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AAT Level 2, 3, and 4 Accounting
Course Codes
AAT058 / AAT059
Become a qualified accountant with this nationally recognised AAT Level 2, 3, and 4 Accounting course!
- Achieve this AAT Level 2, 3, and 4 Accounting qualification from one of the most respected and widely known awarding bodies worldwide.
- AAT qualifications are recognised both internationally and by all UK chartered and certified accounting bodies.
- Accountants with an AAT qualification are highly sought after by companies of all sizes.
- Ideal for those aspiring to a career in accounting or finance.
- Once you have successfully completed the course, you can apply for full AAT membership and achieve professional MAAT status.
- Achieve this qualification from the comfort your own home, at your own pace.
Course overview
This AAT Level 2, 3, and 4 Accounting course has been designed for those with little to no experience or knowledge of accounting, who wish to achieve a career in the field.
The course will help you get to grips with bookkeeping basics such as transactions and controls, as well as how organisations record costs and how to use accounts software that will record and process transactions. During this course, you’ll also learn more about preparing final accounts, advanced bookkeeping tasks such as preparing and extending the trial balance, and how to accurately complete VAT tax returns. Your level 4 studies will explore topics such as business and personal tax, cash and treasury management, management accounting, and financial statements.
AAT is the world’s leading professional membership body for accounting technicians, working with members around the world. Their accounting courses are highly sought-after and as an AAT qualification, this accredited accounting qualification will help you to progress in your career.
You will need to complete your AAT exams to complete and achieve your qualification. You can choose to add your AAT exams to your enrolment. If you do not add your exams to your enrolment, you will be responsible for booking and paying for your exams.
And if you’re thinking of going to university, the level 3 section of this course will allow you to gain up to 56 UCAS points to help you secure a place!
Course Duration
Up to three years.
Course Outcome
On successful completion of this course, you will receive the following qualifications: AAT Level 2 Certificate in Accounting, AAT Level 3 Diploma in Accounting, and AAT Level 4 Diploma in Professional Accounting.
Entry Requirements
You must be aged 16 or over to enrol on this course.
Assessment
Tutor-marked assessments, twelve exams, and one synoptic assessment.
Course content
AAT Level 2 Certificate in Accounting
- How to set up bookkeeping systems.
- Customer transactions.
- Supplier transactions.
- Processing of receipts and payments.
- Processing transactions into ledger accounts.
- Use control accounts.
- Reconcile bank statements with the cash book.
- Use the journal.
- Produce trial balances.
- The cost recording system within an organisation.
- Use cost recording techniques.
- Provide information on actual and budgeted costs and income.
- Use tools and techniques to support cost calculations.
- Principles of contract law.
- External business environment.
- Principles of corporate social responsibility (CSR), ethics, and sustainability.
- Impact of selling up different types of business entity.
- Finance functions within an organisation.
- Work in appropriate formats and communicate effectively.
- Importance of information to business operations.
AAT Level 3 Diploma in Accounting
- Business types, structure, governance, and the legal framework in which they operate.
- Impact of the external and internal environments on business, their performance, and decisions.
- Understand how businesses and accounts comply with principles and professional ethics.
- The impact of new technologies in accounting and the risks associated with data security.
- Communicating information to stakeholders.
- Accounting principles underlaying financial accounts preparation.
- Principles of advanced double-entry bookkeeping.
- Implementing procedures for the acquisition and disposal of non-current assets.
- Prepare and record depreciation calculations.
- Record period end adjustments.
- Produce and extend a trial balance.
- Produce financial statements for sole traders and partnerships.
- Interpret financial statements using profitability ratios.
- Prepare accounting records from incomplete information.
- Purpose and use of management accounting within organisations.
- Use techniques required for dealing with costs.
- Attribute costs according to organisational requirements.
- Investigate deviations from budgets.
- Use spreadsheet techniques to provide management accounting information.
- Use management accounting techniques to support short-term decision-making.
- Principles of cash management.
- Legislation requirements relating to VAT.
- Calculate VAT.
- Review and verify VAT returns.
- Understand the principles of payroll.
- Report information within the organisation.
AAT Level 4 Diploma in Professional Accounting
- Understanding and implementing the organisational planning process.
- Use internal processes to enhance operational control.
- Use techniques to aid short-term and long-term decision-making.
- Analyse and report on business performance.
- Reporting frameworks that underpin financial reporting.
- Drafting statutory financial statements for limited companies.
- Drafting consolidated financial statements.
- Interpreting financial statements using ratio analysis.
- Roles and responsibilities of the accounting function within an organisation.
- Evaluating internal control systems.
- Evaluating an organisation’s accounting system and underpinning procedures.
- The impact of technology on accounting systems.
- Preparing tax computations for sole traders and partnerships.
- Preparing tax computations for limited companies.
- Preparing tax computations for the sale of capital assets by limited companies.
- The administrative requirements of the UK’s tax regime.
- The tax implications of business disposals.
- Understand tax relief, tax planning, and agent’s responsibilities in reporting taxation to HM Revenue and Customs.
- Principles and rules that underpin taxation systems.
- Calculating UK taxpayers’ total income.
- Calculating income tax and national insurance contributions (NICs) payable to UK taxpayers.
- Calculating capital gains tax by UK taxpayers.
- Principles of inheritance tax.
- Understand the audit and assurance framework.
- Importance of professional ethics.
- The planning process for audit and assurance.
- Reviewing and reporting findings.
- Preparing forecasts for cash receipts and payments.
- Preparing cash budgets and monitoring cash flows.
- The importance of managing finance and liquidity.
- Understand the way of raising finance and investing funds.
- Regulations and organisational policies that influence decisions in managing cash and finance.
- Relevant legislation and contract law that impacts the credit control environment.
- How information is used to assess credit risk and grant credit in compliance with organisational policies and procedures.
- Understand the organisation’s credit control processes for managing and collecting debts.
- Techniques available for collecting debts.
Extra info
Course duration
Once enrolled, you have up to three years to complete your studies.
Study method
This course will be studied entirely via distance learning, meaning you will complete your learning either from home or a place that suits you. Full tutor support will be available via email, so if you have any questions or need some guidance, your tutor will be here to help. Your course materials will include a series of self-assessment exercises and tutor-marked questions to allow both yourself and your tutor to monitor your progress.
You will pay a one-off registration fee for each level you study which will give you access to the qualification for its lifetime, which is typically four to five years. The membership fees for this bundle course are £175 for level 2, £228 for level 3, and £244 for level 4. Please note, you can break these costs down by paying for each level separately as and when you progress through the course.
Once you have registered with AAT for your student membership, you will have access to their library of online resources and additional support materials, including sample assessments to help you prepare for your exams.
We will send an email with a link to download the free Sage software.
When studying the level 4 section of this course, you will need to complete five units consisting of a mix of mandatory and optional units. The mandatory units are:
- Applied management accounting
- Drafting and interpreting financial statements
- Internal accounting systems and controls
You will also then need to choose two units from the following list of optional units:
- Business tax
- Personal tax
- Audit and assurance
- Cash and financial management
- Credit and debit management
Assessment
The qualification is assessed through tutor-marked assessments, twelve external exams, and one synoptic assessment which you will complete at the end of your course. This computer-based exam must be sat under controlled conditions at an external examination centre. The exams will be available on-demand throughout the year, while the synoptic assessments are available on set dates throughout the year. Your tutor will be able to help you decide when you are ready to take the assessments.
Booking your assessments
You can choose to add your exams to your enrolment. If you choose this option, we will book and pay for your exams for you. Our partner exam centres for students choosing to book their exams through us are based in Birmingham or Irthlingborough near Northampton. When choosing to add your exams to your enrolment, it is important to note that we are only able to book your exams at the specified centres in either Birmingham or Irthlingborough, and therefore, you must be prepared to travel to one of those centres to complete your exam.
Alternatively, if you choose not to add your assessments to your enrolment, you will need to book and pay for these separately.
Course outcome
Once you have successfully completed your tutor-marked assignments and exams, you will receive the following qualifications from The Association of Accounting Technicians (AAT): AAT Level 2 Certificate in Accounting, AAT Level 3 Diploma in Accounting, and AAT Level 4 Diploma in Professional Accounting.
Awarding body
The Association of Accounting Technicians (AAT) has been established for over 30 years and is the world’s leading professional membership body for over 130,000 accounting professionals. AAT’s vocational qualifications are recognised internationally and by all chartered and certified accountancy bodies in the UK.
What next?
The skills developed during this bundle course will enable you to apply for the following roles:
- Commercial analyst
- Payroll manager
- Fixed asset accountant
- Indirect tax manager
- Tax supervisor
- VAT accountant
Take a read of our ‘How to Become an Accountant‘ career guide.
Q&As
You must be 16 years old to enrol on this course, as well as have basic maths and IT skills. You will also need an internet connection to allow you to download the free software.
- FREE Sage Accounts software (downloadable via a link we’ll send by email).
- Comprehensive study guide.
- Dedicated personal tutor support by email.
- Dedicated learner services.
- Assignment marking and feedback.
- FREE CV critique service.
- FREE employability guide to help you impress future employers.
- FREE XO Student Discounts membership.
- Exclusive Open Study College study pack including pen, highlighter, and notebook.
The Sage software will only work on computers which runs Windows 7 or higher, therefore Sage will not run on Windows XP. Sage software will not run on any Apple Macintosh computer. Please email us for full specification and compatibility details. The free software is provided as a download so you will need to ensure that you have an internet connection.
To sit your exams, you must join AAT as a student member, which will then give you access to their resources. If you add your exams to your enrolment, these are included within the cost. However, if you choose to book your exams separately, you must book and pay for these yourself.
More information on fees can be found on the AAT website.
It's not a problem. We offer a course replacement service, so if you get into trouble and your course pack is lost or damaged, our Student Support Team can provide you with a new set of materials for a one-time additional fee.
That's not a problem. We want to make sure you're 100% confident about enrolling on the course and starting your study. So, just give our team of education specialists a call on 03300 563 100 and they'll do their best to help.