Lucy Maher, Senior Financial Accountant at Google tells us how she secured her success through the Flexible Route with Chartered Accountants Ireland. Read more testimonials from past students here.

Tell us about your academic background?

Originally I studied software development at DIT and worked in various IT roles, mainly project and customer management, until taking a career break to care for my young family in the early noughties.

Why accountancy – and why Chartered Accountants Ireland?

Accountancy appealed because the skill set seemed very compatible with my previous experience. I started with an Accounting Technicians course and when I realised it was an entry route to the full professional qualification, I decided to continue studying via the Flexible Route. I knew I ultimately wanted to return to full time professional employment.

Can you explain the Flexible Route to someone who doesn’t know what it is?

The Flexible Route allows you to train as a Chartered Accountant without already having a training contract from a well-established accounting firm (frequently the Big 4). The Flexible Route supports Chartered Accountant trainees who may be mature students or undertaking a lateral career move – and they can continue to work in their existing roles and industries while studying.

What are the advantages to working and studying?

All Chartered Accountant trainees work and study, but having previous professional experience in other industries can give you a different perspective on the case studies and business scenarios you encounter in training.

How was combining work and study?

Looking back – harder than I imagined it would be – particularly with 3 young children at home too. I never missed a lecture because unlike a lot of my peers it was easier to concentrate in CA House then at home! I had a good network of other mature students also doing the flexible route and we were a great support to each other both practically and emotionally.

What kind of roles have you been in?

Post qualification I spent a year in a start-up consultancy delivering accountancy systems transformation projects to SMEs. I now work for Google, initially as a Statutory Accountant and now as a Senior Accountant working in Major Projects.

A lot of my work is collaborative so I’m frequently in cross functional meetings with business stakeholders – but equally the day could be spent in a quiet office mapping out and improving business processes, preparing documentation and presentations, or researching solutions.

Would you recommend the Flexible Route to others?

Yes, because the training contract route does not suit everyone’s personal circumstances. I originally thought that Chartered Accountancy was not an option for someone who needed flexible working hours like I did in the early years. Being able to leverage and apply previous professional experience does allow you bring a different perspective to the role.

Enrolment for the Flexible Route is now open and you can you can check your eligibility and exemptions online. The deadline for enrolment is September 15. To find out more on how other members secured their success through the Flexible Route, visit our website and hear from our members. You can reach the Chartered Accountants Ireland team by calling 1890, 28 29 28, via live chat online or by email (info@charteredaccountants.ie).