April 8, 2024 • 19 mins
This week, we’re all about finding what works for you.
We all know that one of the awesome things about the ACCA qualification is its flexibility. From how many exams you sit at a time to whether you do self-study, or learn with a provider, there are so many routes of entry that it’s rare for two people’s journeys to look exactly the same.
So this week, we sit down with Paul Kirkwood - ACCA UK’s Regional Head of Education and Learning. He takes us through the wide variety of options available to support you on your journey, as well as give some inside tips on what ACCA’s data shows makes a difference to exam results. Plus, we chat to Shaun Fenwick – he’s recently passed all his exams and is now a qualified ACCA accountant. He shares his journey - including some stops, starts, and resits - and gives some stellar advice on how to keep going when the going gets tough.
This is On Your Marks. Because you’ll never know until you try.
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Student 1 (00:01):
I do remember signing up for my first exam and
it was a bit daunting because I didn't know what
to expect at all.
Student 2 (00:06):
I remember a colleague at the time saying to me, "
Just give it a go. You've paid for it now, just go and sit it
and use it as a trial run."
Student 3 (00:13):
As soon as I pass the exam, then it motivates
me again to continue, keep going.
Student 4 (00:18):
It's a lot of hard work, a lot of resilience,
but it's worth it in the end.
Krutika Adatia (00:25):
Hello, I'm Krutika Adatia and I'm a chartered accountant. I now
support accountancy students through their training, and as an educator,
I'm regularly up close and personal with some of the common
issues people face while studying for and sitting their accountancy exams.
So in this series for the ACCA, I've been chatting to experts about strategies
(00:46):
we can all use when facing some of life's challenges.
And for this final episode of the series, we're doing something special.
We are speaking to an ACCA education expert about how
to get on with booking and sitting your exams, as
well as someone who has just successfully passed all their exams.
What do the stats tell us about how to feel prepared?
(01:09):
What resources are available to you through your ACCA journey,
and how do you push yourself to take that first step? This
is On Your Marks, because you'll never know until you try. Now,
as an educator with ACCA, this is a topic close
to my heart. Working in the education solutions team at
ACCA means I have a lot of direct contact with students,
(01:32):
whether through webinars, social events, and the ACCA- X product
which I manage. I'm always moved by stories of perseverance
and success as I know these exams can be a
real challenge. They certainly were for me when I sat
them several years ago. So it's always particularly heartwarming to
me when I find out that a specific resource or
initiative that I've contributed to has helped someone achieve a
(01:55):
passing result. Today I'm going to be unpicking what these
resources are with Paul Kirkwood. He's the regional head of
education and learning for ACCA in the UK. Hello, Paul.
Paul Kirkwood (02:06):
Hi, Krutika, lovely to be here today.
Krutika Adatia (02:08):
And Shaun Fenwick. He works in the accounting team at
Brixton Brewery and has just found out he's passed all his
exams in the last couple of months. Hello, Shaun.
Shaun Fenwick (02:17):
Hello. Thank you for having me.
Krutika Adatia (02:19):
Amazing. So great to have you both here with us.
Now, Shaun, I'm going to kick off with a question
that's about how you are feeling now that you've just
passed your exams?
Shaun Fenwick (02:28):
I feel brilliant, amazing. A weight has been lifted off
the shoulder, not really sure what to do next, to
be honest. Got my result a couple of weeks ago,
and looking forward to what the next chapter is really.
Krutika Adatia (02:39):
Amazing. You must feel like you have so much time
on your hands now.
Shaun Fenwick (02:42):
Well, that's the thing, I do. Previously I've got my
exam result, I'm like, " Right. Okay, let's book the next exam." Now,
I'm like, " Okay, what next?" So I'm just looking forward to
seeing what that will look like.
Krutika Adatia (02:52):
Brilliant. I'm so excited for you, Shaun, and thank you
for joining us once again. Now, Paul, coming to you,
when it comes to deciding to pursue the ACCA qualification,
we know that in itself is quite a big step
and the flexibility of the qualification means that individuals can
start at different points and not everyone's journey is going
to be the same. Can you tell us a little
(03:12):
bit about the entry routes into the qualification and the
decisions that students might have to make?
Paul Kirkwood (03:18):
Yeah, of course. The flexibility is one of the ACCA's big
advantages, but it does and can create some problems because
it can lead to a little bit of procrastination 'cause
you've got to make those choices. There's a few areas
that I could talk about very briefly, first of which
is the entry point. So students can come in at
the very start of the qualification, but actually if you've
(03:41):
done some prior learning, you can get credit for that.
They're called exemptions. It's not the greatest name, but you
can get credit for prior learning, and that means you
can get or bypass some of the earlier exams. So
we've got potentially different starting points, but also in the
main qualification there's three levels and each level's got a
number of exams and you don't have to take them
(04:03):
in a specific order. So as well as having to
perhaps have different starting points, you've also got to choose
your first exam and get going with the qualification. And
finally, there's many different ways to study as well, whether
you're going to study yourself or, as we recommend, with
a learning partner. And then with a learning partner, are
you going to do home study, are you going to
(04:24):
do distance learning, are you going to do a face- to-
face course or an online course? There are a lot
of choices, but there's a lot of support and resources
to help you make those decisions.
Krutika Adatia (04:33):
And I'm sure we'll come onto that. But it's really
interesting that you mentioned procrastination because we've recorded another episode
where we talk specifically about that. And actually, Shaun, I
want to come to you. Do you remember making some
of the decisions that Paul's referring to and what's your
journey been like?
Shaun Fenwick (04:47):
I do, yes. My journey started off with AAT, which was
my prior learning to ACCA. And as Paul touched on,
I then qualified for those exemptions and I was exempted
from the first three papers, which is that level one
of the qualification. So I entered ACCA in the level
two phase.
Krutika Adatia (05:05):
Great. And just going to touch on a question there 'cause you
mentioned exemptions. Reflecting back on it, were the exemptions something
that you feel helped you to get a qualification quicker?
If you had to make that decision again, would you
take the exemption?
Shaun Fenwick (05:19):
Certainly. It certainly helped me get the qualification quicker. The exemptions I
was entitled to were very similar exams to those which
I studied in the level four AAT course. So if
I had have sat those exams, I would've felt like
I was probably duplicating my learning, hence the reason why
I got those exemptions.
Krutika Adatia (05:35):
So just coming back to that point. With exemptions, just want to call out that obviously you took
them because you'd already studied the AAT. It's important to
note that obviously if you're going to take exemptions, you
want to make sure you can brush up on the
technical content. Now, Paul, just coming back to you on
a question, we know that students often have fears and
(05:55):
struggles when they're starting off. Can you talk to us
a little bit about what those common fears and struggles
might be?
Paul Kirkwood (06:02):
Absolutely. I think the first point is it's the fear
of the unknown. Everyone is going to be a little
bit nervous when they take that first exam. I think
for a lot of students as well, who've come through
a typical education route, they may not have done computer-
based exams, so fully computer- based exams ever before. And
so at ACCA, all of the exams are computer- based,
(06:24):
but there are, for each of the levels, there are
practice environments for our students to practice in the real environment
that they will be sitting their exam. So there's support,
as we said, at each step of the way. So
we've got maybe fear of that unknown with an exam.
But also I think fear of failure as well. And
again, I'm reflecting back on my journey through the qualification
(06:47):
when I did it, and you do have that absolute
fear of failure, especially if in your past academic career
you might not have failed anything ever before. Yet at
ACCA, there's no grades, there's no A to F, there's
no score that you get, which means anything other than
pass or fail. So I think that fear of failure is
(07:10):
something we need to get over and just take that
first step, but it's something that we will support students on
their journey with.
Krutika Adatia (07:16):
Amazing. And is that some of the fears that, Shaun,
that you can resonate with? I know certainly the fear
of failure is something that really was a challenge for
me when I was going through this journey.
Shaun Fenwick (07:25):
Yeah, likewise. My biggest fear, to be honest, was probably
the commitment to having to study for the next three to
four plus years and not knowing when I might finish
my journey, but you can overcome that. It's a full
qualification. You don't actually need to sit every exam in
one go. You can take a break, et cetera. So
(07:45):
that removed that fear, if you like, knowing that. But yeah, the
fear of failure was of course always a fear, but
you've just got to book the exam and hope you
don't fail.
Krutika Adatia (07:56):
Yeah, it's almost like you don't want to think about
what the result is going to be. Focus on the
goal, you've booked your exam.
Shaun Fenwick (08:01):
That's it.
Krutika Adatia (08:02):
Get cracking on with the studies. And actually speaking of
that, Paul, you mentioned support resources that are available to students
as they're starting off. Can you tell us a little
bit more about what those resources might be and how they
can help?
Paul Kirkwood (08:13):
Yeah. There's a number of resources that ACCA supply, but
there's also resources from our learning providers. I think one
of the big things for a new student of the
qualification is to make themselves aware of all the support
that's available to them. They'll get support from their learning
providers. They'll also get support from their employers perhaps as
(08:34):
well. And then you've got the resources that ACCA give
you. And at ACCA we try to take you through
a little bit of planning, so to help you plan
for your next step because ACCA, as you mentioned, Shaun,
can take a number of years. It's not just a one-
year journey. For most it's going to be three, four
years or sometimes longer, so planning ahead and planning little
(08:56):
milestones. So we've got help around that planning for our
students, but there's also support in the learning phase. So
at ACCA, we've got recently launched the Study Hub, which
is a fantastic online study text and question bank that
students are loving at the moment to help them prepare
for the exam. And then for that revision phase as
well. I mentioned that we've got support in the real
(09:19):
computer environment that all of our exams are in. So
again, for planning, for learning for revision, there's support from
ACCA, which just underpins the support you get from your
learning providers as well.
Krutika Adatia (09:30):
That's really great. Now you mentioned the planning element, and
we also did an episode on planning, and I like that you called
out having those smaller goals to work towards. Obviously you've
got the bigger goal, but booking that exam, having a
compass planning tool that will help you break down what
your goals are, sounds great. Now, Shaun, just listening to
some of what Paul has just referenced, were any of
(09:52):
those resources, resources that you made use of what helped
you get started?
Shaun Fenwick (09:56):
Yeah, they were. Earlier on in my start of my
journey at ACCA, I was relying heavily on the training
provider and the materials available through them. But later on
in my journey, I self- taught and self- studied. I
relied heavily on the ACCA materials. So I've seen a
bit of both. One of the fears we touched on
earlier was the fear of sitting a computer- based exam.
(10:18):
For me, I'd come from A- levels into my accounting
career, and I was very much used to just pen
and paper in an exam hall. So the computer exam
was quite daunting, or the thought of this computer exam was
quite daunting. But as Paul touched on, there's the ACCA
practice platform, which is like a real- life exam environment.
And I was on that platform most weeks, just familiarized
(10:41):
myself with the platform really and that really eased my
fear of that computer- based exam.
Krutika Adatia (10:46):
Amazing. Actually, thinking back to when I was a tutor and
the exams changed from paper to computer- based, Paul, wasn't
that quite a scary transition having to actually teach students that, "
Hey, now the exams are on computers." So I don't
think it's just the students, it was the learning providers
having to adapt as well.
Paul Kirkwood (11:02):
Completely agree. And ACCA does pride itself in pushing the boundaries
and making sure that the qualification is up- to- date.
So I think I'm very proud of that as well.
But it does mean we've got to be constantly thinking
about how we support our students and we see the
results. We can see who uses the practice platform, and
there's such a strong correlation between students that use the
(11:25):
resources available and their exam success. So a real tip,
we've mentioned it twice now is, or I've mentioned it
twice, is making sure that you are aware of what's
available. At that start of the journey, you've got some time,
so spend some time looking at what's available to support
you for the exam that you choose to do first.
And you said it, just take that first step.
Krutika Adatia (11:47):
Now just circling back to something that you mentioned earlier
about the fear of failure and when you make a
plan to become a chartered accountant qualified accountant, it might
be that your plan doesn't always go as you had hoped.
You might have setbacks along the way. So, Paul, what
would your advice be around plans not going as they might do?
Paul Kirkwood (12:09):
When we say not going as well as they might
do, life gets in the way. It really does. Whether
that's work or whether it is your home life. And
that's not just about not taking exams. Sometimes, Shaun mentioned
the need, just to take some time out and maybe
miss an exam sit in just so you can get
back on track and give your full time and devotion
(12:31):
that that exam needs to pass. But if you do
fail, and I'll put my hands up, I failed two
exams on my route to qualification and I learned from
both of them. They were painful. There's nothing wrong when
you don't get that first success to not feel. You
feel hurt, you feel a little bit of anger, or
I felt anger. Certainly wasn't my fault for the first
(12:51):
couple of days. But then you reflect. And there are
resources, you will get support, and it's by speaking to
people around you, whether that's your learning provider as we've
talked about, they will support you to help you get
back on track. ACCA does as well. It will send
out support whether it comes in the form of webinars
(13:12):
or podcasts or vodcasts, it has got help and advice
for people to really think, reflect, and make the changes
needed just to make the difference when you come to
sit that exam the next time. So yes, it is
a fail. The way the exams are structured, you get
a pass mark or you get a fail mark. But
really, and anyone who does get that fail mark, there's
(13:34):
so much learning to be made from it and it
will stand you in good stead for future exams.
Krutika Adatia (13:39):
Well firstly, thank you, Paul, for sharing that you didn't
pass two of your exams. And I'm sure a lot
of listeners listening to this will feel refreshed by hearing
that. And Shaun, I want to ask you, have you had
any failures along the way?
Shaun Fenwick (13:50):
Yeah, exactly the same. I failed two exams myself and
one of the hardest parts of the qualification I felt
was bouncing back and just getting back to study mode.
It is disappointing. You put in all that effort, all
that time studying and revising, but there's so many variables
that come into play when you are going into an exam hall.
You've just got to overcome those and as Paul said,
(14:10):
just learn from them, resit it, and carry on. That's
one of the beauties of the qualification, I feel, is that
there's so much flexibility. And yes, you might fail, but
you can resit that exam, you can resit it in
the next sitting, you can actually start a new exam
and then come back to that exam. One of my
top tip would just be to try and overcome that
(14:31):
and just resit it and go again.
Krutika Adatia (14:33):
What kept you motivated? You mentioned you failed two exams
as well, so what was it that kept you going?
Shaun Fenwick (14:38):
Well, it was difficult to get going straight away, but
I did. And I think having those smaller milestones and being like, "
Right, okay, that's my next target," and that kept me
going. And my targets were broken down. So yes, the
overall goal was to finish the entire qualification, but one
of my goals would be to finish the first four
exams, for example. So if that's the third exam that
(15:01):
I failed, that's fine. My goal wasn't to sit with third exam, it
was to sit the fourth exam. So let me just
get the next one done. I suggest having those milestones.
Krutika Adatia (15:10):
And that's great that you've mentioned those milestones. And just
something we spoke about in an earlier episode as well
was just that reframing that you have. So to keep
going and just thinking, " I just haven't passed yet, but
that will come eventually." And here you are, have passed
all your exams. Fantastic. Well thank you both for
(15:31):
this conversation. And before we wrap up, just want to
come on to summarizing three things, Paul, that you would
advise students to focus on when they're starting out.
Paul Kirkwood (15:41):
Okay. The first one you mentioned, setting those small milestones.
I'm going to build on that concept and make sure
you celebrate that success, whatever that success looks like for
you. And it can come in many different forms, but
make sure you do celebrate it because it can be
a long journey, but it does aid that extra motivation
and it's a really good way to bounce back, like
(16:02):
that bounce back concept, to bounce back from failure with
that target of getting through. So set those milestones and
celebrate success. I'd also say that the next one is
spend that little bit of time working out the resources
that are available to you. So dealing with that, perhaps,
nervousness about, " Have I got enough support to get me
through?" Yes, there is, but you've got to find it.
(16:24):
You've got to look for it a little bit. And
then thirdly, and this is the final thing and the
biggest thing for me is book an exam. If you
can book that exam, it sets a line in the
sand, you've got something to aim for, you are committed,
just go for it.
Krutika Adatia (16:39):
Love it. And a similar thing with a three areas
of focus for students when they're starting out, Shaun?
Shaun Fenwick (16:45):
Number one would be to book the exam for me.
Book the exam and work backwards and then build your
revision plan around that. That's what I felt. It was
very easy to not have an exam booked and study,
study, study. And you've just always got that feeling in
your mind that, " Oh, I might not be ready to
sit this exam." Just book it. That would be my
number one focus. Second focus would probably be to start
(17:06):
building a network, a network of colleagues and peers and
other students, tutors, et cetera, because it would be the people
around you that really get you through the qualification. It'll
be those people which are able to help you when
you do fail, et cetera. So that would be number
two. And then number three would probably be, just enjoy
the journey and commit some time to studying, but also
(17:29):
make some free time available to have fun with your
friends, go on holidays, et cetera. Just don't work too
hard towards just studying. And then make sure you give some
time for yourself.
Krutika Adatia (17:40):
Sorry, I got excited. I was going to interrupt there because
you said enjoy the journey, Paul. And I think that's
really important, isn't it? We are so fixated on the
end result, that we want to qualify, that we forget
that actually it's a journey and that we ought to
enjoy it in the process. So thank you for
sharing that.
Shaun Fenwick (17:56):
It is very easy to get bogged down in study
textbooks and have a plan, which is just, " Right, Saturday
and Sunday I need to go to the library and
I need to revise. Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, in the evenings,
I'm going to pick up that study book." It's very
easy to just get bogged down with studying and sitting
exams, especially when the windows are every quarter. You are
always working in a three- month timetable. For me, my
(18:19):
journey wasn't as simple as just sitting exam every quarter.
I took some time for myself. There was actually a 12-
month period where I only sat two exams, but that
was really helpful for me and really beneficial for my
journey. There was lots going on. I was starting a
new job and I was moving homes, et cetera. So
it is important to realize that you've got a lot of
(18:40):
time, you've got all the time in the world, and
there's no rush.
Paul Kirkwood (18:43):
I could echo that point. I think it's so important
when you're doing your detailed plan, and you mentioned that,
Shaun, in terms of start with your exam and work
backwards. Get the time in that you will be spending
with your family, with your friends. Block that time out.
You can't block too much out. We know that. But
that's so important because these other people who are around
(19:03):
you, and you mentioned it earlier, who will support you.
So make sure you do give time for yourself and
your friends and your family along the way. I hesitate
to say that I enjoyed my journey to qualification, but
there's no better day than the day that I got
that final result and I can remember it. To this day,
I can remember getting that final result, " You've passed. You're
(19:27):
there. You've done it." And it was all worthwhile, undoubtedly.
Krutika Adatia (19:31):
Definitely no comparable feeling to that. That's it from this
series of On Your Marks. Thank you, Paul and Shaun, for
chatting with me today. For more information about ACCA exams,
you can go to www. accaglobal. com/ exam. I'm Krutika Adatia,
and this has been On Your Marks.
I do remember signing up for my first exam and
it was a bit daunting because I didn't know what
to expect at all.
Student 2 (00:06):
I remember a colleague at the time saying to me, "
Just give it a go. You've paid for it now, just go and sit it
and use it as a trial run."
Student 3 (00:13):
As soon as I pass the exam, then it motivates
me again to continue, keep going.
Student 4 (00:18):
It's a lot of hard work, a lot of resilience,
but it's worth it in the end.
Krutika Adatia (00:25):
Hello, I'm Krutika Adatia and I'm a chartered accountant. I now
support accountancy students through their training, and as an educator,
I'm regularly up close and personal with some of the common
issues people face while studying for and sitting their accountancy exams.
So in this series for the ACCA, I've been chatting to experts about strategies
(00:46):
we can all use when facing some of life's challenges.
And for this final episode of the series, we're doing something special.
We are speaking to an ACCA education expert about how
to get on with booking and sitting your exams, as
well as someone who has just successfully passed all their exams.
What do the stats tell us about how to feel prepared?
(01:09):
What resources are available to you through your ACCA journey,
and how do you push yourself to take that first step? This
is On Your Marks, because you'll never know until you try. Now,
as an educator with ACCA, this is a topic close
to my heart. Working in the education solutions team at
ACCA means I have a lot of direct contact with students,
(01:32):
whether through webinars, social events, and the ACCA- X product
which I manage. I'm always moved by stories of perseverance
and success as I know these exams can be a
real challenge. They certainly were for me when I sat
them several years ago. So it's always particularly heartwarming to
me when I find out that a specific resource or
initiative that I've contributed to has helped someone achieve a
(01:55):
passing result. Today I'm going to be unpicking what these
resources are with Paul Kirkwood. He's the regional head of
education and learning for ACCA in the UK. Hello, Paul.
Paul Kirkwood (02:06):
Hi, Krutika, lovely to be here today.
Krutika Adatia (02:08):
And Shaun Fenwick. He works in the accounting team at
Brixton Brewery and has just found out he's passed all his
exams in the last couple of months. Hello, Shaun.
Shaun Fenwick (02:17):
Hello. Thank you for having me.
Krutika Adatia (02:19):
Amazing. So great to have you both here with us.
Now, Shaun, I'm going to kick off with a question
that's about how you are feeling now that you've just
passed your exams?
Shaun Fenwick (02:28):
I feel brilliant, amazing. A weight has been lifted off
the shoulder, not really sure what to do next, to
be honest. Got my result a couple of weeks ago,
and looking forward to what the next chapter is really.
Krutika Adatia (02:39):
Amazing. You must feel like you have so much time
on your hands now.
Shaun Fenwick (02:42):
Well, that's the thing, I do. Previously I've got my
exam result, I'm like, " Right. Okay, let's book the next exam." Now,
I'm like, " Okay, what next?" So I'm just looking forward to
seeing what that will look like.
Krutika Adatia (02:52):
Brilliant. I'm so excited for you, Shaun, and thank you
for joining us once again. Now, Paul, coming to you,
when it comes to deciding to pursue the ACCA qualification,
we know that in itself is quite a big step
and the flexibility of the qualification means that individuals can
start at different points and not everyone's journey is going
to be the same. Can you tell us a little
(03:12):
bit about the entry routes into the qualification and the
decisions that students might have to make?
Paul Kirkwood (03:18):
Yeah, of course. The flexibility is one of the ACCA's big
advantages, but it does and can create some problems because
it can lead to a little bit of procrastination 'cause
you've got to make those choices. There's a few areas
that I could talk about very briefly, first of which
is the entry point. So students can come in at
the very start of the qualification, but actually if you've
(03:41):
done some prior learning, you can get credit for that.
They're called exemptions. It's not the greatest name, but you
can get credit for prior learning, and that means you
can get or bypass some of the earlier exams. So
we've got potentially different starting points, but also in the
main qualification there's three levels and each level's got a
number of exams and you don't have to take them
(04:03):
in a specific order. So as well as having to
perhaps have different starting points, you've also got to choose
your first exam and get going with the qualification. And
finally, there's many different ways to study as well, whether
you're going to study yourself or, as we recommend, with
a learning partner. And then with a learning partner, are
you going to do home study, are you going to
(04:24):
do distance learning, are you going to do a face- to-
face course or an online course? There are a lot
of choices, but there's a lot of support and resources
to help you make those decisions.
Krutika Adatia (04:33):
And I'm sure we'll come onto that. But it's really
interesting that you mentioned procrastination because we've recorded another episode
where we talk specifically about that. And actually, Shaun, I
want to come to you. Do you remember making some
of the decisions that Paul's referring to and what's your
journey been like?
Shaun Fenwick (04:47):
I do, yes. My journey started off with AAT, which was
my prior learning to ACCA. And as Paul touched on,
I then qualified for those exemptions and I was exempted
from the first three papers, which is that level one
of the qualification. So I entered ACCA in the level
two phase.
Krutika Adatia (05:05):
Great. And just going to touch on a question there 'cause you
mentioned exemptions. Reflecting back on it, were the exemptions something
that you feel helped you to get a qualification quicker?
If you had to make that decision again, would you
take the exemption?
Shaun Fenwick (05:19):
Certainly. It certainly helped me get the qualification quicker. The exemptions I
was entitled to were very similar exams to those which
I studied in the level four AAT course. So if
I had have sat those exams, I would've felt like
I was probably duplicating my learning, hence the reason why
I got those exemptions.
Krutika Adatia (05:35):
So just coming back to that point. With exemptions, just want to call out that obviously you took
them because you'd already studied the AAT. It's important to
note that obviously if you're going to take exemptions, you
want to make sure you can brush up on the
technical content. Now, Paul, just coming back to you on
a question, we know that students often have fears and
(05:55):
struggles when they're starting off. Can you talk to us
a little bit about what those common fears and struggles
might be?
Paul Kirkwood (06:02):
Absolutely. I think the first point is it's the fear
of the unknown. Everyone is going to be a little
bit nervous when they take that first exam. I think
for a lot of students as well, who've come through
a typical education route, they may not have done computer-
based exams, so fully computer- based exams ever before. And
so at ACCA, all of the exams are computer- based,
(06:24):
but there are, for each of the levels, there are
practice environments for our students to practice in the real environment
that they will be sitting their exam. So there's support,
as we said, at each step of the way. So
we've got maybe fear of that unknown with an exam.
But also I think fear of failure as well. And
again, I'm reflecting back on my journey through the qualification
(06:47):
when I did it, and you do have that absolute
fear of failure, especially if in your past academic career
you might not have failed anything ever before. Yet at
ACCA, there's no grades, there's no A to F, there's
no score that you get, which means anything other than
pass or fail. So I think that fear of failure is
(07:10):
something we need to get over and just take that
first step, but it's something that we will support students on
their journey with.
Krutika Adatia (07:16):
Amazing. And is that some of the fears that, Shaun,
that you can resonate with? I know certainly the fear
of failure is something that really was a challenge for
me when I was going through this journey.
Shaun Fenwick (07:25):
Yeah, likewise. My biggest fear, to be honest, was probably
the commitment to having to study for the next three to
four plus years and not knowing when I might finish
my journey, but you can overcome that. It's a full
qualification. You don't actually need to sit every exam in
one go. You can take a break, et cetera. So
(07:45):
that removed that fear, if you like, knowing that. But yeah, the
fear of failure was of course always a fear, but
you've just got to book the exam and hope you
don't fail.
Krutika Adatia (07:56):
Yeah, it's almost like you don't want to think about
what the result is going to be. Focus on the
goal, you've booked your exam.
Shaun Fenwick (08:01):
That's it.
Krutika Adatia (08:02):
Get cracking on with the studies. And actually speaking of
that, Paul, you mentioned support resources that are available to students
as they're starting off. Can you tell us a little
bit more about what those resources might be and how they
can help?
Paul Kirkwood (08:13):
Yeah. There's a number of resources that ACCA supply, but
there's also resources from our learning providers. I think one
of the big things for a new student of the
qualification is to make themselves aware of all the support
that's available to them. They'll get support from their learning
providers. They'll also get support from their employers perhaps as
(08:34):
well. And then you've got the resources that ACCA give
you. And at ACCA we try to take you through
a little bit of planning, so to help you plan
for your next step because ACCA, as you mentioned, Shaun,
can take a number of years. It's not just a one-
year journey. For most it's going to be three, four
years or sometimes longer, so planning ahead and planning little
(08:56):
milestones. So we've got help around that planning for our
students, but there's also support in the learning phase. So
at ACCA, we've got recently launched the Study Hub, which
is a fantastic online study text and question bank that
students are loving at the moment to help them prepare
for the exam. And then for that revision phase as
well. I mentioned that we've got support in the real
(09:19):
computer environment that all of our exams are in. So
again, for planning, for learning for revision, there's support from
ACCA, which just underpins the support you get from your
learning providers as well.
Krutika Adatia (09:30):
That's really great. Now you mentioned the planning element, and
we also did an episode on planning, and I like that you called
out having those smaller goals to work towards. Obviously you've
got the bigger goal, but booking that exam, having a
compass planning tool that will help you break down what
your goals are, sounds great. Now, Shaun, just listening to
some of what Paul has just referenced, were any of
(09:52):
those resources, resources that you made use of what helped
you get started?
Shaun Fenwick (09:56):
Yeah, they were. Earlier on in my start of my
journey at ACCA, I was relying heavily on the training
provider and the materials available through them. But later on
in my journey, I self- taught and self- studied. I
relied heavily on the ACCA materials. So I've seen a
bit of both. One of the fears we touched on
earlier was the fear of sitting a computer- based exam.
(10:18):
For me, I'd come from A- levels into my accounting
career, and I was very much used to just pen
and paper in an exam hall. So the computer exam
was quite daunting, or the thought of this computer exam was
quite daunting. But as Paul touched on, there's the ACCA
practice platform, which is like a real- life exam environment.
And I was on that platform most weeks, just familiarized
(10:41):
myself with the platform really and that really eased my
fear of that computer- based exam.
Krutika Adatia (10:46):
Amazing. Actually, thinking back to when I was a tutor and
the exams changed from paper to computer- based, Paul, wasn't
that quite a scary transition having to actually teach students that, "
Hey, now the exams are on computers." So I don't
think it's just the students, it was the learning providers
having to adapt as well.
Paul Kirkwood (11:02):
Completely agree. And ACCA does pride itself in pushing the boundaries
and making sure that the qualification is up- to- date.
So I think I'm very proud of that as well.
But it does mean we've got to be constantly thinking
about how we support our students and we see the
results. We can see who uses the practice platform, and
there's such a strong correlation between students that use the
(11:25):
resources available and their exam success. So a real tip,
we've mentioned it twice now is, or I've mentioned it
twice, is making sure that you are aware of what's
available. At that start of the journey, you've got some time,
so spend some time looking at what's available to support
you for the exam that you choose to do first.
And you said it, just take that first step.
Krutika Adatia (11:47):
Now just circling back to something that you mentioned earlier
about the fear of failure and when you make a
plan to become a chartered accountant qualified accountant, it might
be that your plan doesn't always go as you had hoped.
You might have setbacks along the way. So, Paul, what
would your advice be around plans not going as they might do?
Paul Kirkwood (12:09):
When we say not going as well as they might
do, life gets in the way. It really does. Whether
that's work or whether it is your home life. And
that's not just about not taking exams. Sometimes, Shaun mentioned
the need, just to take some time out and maybe
miss an exam sit in just so you can get
back on track and give your full time and devotion
(12:31):
that that exam needs to pass. But if you do
fail, and I'll put my hands up, I failed two
exams on my route to qualification and I learned from
both of them. They were painful. There's nothing wrong when
you don't get that first success to not feel. You
feel hurt, you feel a little bit of anger, or
I felt anger. Certainly wasn't my fault for the first
(12:51):
couple of days. But then you reflect. And there are
resources, you will get support, and it's by speaking to
people around you, whether that's your learning provider as we've
talked about, they will support you to help you get
back on track. ACCA does as well. It will send
out support whether it comes in the form of webinars
(13:12):
or podcasts or vodcasts, it has got help and advice
for people to really think, reflect, and make the changes
needed just to make the difference when you come to
sit that exam the next time. So yes, it is
a fail. The way the exams are structured, you get
a pass mark or you get a fail mark. But
really, and anyone who does get that fail mark, there's
(13:34):
so much learning to be made from it and it
will stand you in good stead for future exams.
Krutika Adatia (13:39):
Well firstly, thank you, Paul, for sharing that you didn't
pass two of your exams. And I'm sure a lot
of listeners listening to this will feel refreshed by hearing
that. And Shaun, I want to ask you, have you had
any failures along the way?
Shaun Fenwick (13:50):
Yeah, exactly the same. I failed two exams myself and
one of the hardest parts of the qualification I felt
was bouncing back and just getting back to study mode.
It is disappointing. You put in all that effort, all
that time studying and revising, but there's so many variables
that come into play when you are going into an exam hall.
You've just got to overcome those and as Paul said,
(14:10):
just learn from them, resit it, and carry on. That's
one of the beauties of the qualification, I feel, is that
there's so much flexibility. And yes, you might fail, but
you can resit that exam, you can resit it in
the next sitting, you can actually start a new exam
and then come back to that exam. One of my
top tip would just be to try and overcome that
(14:31):
and just resit it and go again.
Krutika Adatia (14:33):
What kept you motivated? You mentioned you failed two exams
as well, so what was it that kept you going?
Shaun Fenwick (14:38):
Well, it was difficult to get going straight away, but
I did. And I think having those smaller milestones and being like, "
Right, okay, that's my next target," and that kept me
going. And my targets were broken down. So yes, the
overall goal was to finish the entire qualification, but one
of my goals would be to finish the first four
exams, for example. So if that's the third exam that
(15:01):
I failed, that's fine. My goal wasn't to sit with third exam, it
was to sit the fourth exam. So let me just
get the next one done. I suggest having those milestones.
Krutika Adatia (15:10):
And that's great that you've mentioned those milestones. And just
something we spoke about in an earlier episode as well
was just that reframing that you have. So to keep
going and just thinking, " I just haven't passed yet, but
that will come eventually." And here you are, have passed
all your exams. Fantastic. Well thank you both for
(15:31):
this conversation. And before we wrap up, just want to
come on to summarizing three things, Paul, that you would
advise students to focus on when they're starting out.
Paul Kirkwood (15:41):
Okay. The first one you mentioned, setting those small milestones.
I'm going to build on that concept and make sure
you celebrate that success, whatever that success looks like for
you. And it can come in many different forms, but
make sure you do celebrate it because it can be
a long journey, but it does aid that extra motivation
and it's a really good way to bounce back, like
(16:02):
that bounce back concept, to bounce back from failure with
that target of getting through. So set those milestones and
celebrate success. I'd also say that the next one is
spend that little bit of time working out the resources
that are available to you. So dealing with that, perhaps,
nervousness about, " Have I got enough support to get me
through?" Yes, there is, but you've got to find it.
(16:24):
You've got to look for it a little bit. And
then thirdly, and this is the final thing and the
biggest thing for me is book an exam. If you
can book that exam, it sets a line in the
sand, you've got something to aim for, you are committed,
just go for it.
Krutika Adatia (16:39):
Love it. And a similar thing with a three areas
of focus for students when they're starting out, Shaun?
Shaun Fenwick (16:45):
Number one would be to book the exam for me.
Book the exam and work backwards and then build your
revision plan around that. That's what I felt. It was
very easy to not have an exam booked and study,
study, study. And you've just always got that feeling in
your mind that, " Oh, I might not be ready to
sit this exam." Just book it. That would be my
number one focus. Second focus would probably be to start
(17:06):
building a network, a network of colleagues and peers and
other students, tutors, et cetera, because it would be the people
around you that really get you through the qualification. It'll
be those people which are able to help you when
you do fail, et cetera. So that would be number
two. And then number three would probably be, just enjoy
the journey and commit some time to studying, but also
(17:29):
make some free time available to have fun with your
friends, go on holidays, et cetera. Just don't work too
hard towards just studying. And then make sure you give some
time for yourself.
Krutika Adatia (17:40):
Sorry, I got excited. I was going to interrupt there because
you said enjoy the journey, Paul. And I think that's
really important, isn't it? We are so fixated on the
end result, that we want to qualify, that we forget
that actually it's a journey and that we ought to
enjoy it in the process. So thank you for
sharing that.
Shaun Fenwick (17:56):
It is very easy to get bogged down in study
textbooks and have a plan, which is just, " Right, Saturday
and Sunday I need to go to the library and
I need to revise. Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, in the evenings,
I'm going to pick up that study book." It's very
easy to just get bogged down with studying and sitting
exams, especially when the windows are every quarter. You are
always working in a three- month timetable. For me, my
(18:19):
journey wasn't as simple as just sitting exam every quarter.
I took some time for myself. There was actually a 12-
month period where I only sat two exams, but that
was really helpful for me and really beneficial for my
journey. There was lots going on. I was starting a
new job and I was moving homes, et cetera. So
it is important to realize that you've got a lot of
(18:40):
time, you've got all the time in the world, and
there's no rush.
Paul Kirkwood (18:43):
I could echo that point. I think it's so important
when you're doing your detailed plan, and you mentioned that,
Shaun, in terms of start with your exam and work
backwards. Get the time in that you will be spending
with your family, with your friends. Block that time out.
You can't block too much out. We know that. But
that's so important because these other people who are around
(19:03):
you, and you mentioned it earlier, who will support you.
So make sure you do give time for yourself and
your friends and your family along the way. I hesitate
to say that I enjoyed my journey to qualification, but
there's no better day than the day that I got
that final result and I can remember it. To this day,
I can remember getting that final result, " You've passed. You're
(19:27):
there. You've done it." And it was all worthwhile, undoubtedly.
Krutika Adatia (19:31):
Definitely no comparable feeling to that. That's it from this
series of On Your Marks. Thank you, Paul and Shaun, for
chatting with me today. For more information about ACCA exams,
you can go to www. accaglobal. com/ exam. I'm Krutika Adatia,
and this has been On Your Marks.
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