W H O A R E K A P L A N F I N A N C I A L?

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1 KAPLAN FINANCIAL WORKING IN PARTNERSHIP WITH SCHOOLS 2008

2 Education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world. Nelson Mandela

3 WHO ARE KAPLAN FINANCIAL? For over half a century Kaplan Financial has been delivering expert qualification tuition, bespoke training and learning solutions. We provide training for all of the major accountancy qualifications in the UK in addition to management and legal qualifications saw us adopt the name of our parent company, Kaplan Inc, giving us a new identity within the industry. We operate from nearly 30 locations throughout the UK offering unrivalled geographical choice to our students. What is AAT? AAT (the Association of Accounting Technicians) is internationally recognised amongst thousands of employers worldwide. With over 100,000 members it is the largest body of accounting technicians in the UK today. Accounting Technicians work at all levels from Accounts Clerks to Financial Controllers in all industries and sectors. There are no entry requirements to study AAT although a good standard of English and numeracy is recommended. There are two pathways to obtaining the AAT qualification, one of which is an NVQ. Under this route, there is government funding available under the apprenticeship scheme enabling us to offer the courses free of charge to the student and their employer. On successful completion of the AAT qualification, a student will gain exemptions from all of the major professional accountancy qualifications, making this an attractive and viable alternative to the traditional university approach to becoming an accountant.

4 WHY YOUR SCHOOL SHOULD WORK WITH KAPLAN FINANCIAL? Kaplan Financial is committed to building futures in accountancy and finance. Our aim is to support individuals, schools and businesses in developing their accountancy skills and competencies. To support individuals to start their career in accountancy, we are working hard to increase the understanding and value of accountancy apprenticeships. We understand that we have an obligation to provide accurate and meaningful information to your students about the options available to them if they are considering a career in accountancy. We have a significant amount of dedicated resource to work in partnership with you to help your interested students to obtain an understanding of accountancy as a career, to help them find suitable employment and to provide them with high quality funded training to achieve their AAT qualification. We offer a range of services providing dedicated support to you and your students to help develop their career in accountancy. This includes: Attending careers days/evenings that you may be organising to inform students and parents about careers and training in accountancy Attending and participating in Enterprise events

5 Presenting to groups of interested children on the requirements of accountancy as a career and the different routes into it Offering your students the opportunity to attend an event at our centre to meet employers and current apprentices to find out more A CV service Mock Interviews - members of our team are also available to help not only not only with CV s but if you run mock interviews for years 10/11 students we are able to help you Applications into our Kaplan Financial Scholarship Programme* Applications into our Kaplan Financial Summer School*, a free programme of activities to help your students prepare for their career in accountancy Offering you the chance to compete in our Kaplan Business Challenge* *available at certain Kaplan Financial centres only

6 WHAT MAKES KAPLAN FINANCIAL UNIQUE? We have dedicated staff in an increasing number of our centres who work full time in partnership with schools to promote accountancy as a career and apprenticeships in particular. The quality of our provision was recognised by the awarding of a Grade 2 in our most recent ALI inspection ( now part of Ofsted). Our tutors are specialists in AAT provision. This means that they teach predominantly AAT and only along a particular stream, resulting in them giving focussed tuition towards the successful completion of the unit involved. All Kaplan staff are CRB checked and our premises health and safety checked as well to ensure all students are in a safe environment when using our services or studying with us. Students working towards AAT with us are almost guaranteed to pass first time. Our results consistently exceed national averages. The material we use in class has been produced by expert tutors. Their experience in the classroom means that the material they produce is completely tailored to what the student needs to know in order to succeed in their studies. Our experience of delivering tuition for all of the main accountancy qualifications provides us with strong links to the accountancy profession. Our national presence means that once a student has started their AAT studies with us we can offer them the flexibility to choose a location that suits their lifestyle, wherever where they are based.

7 WHAT KAPLAN FINANCIAL CAN OFFER YOU? Attending careers fairs We are more than pleased to come along to any careers events to discuss with your students and parents the options available for a career in accountancy. We provide our own stands and materials free of charge. Enterprise/Young Enterprise Events/Industry Days We appreciate that finding people to volunteer to help you run these events is not always easy. We are able to support you on your enterprise days as business volunteers and offer help and guidance to your students. Many of them have worked in industry and all are qualified accountants meaning that they can provide much needed assistance to the student teams. Talks on accountancy Many of your students will find it difficult to ask questions in the open forum of a careers event, or indeed may have further queries after reading the literature they acquire there. We would always be very happy, at a time suitable for you and your students, to send along a member of staff to give a more detailed talk to groups of interested students on accountancy as a career. We can explain the various routes into the profession, give advice on how to obtain employment, and answer any questions they may have.

8 In-centre events Once or twice a year, our centres hold an evening event for students and their parents to come in and find out more about studying with us. Our local teams will welcome you to our centres, give you a tour of our premises and resources and outline how they became accountants and share their experiences with you. Our apprentices also join us and explain how they, with the help of Kaplan Financial, have benefited from studying and working in accountancy. Also a number of employers usually talk through their staffing requirements in finance and over the past few years, students attending having been successful in securing interview and employment opportunities with employers. CV service Although we are not a recruitment agency, many of our centres are only too glad to offer a CV service to young people interested in accountancy. Whilst we urge everyone to use the normal routes of Connexions and other careers services, this additional service provides students with: the chance to have their CV reviewed and feedback given for improvement a short interview with a member of our staff who can provide hints and tips on interview techniques the opportunity to have their CV circulated to all of our employers who are recruiting at that time

9 THE KAPLAN FINANCIAL SCHOLARSHIP PROGRAMME In 2007, we launched a programme offering all year 11 students a chance to apply for an accountancy scholarship. Upon submission of an application form, which must be supported by a testimonial from a teacher, we select ten people to be interviewed in each of our participating centres. The winner of the scholarship receives full AAT tuition, followed by their choice of ACCA/CIMA or ICAEW, completely free of charge, regardless of whether they obtain employment or receive any government funding. The value of this scholarship is in excess of 15,000 and creates increased employment opportunities for the winner. You can enter up to a maximum of 5 of your students for the scholarship programme and we will then make a selection from those to go forward to interview. All applications for the scholarship programme will automatically be invited to attend our summer school programme and can use our CV service. Applications for the programme and the necessary marketing start during your autumn term. Interviews and final selection process take place in the spring, with a view to AAT studies commencing in the September of that year.

10 THE KAPLAN FINANCIAL SUMMER SCHOOL This programme is aimed at those students who have just finished year 12 but year 11 applicants will also be considered. On completion of an application form, the student attends a four day course, held at one of our local centres in the school summer holiday. During the four days we introduce students to working in a professional environment, including sessions on: CV skills Interview skills Health and safety in the workplace Equality and diversity A short business game Introduction to accounting This includes a session where employers and current apprentices come along to talk about their professional lives. At the end of this course, each participant receives a Kaplan Financial certificate which they can add to their portfolios, and they have the chance to let us market their CV to our employer base. Applications and marketing commence in February for places on the Summer School which is run in August every year.

11 THE KAPLAN BUSINESS CHALLENGE Over recent years we have developed a highly successful board game, known as the Kaplan Business Challenge for corporate clients to support their graduate development programmes. We have now amended this game to allow it to be used with schools groups for years 11 onwards to give students an insight in to the sorts of decisions made by managers in business. Several of our centres are running competitions for groups of local schools to participate in the Kaplan Business Challenge. Different centres run this competition at different times of year contact your local Kaplan Financial centre for details.

12 CONTACT US To find out how you can work more closely in partnership with Kaplan Financial to assist the career development of your students, contact your local centre below. You can also request a face to face visit with one of our dedicated schools liaison officers to come and speak with you in more detail. Simply call your local centre. Centre Contact Details Birmingham Laura Parker Bradford Nasheen Khan Bristol Rhian Gilbert Cambridge Caron Betts Cardiff Matthew Busuttil Derby Hannah Currie Glasgow Samantha Hastie Grimsby Graham Jefferson Hull Graham Jefferson

13 Ipswich Caron Betts Leeds Nasheen Khan Leicester Hannah Currie Liverpool Jaine Davies London Lynette Symons Manchester Liz Harrison Milton Keynes Peter Nunn Newcastle Sarah Willox Nottingham Hannah Currie Norwich Caron Betts Peterborough Hannah Currie Preston Liz Harrison Reading Joey Harman Sheffield Nasheen Khan Southampton Lynda Brown

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