Gain your ACA ASAP.

We remain a respected authority in the fields of audit and investigative accountancy and we believe training is essential to our success.  We need our people to match and even surpass continually improving standards of the public and private sectors in order to stay ahead of the game.

You’ll begin your development programme on the very first day you start. There’s a short induction course designed to give you a general, but comprehensive, introduction to our operations. As time goes on, you’ll have a series of short internal courses introducing you to financial audit and value for money audit, as well as our information technology. We also have a range of programmes, called Unlock, which cover four key areas of management excellence and will help you develop your leadership skills.

Of course, the big thing about our training scheme is that it leads to membership of the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales (ICAEW), and we’ll do everything possible to help you get there.

Not only do we meet the cost of course fees, essential textbooks, examination and exemption fees, and membership subscriptions to the Chartered Accountant Students’ Society of London, we also provide a complete package of support, including professional courses at each examination stage along with generous study leave arrangements.

And it really pays off. Our people consistently achieve higher pass rates than the national average at each stage of the ICAEW exams.

Learning and development is a key feature of life at the NAO, and will continue after you’re qualified. For example, if you demonstrate the potential to become one of our senior managers, then you’ll have the opportunity to take part in our ‘Future Leaders’ Development Programme.