What is an external auditor?
By law, many commercial and non-profit organisations around the world must be independently audited. To meet this requirement, external auditors review financial statements to ensure they are a ‘true and fair’ account of past financial performance and current financial position. Due to this global legal demand for independent human scrutiny and interpretation of financial accounts, external auditing can be regarded as a future-proof career.
Specialising in auditing doesn’t limit you to finance though. You could undertake a wide range of audit types - each requiring a different breadth and/or depth of accounting skills. These could include measuring sustainability performance, or checking that organisations meet legal and voluntary obligations in health and safety, IT and social responsibility.After completing an audit, the organisation’s management team must review your findings to ensure they are adhering to rules, codes of practice, business ethics, internal guidelines and principles.
How do I achieve it?
External auditors must be qualified accountants and a member of a professional body such as ACCA. After qualification, there is often a clear progression from junior through to senior roles.
Aspiring external auditors will benefit from taking the following ACCA Strategic Professional Options exams:
- Advanced Audit and Assurance (AAA)
- Advanced Performance Management (APM)
Getting the right experience will also help you to progress your career in the accounting industry. Indeed, many firms provide students with work experience within their audit teams.
