Olivia Chappell

Accounting set Olivia up with real-world technical, research, and critical-thinking skills that she used in several roles overseas before returning to Aotearoa.

I didn’t actually plan on doing an Accounting major initially. I began my degree studying Finance and Economics and found that Accounting was a good complement to my finance studies. What sealed the deal on Accounting was the prospect of getting a job that balanced working with both numbers and people. In the end I decided to do my Honours degree in Accounting, partially to fulfil the chartered accountancy requirements that were in place at the time, but also because I was interested in the challenge of studying accounting from a broader perspective. Accounting is more than just numbers and spreadsheets (although these are definitely part of the package!).

During my Honours year, I especially enjoyed taking a step back to question the status quo in business practices and consider accounting within a wider social context. Aside from technical accounting skills, I developed research and critical thinking skills as well as the ability to balance multiple projects or demands, all of which has set me up well for life after university. A lot of accountants begin their career at one of the ‘Big Four’ accounting firms and I landed a role with KPMG. I worked as a chartered accountant in the audit division of the Edinburgh office having initially begun work in Wellington. Audit was really good for giving me a grounding in accounting, but also allowing me to use the big-picture thinking I developed in my Honours year. I worked with a wide variety of clients in a range of industries so being able to pick things up quickly and learn as I go has been important.

The skills I learnt at university gave me not only the technical knowledge required to become a chartered accountant but also the time- and people-management skills to be successful in my career. I’ve been able to use these skills throughout my career to date, and have been lucky enough to have been given multiple opportunities to work overseas. A key thing I would recommend is to speak to people in industries and roles that you find interesting. This will help give you an idea of what your career could look like once you graduate, and you could make a vital contact for the future.

Update: Olivia is currently Finance Business Partner Manager at Ravensdown in Christchurch.