Keele Management School Magazine Issue #9 2939 KMS Venture Magazine.Joomag FINAL AMEND MARC | Page 15

Venture / HELLO 15
Leigh-Anne
Hawkins
We also caught up with Leigh-Anne Hawkins,
who graduated in summer 2017 with a BA
Accounting and Finance and went straight to
work on the JCB Finance Graduate Program.
How do you feel that your degree
is helping you in your new role?
“At the moment, I am working as a
Management Accountant for the division.
I am responsible for completing month end
journals, inputting invoices and creating
accruals, helping complete the budgets,
completing various reconciliations and
formulating the financial statements
and analysis. Much of this work has been
helped along by the knowledge I attained
whilst at Keele through my degree. I can
see the information I learnt during my
three years being put into practice whilst
on this placement.”
“Also, my degree in Accounting and
Finance has helped me by giving me
exemptions for my professional academic
exams. JCB fund their graduates to
complete academic qualifications related
to the subject field they are in. For Finance
this includes CIMA, ACCA or ACA. I have
chosen to start CIMA as it fits in best with
my career aspirations. For this qualification
I have been given five exemptions due
to the modules that I completed whilst
completing my degree. This is a great
starting point to help me work my way
through the four levels that the qualification
involves. By completing CIMA I will gain
the critical knowledge and skills that
employers are looking for and be ready
to work in any business.”
What advice would you give
to current students looking
for graduate roles?
“My advice to students would be to have
an in depth look around at all of the
graduate schemes. Start early as it is a
long process and spend time applying
for the positions as the application stage
is critical to progress. Assessment days
are nerve racking, however staying calm
and being professional will help you
succeed. Make sure you are prepared for
any interviews and use Keele’s Careers
and Employability expertise to help you
with your progression, from how to apply
for jobs and write a strong CV, to having
practise interviews and knowing what
information to be prepared with. Keele
Management School were always there
to help with any questions or issues too.”