6 Ways an ACCA Qualification Can Help You Get a Job

The need for highly skilled finance professionals is continuing to rise. However, instead of employers accepting anybody for these roles, they seek candidates with specific criteria. As it turns out, being a member of ACCA can help your career tremendously.

The financial field is filled with great opportunities to create a successful and rewarding career. No matter your career goals, you can likely make them happen with a career in finance. From analysts to tax professionals, finance managers to CFOs, there’s a role to fit almost any jobseeker’s path. However, employers are having trouble finding exactly what they need from candidates. With roles and responsibilities shifting, financial professionals need to have a new set of skills and find jobs entirely different from what they’re used to.

Find out how an ACCA certification will elevate your job search and can help you land a job much faster.

1. Level Up Your In-Demand Skills

Employers seek highly skilled and trained financial professionals to fill their open positions. By completing the ACCA certification, you can stand out among other job-seekers by showing off your elite skillset. Employers aren’t just looking for a degree anymore. They’re looking for professionals with a broader range of technical and soft skills, such as business acumen and effective communication.

The ACCA syllabus accommodates employers’ needs and includes various topics. Professionals with the ACCA certification learn beyond what a traditional classroom provides. Additional skills, like ethics and business acumen, help position you as the best candidate for a wide variety of jobs on the market today. Employers value candidates with ACCA certifications because they have the skills needed to help grow the business.

2. Tap Into Networking Opportunities

Today, most jobs are filled solely through networking rather than using traditional job boards. In fact, many jobs are never listed publicly! Instead, employers hire for a large percentage of positions based on referrals by current employees. Being an ACCA member can help you step up in the world of networking. In fact, ACCA members get access to an exclusive network of over 200,000 members worldwide. You can even seek out ACCA networking events. So, how does this help you get a job?

Tapping into the ACCA network and attending some exclusive events is a great way to meet like-minded professionals. Plus, you could meet your next potential employer or an employee at an organisation you’d like to work for one day. Then, you can nurture those relationships and ask for a referral when a position becomes open.

3. Broaden Your Career Trajectory

Though many ACCA members lead fulfilling careers in accountancy or finance, others find their ACCA credentials useful in other sectors. Having an ACCA certification can build a great foundation for pursuing leadership roles in business or even becoming a business owner. When you pass your ACCA exams, you won’t have to restrict yourself to one career trajectory. Instead, you can enjoy the flexibility that comes with having such a diverse range of skills.

4. Instant CV Boost

ACCA is a globally-recognised certification that can help members find a job almost anywhere globally. It’s such a famous and renowned yet prestigious accreditation that nearly any business will instantly recognise its significance on your CV.

This can be a dream come true for those who wish to pursue work outside their home country. It’s especially nice if you’d like to work for an international organisation. Your ACCA status can move with you, and you can benefit from its recognition no matter where your career takes you.

5. Exclusive Job Boards

As an ACCA member, you’ll have access to an exclusive job board full of opportunities seeking your expertise. The ACCA provides you with members-only job advertisements that can help connect you with your next opportunity. Employers have to go through an approval process before posting jobs on the ACCA Careers Job Board. Currently, the ACCA partners with around 7,400 employers worldwide and helps match them with the best ACCA candidates for each position.

6. Additional Training Materials

Once you’ve become an ACCA member, you’ll have access to training and research materials to help you perform your job more effectively. These resources include accounting and audit standards and exclusive learning opportunities that can help you in your work. Greater productivity and better work results can increase your chances of getting promotions both internally and externally.

Putting your best foot forward in your current role helps you stand out for available promotions. Management may view you as a problem-solver that knows where to find the answers. In addition, achieving more in your current role gives you impressive results to share on your CV and in your networks. You can stand out among other applicants by highlighting some of the notable work you’ve accomplished using the ACCA resources available to you.

The Bottom Line

Passing your ACCA exams is challenging, but getting through it can help you land your dream job. Not only will you have new, relevant skills for the job force, but you’ll also be exposed to new resources that can help you get your next opportunity. You’ll have some new tools in your belt for your next job search, from exclusive job boards to a widespread, global network of ACCA members and affiliates.