Motivation | Break through
“Persistence pays off after five-year exam struggle”
Circumstances conspired to make Carlene Pearson’s qualification process a lengthy one, but she displayed perseverance and personal strength to overcome her setbacks
Words Sophie Cross
When Carlene Pearson’s manager approached her about completing an AAT Level 3 Diploma in 2020, she eagerly accepted the challenge. She hadn’t been in formal education for more than two decades since leaving school at 16, but the prospect of developing her skills at Motors Group UK excited her.
But what should have been an 18-month qualification stretched into a five-year period, testing her resilience and determination. Yet her story, which earned her a nomination for the Triumph Award at AAT’s Impact Awards 2024, demonstrates how, with persistence and the right support, we can overcome seemingly insurmountable obstacles.
Early blow and Covid-19 complications
Pearson’s AAT experience began just as the world changed dramatically with the Covid-19 pandemic, forcing the transition to online learning through Learning Skills Partnership. The shift to remote education added another layer of complexity to an already challenging return to study.
“I sat the first exam, really confident, and failed,” Pearson recalls. “I thought, ‘I don’t know if this is for me’, but I carried on.”
This pattern would become frustratingly familiar. She would complete modules, perform well in mock exams and feel confident approaching the real assessment, only to struggle when it mattered most. Each failure chipped away at her confidence, yet she persevered.
“I think, for me, it was nerves on the day,” she explains. “I would read something and probably misinterpret what it was saying. I would answer a question, overthink it, then change it. Nerves were a massive thing.”
“I had to strip everything back that I had learned previously and start afresh.”
Heartache and finding strength to continue
Just as Pearson was approaching the end of her qualification, life dealt her a crushing blow. Her father became seriously ill, bringing her studies to an abrupt halt. When he passed away, her grief overwhelmed any motivation to continue.
“I just thought, ‘I’m going to quit, I can’t do this any more’,” she remembers. “But I took a break in learning because I thought that was the best thing to do instead of being hasty about it.”
After a year away from her studies, Pearson made the decision to return. However, this meant starting all over again with the updated 2022 qualification, requiring her to learn new material and adapt to different modules.
“It was a completely different qualification now, so it was different learning different modules. I had to strip everything back that I had learned previously and start afresh,” she explains.
The cycle of preparation, confidence and exam failure continued. But something deeper was driving her forward this time.
“I think it was my dad,” she reflects. “He was my biggest cheerleader when I started this apprenticeship. Because I got so close, I just thought, ‘How can I not finish it? How can I not do it for him, even if he’s not here any more?’ He would be so proud.”
“Don’t give up, keep going. Find a way to do the learning that suits you.”
Breakthrough and success
The turning point came when Learning Skills Partnership provided Pearson with one-to-one tuition designed specifically to her learning needs. Instead of learning alongside a cohort, she could work at her own pace with explanations that made sense to her.
“The tutor was able to explain it to me so that I could understand,” she says. “It was stripped back and tailored to what I needed.”
In November 2024, she finally passed her last exam — an emotional moment that represented years of struggle and determination. She completed the final assessment component of her apprenticeship in April 2025, officially bringing to an end what had begun five years earlier.
Career transformation
The qualification has had a transformative impact on Pearson’s career. She began as an accounts assistant but was promoted to assistant accountant while studying. Today, she handles bank reconciliations, journal adjustments, month-end processing, prepayments and accruals, as well as other monthly adjustments. She deputises for her manager and oversees both purchase ledger and sales ledger, getting involved in the day-to-day running of the accounts department.
“Without AAT, I wouldn’t be in the position that I’m in today,” she acknowledges. “It has changed a lot for me.”
Pearson’s advice for anyone facing similar challenges is simple but powerful: “Don’t give up, keep going. Find a way to do the learning that suits you.”
She emphasises the importance of discovering your personal learning style, whether that’s writing notes, recording material to listen back to or seeking one-to-one support when needed.
“Just keep fighting,” she adds. “Be willing to learn, be open and embrace challenges.”
Pearson’s story proves that success isn’t measured by how quickly you reach your destination, but by your determination to keep moving forward, even when the path seems impossible. Her five-year qualification may have taken longer than planned but it delivered something far more valuable than technical knowledge - it showed her what she was truly capable of achieving.
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