The Practical Experience Requirement
Passing your exams is half the story. The PER is the other half. Here is how to get it done without it becoming a last-minute scramble.
What is the PER?
The Practical Experience Requirement is ACCA's way of making sure you can do the job, not just pass exams about it. It requires 36 months of relevant work experience and competence in 9 performance objectives - 5 essential skills plus 4 technical areas of your choice.
Your experience is verified by a Practical Experience Supervisor (PES) who observes your work and signs off your achievements. Without a completed PER, you cannot qualify as an ACCA member - no matter how many exams you've passed.
Relevant experience
Can span multiple employers
Performance objectives
5 essential + 4 of your choice
Supervisor needed
To verify and sign off your work
To qualify as an ACCA member, you need all three
Miss any one of these and you cannot use the ACCA designation. The good news: they can run in parallel.
All exam papers completed to ACCA standard.
Ethics and Professional Skills Module completed.
36 months + objectives recorded and signed off.
The 5 Essential Performance Objectives
Everyone must complete these. They cover the professional skills every accountant needs, regardless of specialism.
Demonstrate that you can communicate clearly and concisely in writing, verbally, and through presentations. This means adapting your style for different audiences - an email to a colleague looks different from a board report.
- Writing a report for management explaining financial results
- Presenting budget forecasts to non-finance colleagues
- Drafting clear emails summarising complex technical issues
- Explaining accounting adjustments to a client in plain English
aCOWtancy tip: Keep a folder of your best written work - reports, emails, presentations. When it is time to write up this PO, you will have ready-made evidence. Quality over quantity.
Show that you can use technology effectively in your role - spreadsheets, accounting software, data analysis tools, and any specialist systems relevant to your work.
- Building financial models in Excel with macros or complex formulas
- Using accounting software (Sage, Xero, QuickBooks) for reporting
- Extracting and analysing data from ERP systems
- Creating dashboards or automated reports
aCOWtancy tip: This is one of the easier POs to evidence because you probably use technology every day. The key is showing you use it purposefully and can explain why you chose a particular approach.
Demonstrate that you can identify issues, raise them appropriately, and work towards resolution. This includes professional disagreements, process problems, and ethical concerns.
- Identifying an error in a report and raising it with your manager
- Resolving a disagreement between departments about cost allocation
- Flagging a potential compliance issue and proposing a solution
- Mediating between team members with different approaches to a task
aCOWtancy tip: Do not wait for big dramatic conflicts. Day-to-day problem-solving counts - finding a discrepancy, suggesting process improvements, or navigating a disagreement professionally.
Show that you can work effectively as part of a team and take the lead when appropriate. You do not need to be a manager - leadership can mean taking initiative, mentoring a junior colleague, or driving a project forward.
- Leading the preparation of month-end accounts as part of a team
- Training a new team member on processes and systems
- Coordinating inputs from multiple departments for a report
- Taking ownership of a project and managing it to completion
aCOWtancy tip: ACCA does not expect you to be a CEO. They want to see you contributing to teams and stepping up when needed. Training someone, organising a process, or volunteering to lead a small project all count.
Demonstrate that you can set objectives, manage your workload, meet deadlines, and continuously develop your skills. Show self-awareness about your strengths and areas for improvement.
- Managing competing deadlines during month-end close
- Setting personal development goals and tracking progress
- Prioritising tasks when workload is high and resources are limited
- Seeking feedback from your manager and acting on it
aCOWtancy tip: This PO is about being a reliable professional. Evidence of meeting deadlines, managing your ACCA study alongside work, and actively seeking development opportunities all work well here.
Technical Performance Objectives (choose 4)
Pick the 4 that best match your actual work experience. Don't try to force objectives that don't reflect what you do - pick what's genuine.
Preparing financial statements, applying accounting standards, maintaining accounting records, and interpreting financial data for decision-making.
Preparing management accounts, budgets, forecasts, and variance analysis. Providing information that helps management make better decisions.
Understanding and applying governance frameworks, identifying and managing risks, and contributing to internal control systems.
Preparing tax computations, understanding tax compliance requirements, and advising on the tax implications of transactions.
Planning and performing audit procedures, evaluating audit evidence, and contributing to the formation of audit opinions.
Managing working capital, appraising investment decisions, understanding financing options, and managing financial risk.
The mistakes students make with PER
Don't be the student who passes all 13 exams and then waits years to qualify because they ignored the PER.
-
Leaving it all until the end The biggest mistake by far. Students focus entirely on exams and only think about PER when they have passed everything. Then they realise they need 36 months of experience - and the clock has not even started. Start recording from day one. -
Not recording experience as you go Trying to remember what you did two years ago is painful and produces weak evidence. Log your experience every few months while it is fresh. A 15-minute update now saves hours of stress later. -
Not having a supervisor You need a Practical Experience Supervisor (PES) to sign off your POs. If your boss is not ACCA-qualified, ACCA can appoint one for you. Sort this out early - do not wait until you need sign-off. -
Writing descriptions that are too vague "I helped with the accounts" does not cut it. You need specific examples: what you did, what skills you used, what the outcome was. Think of it like writing a good CV bullet point - concrete and evidenced. -
Thinking you need a perfect finance job Your experience does not have to be in a Big 4 firm or even a finance department. Any role where you develop the relevant skills counts. The POs are broad enough to cover most professional roles.
When to record your experience
Don't leave it all to the end. A little maintenance every few months saves a huge headache later.
Spend 15-20 minutes recording what you have been working on. Note specific projects, responsibilities, and achievements. Fresh memories produce better evidence.
Have a brief conversation with your PES about your progress. Which POs are you making good progress on? Are there gaps you need to address? This keeps them engaged and avoids surprises at sign-off time.
Finished a big audit, led a month-end close, or resolved a complex issue? Write it down immediately with enough detail to use as PO evidence later. These are your strongest examples.
If you have been recording as you go, this should take days not months. Review your PO statements, get your supervisor sign-off, and submit through myACCA.
FAQ
Everything students ask us about the PER.
Now. Seriously - you can start recording relevant experience from the day you register as an ACCA student. The 36-month clock starts from whenever you begin gaining relevant experience, not from when you start recording it. But if you do not record it, you cannot evidence it.
Any role where you develop skills relevant to an accountancy career. You do not need to be in a finance role - experience in operations, management, IT systems, or client-facing roles can all contribute to your performance objectives. The key is whether you can evidence the skills, not the job title.
No. Your 36 months can span multiple employers, roles, and even sectors. What matters is the total qualifying experience, not where you gained it. Just make sure each role is recorded and your supervisor can verify it.
Ideally, your line manager or a senior colleague who can observe and assess your work. They should be a qualified accountant (ACCA, CIMA, ACA, or equivalent) where possible. If no one at your workplace qualifies, ACCA can arrange a mentor through their PES matching service.
You need to achieve 9 POs in total. All 5 Essentials (ES1-ES5) are compulsory. Then you choose any 4 from the 15 Technical and Optional POs (T1-T20). Pick the ones that best match your actual work experience.
Yes, absolutely. PER and exams run in parallel. Many students complete their 36 months while they are still taking exams. This is ideal - it means you can qualify as soon as you pass your last paper.
You can still complete your PER. ACCA's Approved Employer programme is helpful but not required. Any relevant workplace experience counts, regardless of whether your employer has a formal relationship with ACCA. You just need a supervisor who can verify your experience.
Your supervisor reviews and approves your performance objective statements. ACCA then reviews the submissions. If everything is in order, your PER is marked as complete. Occasionally ACCA may ask for additional detail on a PO - this is normal and not a cause for concern.
The PER isn't a burden - it's actually useful
We know what you're thinking: "More hoops to jump through." But the PER process genuinely helps you. It forces you to reflect on your development, articulate your skills, and identify gaps - which is exactly what you'd do before a job interview or performance review.
Students who engage with PER properly tell us it helped them get promoted, perform better in interviews, and understand what kind of accountant they want to be. Treat it as a career tool, not a tick-box exercise.