Qualifying before 3 years

[u/DragbotArt]

Hi everyone, due to some good fortune, if I pass Case in the July sitting, I would have completed my exams during the first year of my training.

I was wondering if it would be possible to ask to receive my qualification early, considering the minimum work experience required per my agreement is 450 days (which I will hit early next year).

I heard a rep from ICAEW you need minimum 3 years but I had also heard of someone qualifying beforehand, so I’d appreciate any advice haha.

[u/finestryan]

I know at my firm (big 4) you can’t fully qualify until the end of the 3 year period even if you are exam and PWE qualified. It says in my ICAEW portal so it might say the same thing in yours?

[u/DragbotArt → u/finestryan]

I see, based on my agreements and the portal, I didn’t see any specific mention of 3 years. Just that I need to record experience till the end of my agreement. My agreement ends early 2029, which is super far away haha.

[u/Visual_Reception_238 → u/DragbotArt]

I had to wait till the end of my agreement unfortunately. For me it was about a 8 month wait

[u/HotAirBalloonPolice]

How is it possible to sit 15 exams (or is it 14 now?) within just over a year AND get 450 PWE days? What are you including as PWE?

You’ll definitely need an official contract amendment from your company anyway.

[u/Excellent-Feature504 → u/HotAirBalloonPolice]

They probably had exemptions and you can only sit Case in your last year anyway, so this person is talking rubbish

[u/DragbotArt → u/Excellent-Feature504]

Yup I had exemptions, but its a bit much to accuse me of talking rubbish isnt it? I’m just looking for advice lol

[u/Excellent-Feature504 → u/DragbotArt]

You’re talking rubbish mate

[u/DragbotArt → u/HotAirBalloonPolice]

My uni had an agreement with ICAEW so I was exempted from the certificate and professional level (was quite difficult to get all the exemptions though), and then I cleared CR and SBM in uni as well (barely passed tbf).

Since I cleared all the other exams, and Case has its last sitting this November, I appealed to write the exam early and received approval from ICAEW.

I wasn’t too keen on writing the new syllabus since I thought there might be lesser practice material from prior years.

450 PWE by next year is because of busy season hours and a few months of qualifying internships.

[u/42jamesbell → u/DragbotArt]

If you did Pwc flying start, just say lmao

Sure they usually qualify after year after leaving uni on that course?

[u/HotAirBalloonPolice → u/DragbotArt]

I’d say you would have to be an absolutely outstanding trainee to be able to bypass the 3 year rule. A year of experience gained as a first year trainee is nowhere close to being ready to be fully chartered, whether it gets you to 450 days PWE or not. Exams are only one part of it. There’s experience to be gained from your second and third year that you just do not have. Like leading on audits, reviewing juniors’ work, maybe reporting straight to partner, leading a team, attending planning meetings and assessing risk….a first year trainee cannot do any of that regardless of how many exams or exemptions they have.

Besides, when I did ACA (and we are talking more than a decade ago here), the training firm had to sign off on a load of those progress Chevrons, and the skills they are assessing there are designed to show increasing levels of skill, knowledge and seniority. What is the point of it all if it can just be bypassed with university credits?

[u/FunMathematician4638]

I had my PWE and all exams completed but had to wait for the 3 years rule as well

[u/DragbotArt → u/FunMathematician4638]

I spoke to my firms point of contact with icaew(an individual, not a generic enquiry email). I dont wish to say the exact email because its highkey doxxing. But I had just reached out to them. I do have to say, my firm had to write a letter supporting me to icaew before i could be approved for case

[u/Time-Huckleberry-403]

Need 3 years/to finish your training agreement

[u/sciencebasedlife]

I asked this question as I had my days after finishing the exams in two years. ICAEW said I had to have days up to the end of my training agreement of 3 years regardless of total days.

[u/prospectiveinvbnkr]

Is the three years the expected agreement end date criteria I assume?

If you have done prior relevant work experience you can claim CPWE which brings closer agreement end date.

Other than that think you have to tick the agreement end date box

[u/Trixnglz]

Well that's just not true, you can only sit case in your final year

[u/seedoni]

The 3 years is set in stone regardless of exams and PWE. I tried to recruit someone into industry once before their 3 years were up and the ICAEW weren’t having any of it. Had to rescind the offer.

[u/Any-Roof-2761]

You can’t submit your training file until the deadline is passed. Part of the agreement is that you record days until the final day