All employers need to meet a few specific requirements to start training ACA students.
Meet universal training standards
ICAEW is one of the few institutes to have universal training standards for all employers who train ACA students. This helps ensure consistency of support and training to ACA students across the world.
There are five key principles to ICAEW training standards:
- to operate with professionalism and commitment to ACA training;
- to provide students with a suitable training environment;
- to offer students appropriate supervision and support;
- to offer students the opportunity for personal and professional development; and
- to offer students appropriate training in professional ethics.
Become an ICAEW authorised training employer (ATE)
Becoming an authorised training employer (ATE) is a straightforward process. It can take just a few weeks and is usually free of charge.
To become authorised to train ACA students, please download and complete the Register as a training employer application form (PDF 115KB/1 page). Our Training and CPD Managers will visit your office and help you through the process. They can be contacted on +44 (0)1908 248 038 or training@icaew.com.
Process of becoming ICAEW authorised
- 1. Appoint an individual to oversee student training
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You’ll need to designate a specific individual or group of people (depending on the size of your organisation) to be responsible for training and to oversee student progress and development. This individual is called a 'qualified person responsible for training' (QPRT). They do not have to be an ICAEW member; they could be a member of ACCA, CIMA, CIPFA, CAI, ICAS or international equivalent.
- 2. Get work experience right
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As a minimum your organisation will need to provide work experience in at least one of the following six technical categories: Accounting, Audit or Assurance, Taxation, Financial Management, Insolvency or Information Technology. You do not have to offer audit experience as an essential part of ACA training.
You will need to provide a training structure that offers as much scope and variety as possible. If the work experience you offer covers just one area, you’ll need to make sure your student gains depth of understanding in that area. If you can offer multiple areas of work experience your student will gain depth and breadth.
- 3. Register your office
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Individual organisations can be authorised as well as subsidiary companies. Where an organisation has multiple locations or where there are groups of offices that have common training practices, you can register as a 'training office group'. This can help with providing a greater range of work experience for your students.
- 4. Provide training agreement for each student
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You’ll need to provide an ACA training agreement to each student. It can vary in length from three to five years, although some students with other professional qualifications may be eligible for a two year training agreement.
You can adapt this to suit your needs or you can provide your own.
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