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Auditor
External auditors check that the accounts of companies and organisations meet legal standards. This also includes public sector bodies where they are responsible for spending public money. Internal auditors often work in one company or in a public sector organisation. Some organisations outsource the internal audit work to external auditors.
Work activities
External auditors are professionally qualified specialist independent accountants. They examine an organisation’s accounts to check that they have been prepared fairly in accordance with Company Law and to make sure that the accounts provide a true and fair view of the organisation’s financial affairs. Public sector bodies are also audited, to make sure that they are delivering good value for money and that public funds are being spent appropriately.
Auditors often conduct their work on the client’s premises, sometimes in teams. They start by gaining a thorough knowledge of a client’s business and continue gathering evidence until they are certain that there are no significant errors in the accounts. They look at the client’s accounting systems, computing systems and business environment. Auditors carry out audit tests and examine samples of documents and records to check that all transactions, assets and liabilities have been properly recorded. Techniques include inspecting assets and seeking further details from both inside and outside a company. Auditors often interview relevant staff to get this information. They also compare current accounts with the previous year and might compare them with a similar company’s accounts.
External auditors sometimes need to travel throughout the UK (and possibly abroad) and stay away from home occasionally. In contrast, internal auditors work in one company or in a public sector organisation. They make sure that the organisation has effective systems and controls in place. They carry out reviews to make sure that the organisation is getting value for money and that risks are properly identified, analysed and managed. External auditors often rely to a certain extent on the work of internal audit as this gives some audit assurance.
Personal qualities and skills
As an auditor, you’ll need to be:
- Numerate and capable of interpreting complicated accounts.
- Accurate and methodical in your work.
- Able to solve problems.
You should have:
- An enquiring mind.
- A good eye for detail.
- Integrity.
- The ability to communicate effectively and explain results clearly and concisely.
- Good report-writing skills.
- Teamwork ability.
- IT skills.
- The ability to prioritise your workload.
Pay and opportunities
A registered auditor must first qualify as a chartered or certified accountant. Salaries for accountants vary depending on location and employer. Typically, auditors earn between £19,000 and £65,000.
Auditors usually work 37-39 hours, Monday to Friday. However, like many other professionals, extra hours might be needed at busy times.
Employers in the private sector are accountancy practices (known as public practice). Auditors in the public sector work for the National Audit Office, the Audit Commission, and, in Scotland, the Accounts Commission. Opportunities for auditors occur in towns and cities throughout the UK.
Self-employment opportunities occur for experienced auditors to set up their own practice.
Where are vacancies advertised?
Vacancies are advertised in local/national newspapers and professional magazines, on accountancy job boards and employers’ websites, on the Government’s Find a Job service. CareersinAudit.com is a specialist Auditor recruitment website. Training contract vacancies are advertised through the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales website and on employers’ websites. ACCA (the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants) has a dedicated careers portal, ACCA Careers.
Entry routes and training
To become an auditor, you could complete a degree in a subject such as accountancy, business and finance, economics or IT and computing, before joining a graduate programme.
Alternatively, you could undertake an apprenticeship, a work-based programme during which you will be supported by your employer to complete relevant qualifications to support your role. Options include:
- Internal audit practitioner (level 4 / higher)
- Internal audit professional (level 7 / degree)
Before becoming an auditor, you must first become a member of one of the two recognised professional bodies:
- Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales (ICAEW) or its Irish equivalent (ICAI).
- ACCA (the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants).
To qualify, you must pass professional exams, including the audit module. Study is possible through day-release, block-release, full-time study or distance learning, depending on the professional body and your employer. Once qualified, you need to gain relevant experience and obtain a practising certificate and audit qualification to have registered external auditor status.
For internal auditors, the Chartered Institute of Internal Auditors offers the Certificate, Diploma and Advanced Diploma qualifications, plus the IT Auditing Certificate for qualified internal auditors.
Auditors can progress to manager, senior manager, partner or director posts, depending on the type of auditing.
Rehabilitation of Offenders Act: Working as a chartered or certified accountant is an exception to the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974. This means that you must supply information to an employer about any spent or unspent convictions, cautions, reprimands or warnings, if they ask you to. This is different from other careers, where you only have to reveal information on unspent convictions if you are asked to.
Note: According to the Exceptions Order, certified accountant means a member of the Association of Certified Accountants; chartered accountant means a member of the ICAEW or of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Scotland.
Qualifications
For entry to a degree course, the usual requirement is:
- Two to three A-levels.
- GCSEs at grades 9-4 in two to three other subjects.
Alternatives to A-levels include Edexcel (BTEC) level 3 National qualifications, an NVQ level 3 or 4 in accounting or the International Baccalaureate (IB) diploma.
To get onto a higher or degree apprenticeship, you will need:
- Two A-levels/equivalent.
- GCSEs in English and maths.
Adult opportunities
Age limits: It is illegal for any organisation to set age limits for entry to employment, education or training, unless they can show there is a real need to have these limits.
If you don’t have the qualifications needed to enter your chosen degree or HND course, a college or university Access course (for example, Access to Business) could be the way in. These courses are designed for people who have not followed the usual routes into higher education. No formal qualifications are usually needed, but you should check this with individual colleges. You could follow this with accountancy training.
Sponsorships from some of the larger accounting or professional services firms, and from public sector organisations such as the National Audit Office (NAO), can be available for those on degree-level study.
