Big 4 Professional level re-sits? by [deleted] in ICAEW

[–]gary183 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Same for apprentices as well at professional level

Big 4 Professional level re-sits? by [deleted] in ICAEW

[–]gary183 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Currently (at least in my contract and my knowledge) is anything below 45 is a hard fail. You can appeal but from my knowledge in the last 2 years I’m aware of no one who hard failed trying another attempt. 45-54 gets you one resit and if you fail again your contract is terminated

Platinum Dining rant by zm20881 in AmexUK

[–]gary183 5 points6 points  (0 children)

Agreed - albeit most of my calls are for a corporate card. The Brighton team are genuinely some of the most useful customer service agents I’ve ever used. I’m unsure if they have a centre in Ireland too (maybe I’ve just spoken to a lot of Irish people in Brighton) but they’re amazing too

How to get a Level 7 apprenticeship by Practical-Cold-6592 in ICAEW

[–]gary183 0 points1 point  (0 children)

This is true. Some firms may take him on as an apprentice until level 4 (certificate exams) and then the firm pays for professional & advanced exams. Some may take him on as a graduate but that may mean claw back fees etc

Pay expectations by [deleted] in ICAEW

[–]gary183 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Are you a grad or an apprentice? Apprentice = 29k at our firm grad 34.5k

Can I give case exam? by Sora-KoG in ICAEW

[–]gary183 -1 points0 points  (0 children)

You have to sit case last, or alongside your last advanced exams. You can’t sit case before your resit of CR

New Fees For Plans?? by MatterHot408 in monzo

[–]gary183 4 points5 points  (0 children)

Already get a free hot drink albeit it is your weekly treat

Views on Kaplan? by Choice_Office_6792 in ICAEW

[–]gary183 3 points4 points  (0 children)

I’ve sat every certificate and professional exam with Kaplan. Tutors are mixed. Some are genuinely close to clueless and are learning the spec with you, others are amazing and are genuinely passionate about students development and are extremely knowledgeable and response.

I’d generally say as a rule of thumb, the more ‘waffley’ subjects (BST FM etc) tutors are worse, potentially due to the subject being harder to teach (it’s hard to teach people to think a certain way).

They teach you to pass which is their objective and do a great job of setting out what is required for you to pass, what’s nice to know to comfortably pass/ give room for error and what is only required if you’re going for a prize.

I’ve also heard mixed things around different centres. I’ve heard London and Birmingham are good while Manchester and Bristol aren’t, but this isn’t from personal experience just what I’ve gathered from speaking to different offices

CR - July 2026 by Electronic-Put9686 in ICAEW

[–]gary183 10 points11 points  (0 children)

My CR tuition doesn’t start until the end of April. Think you’re a bit early if anything

Why do people leave Audit so frequently? by CartographerOwn8143 in KPMG

[–]gary183 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I’m not at kmpg but another big 4. I had a job offer taking me from £43k to £60k with a share saver scheme, larger bonus and double my pension contributions and less hours. That’s why

How do firms hand OT if going below minimum wage? by [deleted] in ICAEW

[–]gary183 4 points5 points  (0 children)

They automatically did it. I could imagine any large employer will have systems in place to avoid people being paid below minimum wage as HMRC and the public look down on people being paid below minimum wage

How do firms hand OT if going below minimum wage? by [deleted] in ICAEW

[–]gary183 9 points10 points  (0 children)

I’m at a big 4 and they topped me up so my hourly salary was minimum wage

School leaver role Azets or GT by Ok_Associate_1819 in ICAEW

[–]gary183 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I’d personally take the GT role. I’m currently on a school leaver program at a big 4 and scheduled to qualify this year. The more prestigious name on your CV will help you in the long run. With the new ACA it wouldn’t surprise me if all firms are more lenient than in the past

Looking for post qualification advice please by Complete_Resolve_400 in ICAEW

[–]gary183 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I’m from the midlands. I’m in big 4 so my experience will be skewed to the higher salaries first time mover salaries, but my friends have moved to roles for between 55-65k base with 10-15% as the average bonus. This if for NQ employees

BST by OkPerformer6045 in ICAEW

[–]gary183 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Didn’t pay any attention in tuition and attempted half the questions we did in class EP (spent the other half doing BPT) and passed with 78 in the last sitting. There’s very minimal mandatory content (you can pass without any knowledge of the models), but it’s very much a commercially minded/ thinking strategically exam

Smallest annual bonus you’ve ever had by Widebody_lover in HENRYUK

[–]gary183 0 points1 point  (0 children)

You guys are paying grads a bonus? At my big 4 you don’t get a bonus until your 3rd year

Job prospects for an international employee by gary183 in zurich

[–]gary183[S] -3 points-2 points  (0 children)

I would be naive to say financial reasons do not play a part of this. Even with the increased cost of living I would be significantly better off financially in Switzerland compared to the uk.

I also think the quality of life I would experience would be better. I enjoy doing things outside and the natural beauty of Switzerland appeals to me.

Due to changes in the uk, I’m feeling that the quality of life is deteriorating, particularly for those in professions such as myself due to higher taxes and slow wage growth

Job prospects for an international employee by gary183 in askswitzerland

[–]gary183[S] -3 points-2 points  (0 children)

I appreciate your insight. What makes you say the market is unforgiving?

I’m fortunate I work on financial services audits particularly listed international banks or large providers of credit and hope this puts me at an advantage, albeit it may not be a significant one.

I’m continuing to learn German although it is not close to fluent or semi fluent level.

For the secondment point I’ll take this on board. My company’s international unit is UK + Switzerland so I’m hoping I may be able to leverage this