If you sat your final papers in June, first things first, well done. Getting through final level exams while working full time in finance is no small achievement, and whatever the result, you’ve earned a proper breather.
But once the initial relief wears off, a lot of newly and nearly qualified accountants find themselves asking the same question. What now? Here’s our honest, practical take, based on the conversations we have with newly qualified candidates every single exam season.
The instinct after finishing exams is often to immediately start job hunting, as if qualification is a starting gun. It isn’t. Give yourself a few weeks to actually think about what you want, rather than jumping at the first newly qualified role that lands in your inbox.
Ask yourself what you actually enjoyed during your studies and your current role, and what you didn’t. Was it the technical accounting work, or the commercial side of the business? Did you enjoy managing people, or would you rather have stayed close to the numbers a while longer? These answers matter more once you’re qualified, because your next move sets the direction for several years, not just the next one.
Newly qualified accountants often assume there are only two paths, stay where you are or move to a Big Four or top ten firm. In reality, the market is far broader than that.
Industry roles, ranging from financial accountant to group reporting to FP&A, all open up properly once you’re qualified. Practice offers routes into audit seniors, corporate finance, or specialist advisory work. And a growing number of newly qualified accountants move into interim or contract work early, which brings variety and often a faster route to broader experience than a traditional linear career would.
None of these is the “right” answer. What matters is picking the one that fits where you actually want to be in three to five years, not the one that looks best on paper right now.
If you trained with your current firm or business, there’s often a genuine pull to stay, and sometimes that’s the right call. If they’re offering you real progression, a pay rise that reflects your new qualification, and a role that stretches you, staying can make total sense.
But it’s worth being honest about whether that progression is actually being offered, or whether you’re just assuming it will follow naturally. A newly qualified accountant is in a genuinely strong market position. It’s worth testing that position, even if only to confirm that staying is the right decision rather than the easy one.
From what we’re seeing across the finance market, demand for newly qualified accountants remains strong, particularly in FP&A, group reporting, and finance business partnering roles. Employers are increasingly flexible on exact specialism at this level, valuing the discipline and technical grounding that comes with qualification over a perfect match to a job description.
Salaries for newly qualified roles have also moved up over the past twelve months, so it’s worth benchmarking your current package against the market before assuming you’re being paid fairly, regardless of whether you’re planning to move.
Whatever you decide, a few things are worth doing now, while the market is fresh in your mind.
We speak to newly and recently qualified accountants throughout exam season every year, and we’re always happy to have a genuinely useful conversation, whether or not you’re actively looking to move.
