AAT Level 2, 3, and 4 Accounting

• Understanding and implementing the organisational planning process.
• Use internal processes to enhance operational control.
• Use techniques to aid short-term and long-term decision-making.
• Analyse and report on business performance.

• Reporting frameworks that underpin financial reporting.
• Drafting statutory financial statements for limited companies.
• Drafting consolidated financial statements.
• Interpreting financial statements using ratio analysis.

• Roles and responsibilities of the accounting function within an organisation.
• Evaluating internal control systems.
• Evaluating an organisation’s accounting system and underpinning procedures.
• The impact of technology on accounting systems.

• Preparing tax computations for sole traders and partnerships.
• Preparing tax computations for limited companies.
• Preparing tax computations for the sale of capital assets by limited companies.
• The administrative requirements of the UK’s tax regime.
• The tax implications of business disposals.
• Understand tax relief, tax planning, and agent’s responsibilities in reporting taxation to HM Revenue and Customs.

• Principles and rules that underpin taxation systems.
• Calculating UK taxpayers’ total income.
• Calculating income tax and national insurance contributions (NICs) payable to UK taxpayers.
• Calculating capital gains tax by UK taxpayers.
• Principles of inheritance tax.

• Understand the audit and assurance framework.
• Importance of professional ethics.
• The planning process for audit and assurance.
• Reviewing and reporting findings.

• Preparing forecasts for cash receipts and payments.
• Preparing cash budgets and monitoring cash flows.
• The importance of managing finance and liquidity.
• Understand the way of raising finance and investing funds.
• Regulations and organisational policies that influence decisions in managing cash and finance.

• Relevant legislation and contract law that impacts the credit control environment.
• How information is used to assess credit risk and grant credit in compliance with organisational policies and procedures.
• Understand the organisation’s credit control processes for managing and collecting debts.
• Techniques available for collecting debts.

• Business types, structure, governance, and the legal framework in which they operate.
• Impact of the external and internal environments on business, their performance, and decisions.
• Understand how businesses and accounts comply with principles and professional ethics.
• The impact of new technologies in accounting and the risks associated with data security.
• Communicating information to stakeholders.

• Accounting principles underlaying financial accounts preparation.
• Principles of advanced double-entry bookkeeping.
• Implementing procedures for the acquisition and disposal of non-current assets.
• Prepare and record depreciation calculations.
• Record period end adjustments.
• Produce and extend a trial balance.
• Produce financial statements for sole traders and partnerships.
• Interpret financial statements using profitability ratios.
• Prepare accounting records from incomplete information.

• Purpose and use of management accounting within organisations.
• Use techniques required for dealing with costs.
• Attribute costs according to organisational requirements.
• Investigate deviations from budgets.
• Use spreadsheet techniques to provide management accounting information.
• Use management accounting techniques to support short-term decision-making.
• Principles of cash management.

• Legislation requirements relating to VAT.
• Calculate VAT.
• Review and verify VAT returns.
• Understand the principles of payroll.
• Report information within the organisation.

• How to set up bookkeeping systems.
• Customer transactions.
• Supplier transactions.
• Processing of receipts and payments.
• Processing transactions into ledger accounts.

• Use control accounts.
• Reconcile bank statements with the cash book.
• Use the journal.
• Produce trial balances.

• The cost recording system within an organisation.
• Use cost recording techniques.
• Provide information on actual and budgeted costs and income.
• Use tools and techniques to support cost calculations.

• Principles of contract law.
• External business environment.
• Principles of corporate social responsibility (CSR), ethics, and sustainability.
• Impact of selling up different types of business entity.
• Finance functions within an organisation.
• Work in appropriate formats and communicate effectively.
• Importance of information to business operations.

Once enrolled, you have up to three years to complete your studies.

This course will be studied entirely via distance learning, meaning you will complete your learning either from home or a place that suits you. Full tutor support will be available via email, so if you have any questions or need some guidance, your tutor will be here to help. Your course materials will include a series of self-assessment exercises and tutor-marked questions to allow both yourself and your tutor to monitor your progress.

You will pay a one-off registration fee for each level you study which will give you access to the qualification for its lifetime, which is typically four to five years. The membership fees for this bundle course are £175 for level 2, £228 for level 3, and £244 for level 4. Please note, you can break these costs down by paying for each level separately as and when you progress through the course.

We will send an email with a link to download the free Sage software.

When studying the level 4 section of this course, you will need to complete five units consisting of a mix of mandatory and optional units. The mandatory units are:

• Applied management accounting
• Drafting and interpreting financial statements
• Internal accounting systems and controls

You will also then need to choose two units from the following list of optional units:

• Business tax
• Personal tax
• Audit and assurance
• Cash and financial management
• Credit and debit management

The qualification is assessed through tutor-marked assessments, twelve external exams, and one synoptic assessment which you will complete at the end of your course. This computer-based exam must be sat under controlled conditions at an external examination centre. The exams will be available on-demand throughout the year, while the synoptic assessments are available on set dates throughout the year. Your tutor will be able to help you decide when you are ready to take the assessments.

Booking your assessments

You can choose to add your exams to your enrolment. If you choose this option, we will book and pay for your exams for you. Our partner exam centre for students choosing to book their exams through us is based in Northamptonshire. When choosing to add your exams to your enrolment, it is important to note that we are only able to book your exams at the specified centre in Northamptonshire, and therefore, you must be prepared to travel to one of those centres to complete your exam.

If you do not wish to have your assessments included with your enrolment, you will need to book and pay for these separately.

For a list of available assessment locations, view AAT approved venues.

Once you have successfully completed your tutor-marked assignments and exams, you will receive the following qualifications from The Association of Accounting Technicians (AAT): AAT Level 2 Certificate in Accounting, AAT Level 3 Diploma in Accounting, and AAT Level 4 Diploma in Professional Accounting.

The skills developed during this bundle course will enable you to apply for the following roles:

• Commercial analyst
• Payroll manager
• Fixed asset accountant
• Indirect tax manager
• Tax supervisor
• VAT accountant

Take a read of our ‘How to Become an Accountant‘ career guide.