I know what you’re thinking, all we do is maths all day, right? Adding numbers together? Wrong! So here’s what we actually get up to. Keep in mind that a ‘typical day’ is not every day of the week. This is just one snippet, one day of an accounting student’s life.
8am – The start to my day typically involves an inner fight with myself to get out of bed (I’m not much of a morning person) Along with that fight is a ton of alarms and 15 minutes of getting ready and I’m on my way.
I’m not always in the mood to walk in to uni but the view helps!
8:30am – Once all safely parked I have time to really wake myself up with a brief walk the rest of the way and listen to some of my favourite tunes. The view on the walk in is pretty incredible too, it can make you smile even on the gloomiest of days.
8:45am – First things first, a cup of tea to start the day before heading to class.
Yes – we have a Starbucks on campus!
9am – Then straight on to an Audit seminar, these are nice and interactive especially for a morning to wake us up. Seminars often have a LOT less students typically between 10 – 15 students and are a lot more relaxed than just listening to the teacher in a lecture. Audit involves very little math/numbers it’s more focused on the theory and delves into fraud, you have to have a very sceptical mind for an Audit class.
10am – Straight into a Financial Reporting Lecture, now this is ALL about the numbers, BUT it’s not as scary as it seems, the lecturer goes through theory then examples as a class until you are able to do the work on your own. BUT it can be a lot of information to take in so my best advice is to read, read, read before class so you have an idea.
11am – We then have a financial reporting seminar, again a LOT less people so you can practise the work from the lecture and ask for tons of help. It really helps going through it straight after a lecture while it’s fresh to understand the work in your own terms.
Time for some brain food...
12pm – Lunch! Time for a catch up with friends and a bite to eat. Sometimes I’ll opt for a jacket potato from the student’s union, sometimes a nice toasty from the management block.
2pm – A financial management lecture, this does involve numbers but a lot less than financial reporting. It’s a good mix of theory and some equations.
Proof that we do use calculators!
3pm – Home time! Yes, that early, some days it is actually sooner! BUT that doesn’t mean it’s over for the day.
5pm – I go to a spin class (not every day!) It’s nice to finish the day with a workout and to take a break from the work before doing any at home.
6pm – I usually take a break until 6pm after going to the gym. Then I will do my reading, printing, practise questions ready for the next day. Staying on top of things really is the key!
My day usually finishes once I’ve done all my printing, finished a chapter and done a few practise questions.
Keep in mind that other days can be very different though – for example on Tuesdays we have only a 1-hour class on Law – yes Law! Important to businesses, so important for accountants to know the law.
Studying accounting and finance is not ALL numbers and we do use calculators – keep that in mind the next time you ask us to do maths off the top of our heads!
Interested in what other students get up to on an average day at Cardiff Met? Check out our other Day in the Life posts.
