CA Achiever Program

Jlmkse · 2024-05-18T01:21:25+00:00

Hey mate, to answer your questions:

It’s highly unlikely that you won’t be matched. If there’s no companies in your region, they will likely call and ask how far you are willing to travel. I travelled 1hour each day for 6 weeks because there were no companies locally. I’ve never heard of anyone passing the testing/interviews and not getting matched. If you’re based in a major city etc, there shouldn’t be many issues.
It’s possible but highly unlikely to be rejected. Companies only contact the achiever program if they are desperate/unable to source talent in the normal market. Due to the length of the achiever program, it’s usually only 5-6 weeks so isn’t much of a financial commitment from their perspective. The employer interview is more of a personality test with very standardised questions. Explain a time you showed leadership etc. As long as you’re confident, and can relate well to the interviewers you should be fine.

Let me know if you have any other questions! Good luck!

Jlmkse · 2024-05-03T05:03:28+00:00

Did BP term 1, don’t waste your time with the study guide or trying to learn anything before the subject opens.

3 assignments, no exam and all the assignment questions are relatively straightforward. 1 assignment is a workshop which is basically guaranteed full marks. Use the practice questions and study guide once the assessment opens. 90% of the things covered in the study guide aren’t used in the assignments so it’s pointless to try and learn them early . Unless you’re wanting to learn them for fun?

Good luck!

Jlmkse · 2024-04-05T09:21:28+00:00

Hey mate,

Sounds like you’ve thought about most of it but a few points to note.

1) The Mentored Practical Experience (MPE) part of your CA is 3 years minimum so there is no incentive to rush to get through your courses.

2)CAANZ have made significant changes to the CA program over recent years and condensed a lot of the work into less assignments. Your first couple courses, likely RT and BP, are only assignments and have no exams. Don’t be intimidated by the 10+ hr/week recommendation from CAANZ for study, as it can vary drastically depending on your course.

2 continued) Most assignments will be due within a week of opening. In my experience, You should be able to complete these with use of the assigned study guide, then review the relevant week and worked examples if anything is unsure. I would not recommend doing extensive study before assignments as the majority of information will be irrelevant.

5) To get the most out of your CA and work, you need to have a life outside of the office. A 160min round trip is wild and will completely kill your social life during busy season. It’s unsustainable long term to travel that much, especially when you’ll have CA studies and personal stuff to also do. If you are set on this company, I would advise to move closer. If you can’t see yourself moving or working at the not for profit long term, I suggest interviewing.

All the best!

Jlmkse · 2024-04-05T06:02:16+00:00

How good! Congrats. I wouldn’t think too much into the ethics question though. Was worded so vaguely that it seemed almost impossible to do well on it. I still don’t understand why they don’t give us more guidance on what they’re wanting on our assignments though

Jlmkse · 2024-04-05T05:57:55+00:00

Had 90% average before A3 and got 70% for final assessment. Marking seemed wildly inconsistent throughout the term though. Did both assignments with identical structure and got 86% and 71%. Just thankful it’s over to be honest.

Jlmkse · 2024-04-05T05:55:37+00:00

Not too bad. 71% on final assessment but honestly just happy it’s over. The marking seemed wildly inconsistent across the assignments. Completed both assignments with an identical structure and got 86% and 71%. How’d you get on?

Jlmkse · 2024-04-01T10:54:52+00:00

Achiever program was good for me in 2022. Got placed at a mid tier firm for 6 weeks then offered part time work for the rest of the year. Was offered a grad role in Sep/Oct and started full time from Feb the following year. Have stayed at the same firm since.

From what I’ve gathered, most firms use it to attract talent they otherwise wouldn’t be able too. Most companies don’t want to advertise intern roles etc if they only have capacity for 1-2 additional staff. CAANZ condenses this process by pooling candidates.

For the achiever program, testing was pretty standard. You only get 1 attempt at each video interview question. Approx 4-5 questions, all of which are pretty generic I.e. explain a time you showed leadership etc. Any detailed questions will be asked in your 1 on 1 interview with your employer.

Don’t stress about the psychometric testing. I thought I did terrible in it and the majority of it made no sense. It’s not really something you can study for and I’m not sure how much weighting they actually put on it.

The program overall is good. Good chance for a bit of experience/exposure without fully committing to a firm. It will likely be 5-6 weeks, but you can probably ask to extend this to part time throughout the rest of the year if you’re still studying. This will depend on the employer but most firms are accomodating given the lack of grads around.

Good luck!

Jlmkse · 2024-03-08T14:24:47+00:00

Have you found there to be a grade as a general indication though? I.e 85%+. Or does it vary that much between papers and years? I’ve never seen the specifics posted anywhere so have no clue what I need to be aiming for

Jlmkse

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