So, what does level 3 consist of?
AAT level 3 is made up of 6 units:
- Advanced bookkeeping
- Final accounts preparation
- Management account costing
- Advanced level synoptic
- Indirect tax
- Spreadsheets
We advise that you study each unit one at a time and there will be a computer based assessment to sit after each unit.
To gain the full AAT Advanced Diploma in Accounting (level 3) qualification, you will need to have sat and passed the 6 assessments listed above.
Advanced bookkeeping
- Enhances your bookkeeping knowledge from level 2.
- Expands your journal and trial balance knowledge with extended trial balances and all the adjustments.
- Shows you how to deal with assets such as depreciation and disposals.
- Teaches you new ideas with accruals and prepayments.
- This is a big unit with a lot of content but is a great unit to start level 3 with.
Final accounts preparation
- Flows nicely from what you learnt in advanced bookkeeping.
- It explains and teaches you how partnership accounts are used.
- How to identify missing figures from incomplete records.
- Brings in new elements like mark up and margin for working out profit.
- It also teaches you how to prepare a final set of accounts.
Management accounting: costing
- You will build on your knowledge from the level 2 costing unit.
- It will teach you different costing methods, the different techniques used for short-term and long-term decision making.
- Expands your knowledge when dealing with material, labour and overhead costs.
- This is a big unit so allow yourself enough time to learn everything properly.
- If you can learn these vital techniques, it will set you up for the later management units at level 4.
Advanced level synoptic
- Consists of professional ethics and questions from the first three units above.
- Ethics teaches you the correct way to deal with ethical situations in the workplace.
- It is quite wordy but it’s important to know this as you need to understand the correct way to deal with things that come up in certain situations.
- This exam is unique as it will also include questions from the first three units (advanced bookkeeping, final accounts preparation and management account costing).
- So, this will test that you have retained the knowledge from the prior three units.
Spreadsheets
- Spreadsheets teach you how to use a piece of software called excel, how to input certain formulas to get excel to produce the information you require, how to produce pie charts and graphs etc.
- You do not need any prior excel knowledge, everything you need to learn for this exam is covered in your materials.
Indirect tax
- It’s quite a short unit but don’t underestimate it.
- This teaches you how to deal with VAT using various methods in various different circumstances (in the UK and when dealing with items abroad) and how to complete a VAT report which is a crucial piece of information to know.
- In this unit you do get access to some reference material which you can use when learning, when doing mocks and you can also use it in your actual exam (it is an overview and reminder of some of the important aspects of this unit.)
- Please familiarise yourself with the reference material before your exam.
Learn these units well and you will be very well equipped to go onto the next and final level, AAT level 4.
Learn more about all our AAT courses, including AAT Level 3.
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