haykay2005:

@tos.wots your contribution to oxford brokke degree,it is tru is not reliable both locally and internetionally?pls i want your comment on this

scud:

@tos:

You must learn how to use empirical evidences in order to come to a conclusion. My statement of second class was made when compared to local accountancy bodies not that the certification is a second class (please read the spirit of what I am writing). I myself would not have sat down for a second class certification because I strive for the best.

My question are:

1. Which certificate is the most preferred (which commensurate with higher pay in UK)?- please use UK salary checker

2. How many years of working experience would you have had before you can be admitted to ICAEW?

3. How many accountancy bodies in the leading economy has relationship with ACCA ( i am not talking of ANAN equivalent)?

4. Which one is harder between ICAEW & ACCA?

5.If you have the opportunity to write ACCA & ICAEW, which one would you have written?

I asked the question so that you can see the shortcomings of ACCA and people should not just take it hook-line and sinker.

I am writing ACCA because I want to migrate and at least to have an Internationally recognized accounting certificate and of International Financial Reporting. However, I was shocked to know that the leading bodies in Australia, Canada and even South Africa does not just admit you like that (the way ICAN just admit ACCA) without writing exams.

As you said, I am preparing well o as I am already reading for June diet and I have Corporate Finance & Valuation by Bob Ryan (P4) for my P4 (just been sarcastic).

If you can answer my questions favourably, I will swallow my pride and follow you.

scud:

I will like to tell you that none is better. Each is just good.

I am an ICAN member and also writing ACCA and I will like to base my conclusion on this premise.

On ACCA- ACCA is a second class certification when compared to ICAEW & ACA in England & Wales, and in International level, ACCA is not recognized for membership by most of the leading economy withou firstly doing exams and these include USA, Canada, Australia etc. The reason is that ACCA is not really a local body but international accounting body.
However, with ACCA you are exposed to new methodologies because of its internationalization which has to do with International Financial Reporting Standards, Business Ethics etc

On ICAN- this is the most revered accounting institute in Africa. However, the problem that ICAN has cannot be isolated from Nigeria. It is based on the fact that if the macro is problematic, the component micros will be. I used 2 years to finish ICAN (and inducted in 2007) and it helped me to quickly get on with my ACCA (I have 2 papers to completion and I never attended ACCA lectures in Nigeria but using my ICAN notebook along)- there was nothing new in ACCA that I did not learn in ICAN-be it derivatives, international & local financial reporting, business valuation, Relational Database Management System. If Nigeria turns good today, there is now way for ACCA oo because all over the world, the most paid are those with locally recognized authority.

However, as of today, I will recommend that you should write ACCA so that you can use back door to join ICAN, but if you don't have money to pursue it, do ICAN- there is no discrimination when looking for qualified accountant in Nigeria

Whether na ACCA or ICAN just ensure that you are sound and can make money

korayday:

The salary is less than 110k after tax, if u're friend is already chartered then he mite earn more, plus I don't know if the rumour I heard about the pay reduction is true, if it is then it might have dropped to 80/90k a month

ednut1:

This is a lesson 2 nigerians. They wil nt recognise our degree cos its s.hit. Science students doing theory all day no practical/outdated equip. Accounting students still using paper to learn instead of computer. Etc. In my 3yrs in uk i once met a former bank md 4rm 9ja washing plate. If u gt your papers intact b4 going do any proffesional exam accredited 2 us or uk (acca, cima, marketing, security,catering,plumbing) etc b4 going or u go wash plate ,sweep floor tire

deebsman1:

guess he should do well, he has at least an average cgpa from a science based course. so no word of discouragent accepted here. just words of advice

blank:

I can answer this cos i worked in Pwc from May 2008 till September 2009. The advisory consulting arm is to consult mainly for companies that they are not auditing. They can still do consulting services for company that they audit for as long as the companies are not registered on the US stock exchange and they keep to certain rules.

I have my views on this. PwC recruits for mainly their audit practice. So, imagine a pharmacy graduate doing audit. He wont be feeling satisfied. KPMG takes forever to complete their recruitment exercise while PwC concludes everything in about a month plus. Thus, the pharmacy graduate mentioned above (who would have applied to the two companies) would accept the offer from PwC pending when KPMG concludes their recruitment exercise and puts him in consulting. I saw a lot of this with the August batch that were recruited. Its a pity really.

Bukittes:

I need to know what other professional exam i can write with my ICAN intermediate. Walahi i don tire for ICAN!!

Focusmind:

My friend got a scholarship through the OPEC FUND FOR INTERNAIONAL DEVELOPMENT(OFID) for a masters degree in Petroleum Engineering at the University of British Columbia, Canada. He currently works with PWC. He is contemplating whether to take up the offer and quit his job or continue with PWC. He is scared about the present rate of unemployment. I have already, adviced him to take the offer that I did same when PTDF offered me scholarship. I had to resign from my work. His program would be starting on 6th January,2010 and he has not made up his mind whether to call it quit with PWC. He is an engineer and have qualified as a chartered accountant with PWC.

madambini:

Since you work with a government parastatal, i believe u are entitled to a student leave.
You don't have to resign to go to school, most govt workers do both at the same time.
You should find out first from your parastatal tho!

tkb417:

wont touch any
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Cristalz link=topic=344632.msg5033729#msg5033729 date=1259745708:

@TKB
Why wouldn't you? Too risky?

There is no risk in starting out with accounting firm, especially the Big-4, irrespective of the path (tax, audit, financial advisory, business advisory, regulatory service, transaction servive, etc) you choose.

They will always open doors for greater opprtunities.

T-Cann:

Hi all,
Av been away from the house for quite a while, story plenty, will come to that l8a.
This ques goes esp to the experienced,humane and truthful-with-d-answer persons in the house (eg TOS)
For an ambitious guy trying to ascend to higher realms later in his career,esp MNCs; will a job offering/audit experience (say some 3yrs and abv) in a medium size audit firm like Dafinone or some name like FH audit you ve probably not heard of, get him to progress on to MNCs or a path of say some IBs like Vetiva, Greenwich(doing research or CF) and some other known stockbrokerage firms, considering the economic weather and its unlikely nature to clear soon,as a consideration yardstick for both senarios.Which path will you advise and pls give concrete reasons.

Thank you in anticipation of your kind and well thought through replies.

NB
the guy is qualified for both senarios-ie for stkbrokerage, nigerian CIS and Auditing, ICAN ACA.

busybody20:

You can use your International driving license to drive in Uk. Its only valid for 12 months after initial entry into the uk e.g if you entered uk in Jan 2004, its expires (Dec 2004) even if you got your international license in July 2004.

I used my International Driving License only for one year but got the Full Uk driving license after 3 failed tests though .

Pls note one bad point of using International driving license is that it costs more for Insurance

Ardunolarh:

thanks, but do u know anywhere i can take lectures?

t-luv:

If you had the opportunity of choosing to work in the audit or tax department of one of such accounting firms such as KPMG, PWC, Delliote, etc, which would you choose and why.

Busy_body:




Hmmn, my dear you pay more than £11,000k per annum combined on tax+NI on an income of £30,000 abi you Nigerians don find a way round this one again Abeg fill me in sharp sharp

joyli:

I think Tax Clearance is Important cos it helped during my own time

myspace:

Hello @all,

Please I wish to know if a tax clearance cert is mandatory when applying for a UK visiting visa.

Thanks

Nweddings:

Eriko2k2 is right. They are not looking for huge bank balances just regular deposits and withdrawals.

When my friend did it she only had £500 in her account and her husband was given the visa staight away. Another friend on the other hand had to appeal and get her MP involved even though her father had a big house in the UK.

They look at regular things and if something looks too good then alarm bells start ringing.

Start comminucating via Email or letters and keep phone bills if you can.

olu0:

oh thanks alot for your response, it was really helpful. yer my marriage is genuine. just that I'm new to this thing and I dont really have anyone around me who knows how the process works. (lol).

unfortunately we do no communicate by post, and we hardly communicate vai email. guess we better start doing that now.

but another thing im not sure about is how many months pay slip and bank statemet do i need to produce is it 3months worth or 6months?

also approx how much do i need to have left in my account after bills cos i heard they require the sponspor to have at least £600 left after rent and bills in a month for them to qualify, is that so.

i would be really greatful someone could help. thanks.

olu0:

oh thanks alot for your response, it was really helpful. yer my marriage is genuine. just that I'm new to this thing and I dont really have anyone around me who knows how the process works. (lol).

unfortunately we do no communicate by post, and we hardly communicate vai email. guess we better start doing that now.

but another thing im not sure about is how many months pay slip and bank statemet do i need to produce is it 3months worth or 6months?

also approx how much do i need to have left in my account after bills cos i heard they require the sponspor to have at least £600 left after rent and bills in a month for them to qualify, is that so.

i would be really greatful someone could help. thanks.

Hi OP - You do not need a significant savings to file for your hubby. The only thing you need to prove is that your marriage is genuine. However, ensure that you have minimum of £110 left over after all your bills and living expenses every month. You may send a statement of your monthly income and expenses to the BHC to prove that your hubby would not have any need to make recourse to public funds when in the UK.

My wife (who was my sponsor) only had 49p in her accounts and had no job when I did my interview. But fortunately I had a good job with a multinational coy and good savings. The BHC was only concerned about my ability to secure a job when I get to the UK and proof that I was not going to rely on public funds to survive. I presented all my academic certificates and my bank statements showing significant amount of savings. Fortunately you as the sponsor have significant savings and so your hubby does not have to show that he has money to bring to the UK as it was in my case.

You also need to show that you guys will co-habitate when he gets to the UK by presenting documents such as tenancy agreements in your name and a letter from your landlord stating that your hubby is allowed to stay in the house since you rented the house in your name only. Also send your letter of employment and 3 months pay-slips to your hubby to take along to the BHC. He should make attempt to start applying for jobs in the UK immediately and proof of this should be printed and presented as well.

Ensure that you send a notorised copy of the bio-date page of your passport to your hubby to take with him to the BHC and all the pages in your passport showing the entry stamps during all your visits to Nigeria. This will show that you guys knew each other very well before marrying and that the marriage is not one of convinience. I will suggest you do a civil marriage at the Ikoyi Registry in Lagos as it is the most recognised Registry by the BHC. Also ensure that you take a lot of pictures during the marriage and you can identify all the invitees to the marriage by names. Note that you dont have to invite a lot of people to the Registry. A couple of friends and family members should be enough. I remember that we only invited 6 people (two signed as witnesses) to the Registry in our case.

All the documents you are taking to the BHC should be arranged in a folder and postit papers used to identify them as this will make it convinient for your hubby to present them to the ECO when they are being asked for. The form that you will use for the application is VAF4 for settlement.

Though it's a good thing to attend the interview with your hubby but it's not a requirement (I attended my interview alone). The sample of questions that may be asked at the interview are as follows:

- When did you get married?

- What is your partner's date of birth?

- When/where/how did you meet your partner?

- What does your partner do (what kind of job)?

- Where does your partner work?

- When was the last time your partner visited Nigeria?

- When was the last time you were in the UK?

- Where does your partner live in the UK?

- Mention two landmarks close to where your partner lives?

- Can you describe how to get to Central London from your partner's house?

- How many sibblings does your partner have?

- What are the names of your partner's parents? What do they do?

- Can you identify this person from your wedding pictures (note the ECO will point to anyone)?

- What do you do? What company do you work for?

- How much is your monthly income?

- Why do you want to move to the UK and not the other way round?

The list is inexhaustive. Please note that some of the questions that the ECO will ask are already in the application form that your hubby would have submitted. He should make sure that he does not forget anything. Also if there are things that you guys dont know about each other, this is a good time to start telling yourselves.

If you still have any question, i will be happy to help.

mcgboye:

so oneONYX, what's d pay like at pwc? (take home & total package)
seems this tax issue is a problem for all multinational coys, they simply dont know how to go round govt. even where i work now, we have a cunny way of reducing tax.

mcgboye:

thanks TOS & Emuejev. wish u all the best.
Never mind, God is in control.

meanwhile TOS, seems everyone is leaving pwc for kpmg. i think 3 friends have left pwc in recent months for kpmg, and i colected my letter alonghside another guy that works tehre. what could be happening?

Emuejev:

am an accounting grad actually,

Emuejev:

Congrats Mcgboye
am just tired of interviews, wish me luck tho,

Emuejev:

Guys i am honestly tired, the Hr people just got back tome, i was told i would have to undergo another interview , this time with their divisional head of audit, meaning i have to brush off on accounting and auditing.

Please has anyone been through this kind of interview,

Please i would appreciate any feedback

Emuejev:

@mcgboye
I dont know should we contact the HR person who usually calls, and you didnt tell me how long it took you from partner's interview to medicals, pls let me know when u can


The no general rule is especially bad, a company should have at least a method for conducting recruitments, anyways its nigeria, what can one do.Thank you.