How to write an accountant CV

Say what you close and what you do not. A bookkeeping role and a financial controller role are not the same CV.

Harper Quinn is fictional. The firms and the sample month are invented.

1. State the qualification honestly

Write the body and the level, including “in progress” or “exam booked”. Letters you have not been awarded do not go on the CV.

2. Name the ledger and the cadence

Weekly bank, monthly management accounts, quarterly VAT. A reader should know what lands on your desk and when.

3. Show a tie-out

A reconciliation is a bullet when you say what did not match and what you did. “Responsible for the bank” is a job title, not a result.

Before and after

Before

Responsible for management accounts and VAT.

After

Prepared monthly management accounts and listed the items not yet tied out before the draft went to review.

Before

Strong Excel and attention to detail.

After

Reversed a supplier payment posted to the wrong company before the VAT return was drafted.

Checklist

  • Qualification letters are accurate.
  • No client figure is identifiable.
  • Each ledger you name is one you post.
  • Journals include a reason.
  • Software is listed only if you use it.
  • The document is a CV, with no photo.

A finished example

Harper Quinn is fictional.

Harper Quinn

Manchester · harper.quinn@example.com

Eligible to work in the UK · part-qualified in this sample

Personal statement

Part-qualified accountant with three years in a practice. I reconcile a control account before I post the journal, and I write the query in the file so the next person can see what is still open. Looking for a role with a monthly close.

Experience

Accounts assistant

Lark & Co (fictional practice) · January 2023 – present

  • Prepare management accounts for a small set of limited companies, and list the items I have not yet tied out.
  • In a made-up sample month, found a supplier payment posted to the wrong company and reversed it before the VAT return was drafted.
  • Chase missing purchase invoices with a dated list, not a general reminder.
  • File working papers so a reviewer can see the source, the calculation and the journal.

Bookkeeper

Northbank Books (fictional firm) · June 2021 – December 2022

  • Posted sales and purchase ledgers for sole traders and reconciled the bank each week.
  • Flagged a director’s loan that did not match the board minute, and left it off the accounts until the client confirmed it.

Education

  • AAT Level 4, in progress in this sample
  • A levels, including maths, 2019

Skills

  • Bank, sales and purchase reconciliations
  • VAT workings with the source invoices attached
  • Journals that state the reason
  • Monthly management accounts
  • Spreadsheets another accountant can audit

Use it on your own CV

FAQ

Should I list every client?

No. A sector and the type of entity, such as a small limited company, is enough.

Where do exams in progress go?

Under education, with the level and the fact they are not finished. Do not put the letters after your name.

Is payroll worth a bullet?

Yes, if you prepared the file or the return. “Exposed to payroll” is not the same as running it.

How is this different from an administrator CV?

Administration shows diary, post and records. This page is for ledgers, tax workings and a close. Use the one the advert describes.

Free job-ready CV checklist

A one-page checklist for any role. No name, and no account.