"A big thank you to everyone for an enjoyable and supportive 3 years at Shipleys. It's been a pleasure to work with you all."
For students with a strong interest in organisations and people, a career as a professionally qualified accountant can be both stimulating and rewarding.
We take on between eight and sixteen graduate trainees each year – both newly qualified graduates and those who have already started work but have decided on a career change and now want to join the profession – to study for the Chartered, Certified or AAT qualifications. In addition to the annual August intake, we often take on students in January. You should apply as soon as possible – even if you are contemplating a gap year.
You should have, or anticipate, a minimum of a second-class honours degree (usually a 2.1), but this need not be in accountancy or any other business-related subject. Most students entering the profession don’t have ‘relevant’ degrees. English and Maths GCSE at grade B or above and at least 300 UCAS points are also usually required.
Students enter employment under three or four-year training contracts at our offices in London or Godalming, where they receive a wide range of practical experience while studying for their professional examinations. Practical training to equip you for your work with us is provided by professional tutors from Kaplan.
Kaplan is a leading training organisation in the profession, and this is supplemented by in-house workshops and training sessions. Our students are given paid study leave, and we also cover the costs of all courses and examinations for the first attempts.
We are an Authorised Training Employer for the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales (ICAEW) and The Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (ACCA).
The Association of Practicing Accountants (APA), of which Shipleys is a member, provides a lot of information about becoming a chartered accountant and the advantages of training with a medium-sized firm like ours. They produce this booklet, ‘Becoming a chartered accountant – training with a medium-sized firm‘, which gives you more information.
We invest a lot into our students and in return expect them to contribute and do well.
We are looking for graduate trainees to join our team and study for the Chartered, Certified or AAT qualifications. Of course, some of these skills can be improved over time, but the right pre-requisite characteristics must be present. Our graduate trainees have:
Competition for places is fierce, with a large number of applicants. To apply, please email your CV to us at graduates@shipleys.com
Successful applicants are invited to attend an assessment day. This includes an introductory talk, a group exercise, an individual interview with our student counsellor and a member of the HR team, a lunchtime ‘meet and greet’ with some of the Shipleys Principals and a tour of the office.
Candidates who impress us are offered training contracts.
For further information, please get in touch with our friendly team: