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It was just perfect for people like me who’re trying to juggle work, family life, and study.’

Carol Ramachandran rushes through the restaurant door, sits down at the table and apologises for being a few minutes late. She is the mother of four children, in full-time employment, and helps run the family’s new restaurant, Mulan. She has given up her lunch hour to chat about how, amongst all her other commitments, she recently made the time to successfully complete her Certificate in Bookkeeping.

Carol and her husband James (Mulan’s head chef) emigrated from Penang, Malaysia in 2001. She was an extremely experienced and competent financial administrator, having set up and run systems for tax, payroll, reconciliation, stock flow, and profit and loss. She had several certificates in accounting and business studies, notably from the London Chamber of Commerce & Industry (LCCI Malaysia) and the Association of Business Executives (ABE).

In spite of all this, Carol felt she needed a local qualification, one which potential future employers would immediately recognise and value. Initially, she signed up for a degree in accounting at university. However, she quickly realised that for her at least, this was not a great option. The cost was high, it was very time intensive, and she says she felt as though she was studying merely to pass exams rather than to put the knowledge into practical everyday usage. With her husband working long and unpredictable hours, attending scheduled classes away from home was just too hard. ‘I passed the Finance paper, but I honestly thought I’d be lucky to finish the whole course by the time I retired!’ remarks Carol. ‘It just didn’t suit my lifestyle.’

Having found The Career Academy via Google, Carol immediately felt better. The cost was reasonable, and the interest-free payment plan was very appealing. She also liked the flexibility of studying online at home.

Achieving her certificate has given Carol a new level of confidence. As well as a better overall understanding of today’s accounting systems, she feels more self-assured at work and knows that she can genuinely support the family business.

But Carol’s journey isn’t over. Ultimately, she would like to become an Accounting Technician, so she is continuing her incredible juggling act and has signed up for the Accounting Pathway Program.

The Accounting Pathway Program is a comprehensive 400-hour course built from the ground up to take you from having no knowledge of accounting to attaining a Certificate Accounting Technician status and becoming a full member of the Association of Accounting Technicians.

Like a lot of our students, Jill found us during the lockdown. ‘My husband and I were living on the road travelling around this beautiful country, doing all sorts of work.’ She says.

Unfortunately, when the COVID pandemic began in 2020 and New Zealand went into lockdown, it made sightseeing a little more difficult.

‘During COVID lockdown I needed something to keep me busy, while I was unable to continue with my current work.’ She says. Instead of just watching TV, she decided to do something a little more productive and got in touch with several education providers with the intention of upskilling. The Career Academy’s student advisors were the first to get in touch (they’re always eagerly waiting by the phones) and answered all of the questions that Jill had. With her options thoroughly researched, she decided that The Career Academy was right for her and enrolled in the Certificate in Bookkeeping. The Certificate in Bookkeeping is designed to take students from no experience to qualified bookkeepers in only 140 hours of study. It also gives six months free access to MYOB and access to the Official Xero Advisor Certification, so they can learn the tools of the trade while studying.

‘Studying online, at my own pace worked perfectly for me. As I studied during lockdown this worked, well. I could stop and go for a walk or do some work around the farm.’ She says. ‘Having previously studied and worked in Australia it was interesting to learn the NZ side of bookkeeping.’

‘I feel there is always an opportunity to increase your knowledge, especially when rules and regulations are forever changing.’

Jill studied the Certificate in Bookkeeping which allows you to become a qualified bookkeeper in just 10 weeks.

Leanne had been working in accounting for most of her adult life – but never found the time to get a formal qualification.

‘I could get away with this 25 years ago when everything was done with a calculator and a pencil but with the regulation changes in the accounting industry and a social change to be better up-skilled I could not afford to be left behind.’

This isn’t at all uncommon for our students, many of whom come to us with considerable career experience, but need to gain something on paper that supports the knowledge that they already have. It’s also an amazingly useful tool to discover any gaps in the knowledge or update their skills to the latest in their industry.

After some searching, Leanne found that The Career Academy was a perfect fit for her needs. ‘They offered me the exact qualification I was after at a super competitive price and offered learning at my own pace.’ She says. Self-paced learning is perfect for our students who are already established in a career and don’t have time to take hours out of their working week to attend lectures and tutorials, not to mention saving the commute time going to and from a physical location to study.

It wasn’t long before Leanne had achieved her ambition and completed the Certificate in Bookkeeping. ‘More than just gaining a certificate, the satisfaction did wonders for my self-confidence. Now I really do feel I am part of an industry club. I’m being recognised by my peers as an equal. The confidence I gained then encouraged me to take the next step and I quickly enrolled in the Diploma in Accounting.’

Leanne isn’t the first student to carry on to our more advanced courses, as many discover that they want to continue to grow their skills – either because they want to continue their career progression or simply because they’ve been bitten by the learning bug and don’t want to stop.

It’s amazing to see students like Leanne achieving career success with us. ‘I can’t speak highly enough about the platform The Career Academy offers, The Career Academy has enabled me to gain personal development on a level I could only dream about one year ago.’

Leanne completed both the Certificate in Bookkeeping and the Diploma in Accounting.

Nikki has been a rally co-driver for many years, sitting in the co-pilot seat of her father’s car. Recently she bought a rally car of her own, which will let her step into the driver’s seat. But the racetrack isn’t the only place that Nikki is taking the wheel.

In her quest for a more fulfilling career, Nikki chose to study at The Career Academy. ‘The team at The Career Academy really know how to support and guide people towards their goals.’ Nikki says. Every student at The Career Academy receives one-on-one time with one of our student advisors prior to enrolling, unlimited tutor support when they’re working through their course, and access to the Career Centre after they graduate to help them find their dream job.

Eventually, she completed the AAT Accounts Administration and Payroll Pathway, the Certificate in Accounting, and the Diploma in Accounting.

Not only did these courses let her learn the tools of the trade in a flexible online learning environment, but they also gave her the invaluable industry accreditations that make the difference when it comes to getting offered a job over another candidate. Through her course, Nikki was able to become a fully qualified Accounting Technician, as well as gain membership to the Institute of Public Accountants.

With these qualifications under her belt (or rather her helmet), Nikki went on the job hunt. With her skills, it wasn’t long before she was able to find a job at Robinson Interiors, which provides fit outs for super yachts. Between her new role and the rally car driving Nikki is making a life of working with vehicles that most of us would only dream of. Her day-to-day involves daily office management, Acting as PA to the CEO, as well as performing the main financial functions for the business, all thanks to the skills she learned at The Career Academy.

The team at The Career Academy were so impressed with her skills that we went on to offer her a job as an Accounting Tutor which proved a great fit, as Nikki was able to offer sage advice as a former student. There’s nothing more rewarding than being able to focus on helping people along their own educational journey.

Nikki wasn’t the first former student who went on become a tutor, and she certainly won’t be the last. If you want to follow in her footsteps, you can enrol in the Certificate in Accounting to learn the fundamentals of accounting, and then go on to the Diploma in Accounting to learn even more advanced skills.

Sabrina had just had a baby when she found The Career Academy. Newborns typically don’t work on a 9-5 schedule, so neither could Sabrina. But it was more than the flexibility of learning that attracted her to online study. ‘I felt like there was a clear outcome with what I could do with The Career Academy’s courses. For me, it wasn’t just about studying something, it was about what I would get out of this once I completed my course.’ Sabrina says.

Almost immediately, it was the AAT Accounting Technician Pathway Program that caught her eye. ‘It offered me the accounting theory that I needed, with the option to add “Accounting Technician” status to my name, along with applying all my theoretical knowledge into practice through the use of accounting software such as Xero. It was also a lot more value for money than other courses I had researched.’

Sabrina had some worries that online learning would feel isolating compared to more traditional on-campus study, but luckily her fears were quickly relieved. ‘Studying through The Career Academy was very different to my previous experiences, in that, you feel like you are not alone. I’ve found other online distance learning to be very one-sided with the student fully responsible for their achievements. The Career Academy literally walk with you through your journey and answer questions and provide guidance when needed.’

‘It was great not to have set dates for assessment submissions.’ She goes on to say. ‘I had just had a baby and so my days and weeks were different. I could not develop a set routine to stick to, so it was great to be able to fit it in when I could. I would often read the content from my phone while waiting for doctors’ appointments etc., and then when I had time, I would climb onto the computer and complete the exercises and quizzes.’

Sabrina originally planned to become an Accounting Assistant once she had finished her course, but as with many things in life, her career ended up taking an unexpected twist. Today, Sabrina is working in The Career Academy’s very own tutor team. ‘I loved being at TCA so much that I decided to work here instead!’ Now Sabrina spends her days helping other students on their education journey, and we’re sure that her time as a student has given her invaluable insight into the challenges that students face. Better yet, she spends every day helping students along the path to achieving their own career aspirations.

The Accounting Technician Pathway for Bookkeepers will accelerate your accounting technician career by giving you student membership to the Association of Accounting Technicians.

Samantha was doing volunteer work when she heard about The Career Academy. After looking at our website, she decided it was time to make the leap and she enrolled in the Certificate in Bookkeeping.

As a mum of two, the ability to work to her own schedule was Samantha’s number one priority when it came to studying. ‘I really enjoyed that I could complete the course at my own pace from the comfort of my own home. As a single mum, it is essential that I have flexibility when studying and the career academy provided me with this.’ she says.

After six short months, Samantha graduated from her course and quickly found work as an Office Manager. ‘The course at The Career Academy allowed me to transition to working in my desired field.’ Samantha says.

But despite all of her success – she’s not content to rest on her laurels!

‘I am very committed to furthering my own career and utilising the skills I have learned to make an impact in my industry and my time at The Career Academy has given me the confidence to work towards opening my own business.’

Being able to balance the needs of her career with the needs of being a mum let Samantha kickstart her career in Bookkeeping. It’s The Career Academy’s goal to make sure that while you are working your way towards the life you want, you can still live the life that you have to the fullest, and our team of tutors and student advisors will be there every step of the way.

As for Samantha’s advice to anyone looking to change their lives as she did? ‘If You Believe You Can, You Can!’

If you want to kickstart your career in bookkeeping as Samantha did, the AAT Qualified Bookkeepers Pathway is designed to start with the fundamentals of bookkeeping and work through to the beginning of your bookkeeping career. It also includes six months of access to MYOB & access to the Official Xero Advisor Certification.