.

Accountants working for private firms may become partners of the firm and so increase their income and reputation.

UK accountancy qualifications are recognised across the world so there may be opportunities to work abroad.

Annual Income

Figures are intended as a guideline only. Salaries can depend on the size of the accountancy practice and the accountant's level of experience and qualifications.

Trainee or part-qualified accountants may earn between £16,000 and £23,000 a year.
Qualified accountants could earn between £28,000 and £40,000.
Private practice accountants with ten years' experience could earn up to £100,000.

Further information

Tel: 020 7920 8100 Tel: 028 9032 1600 Staithes 3
The Watermark
Metro Riverside
Newcastle upon Tyne
NE11 9SN
Tel: 0191 493 0277 Tel: 0131 347 0161 2 Central Quay
89 Hydepark Street
Glasgow
G3 8DT
Tel: 0141 582 2000 51 Gresham Street
London
EC2V 7HQ
Tel: 0845 257 3772