I am currently 24 and work in IT, for EDS. I haven't been here that long but am starting to thinkg I have made the wrong move and I am thinking of going into account, something like recovery. Would do people think? Would it be a good move given the current climate? Am I getting a little to old to start another graduate scheme?

Hi Newish grad. An interesting question. To be honest with you, there are two professionals which will always have work. Accountants and Laywers. Both are needed in the good times, and both are feared in the bad times.I would not completely discount the graduate scheme with an accountancy firm. Many accountancy firms may expect professional qualifications (ACCA etc) from their experienced hires - and, in any case, with most graduates taking professional qualifications as part of the graduate scheme, you may consider that is would be a pre-requisite for success.The lastly, I would suggest that the current climate should only dictate your career choices to a certain extent. You need to weigh up the value from trying to sit the climate out in a company which has previously made thousands of job cuts (Jan 2008 as an example), and which is likely to be further affected by the downturn, and which is also a company that is evidently not offering you satisfaction in your career path; with the risk of trying something new, which may be more in line with your career objectives.The problem is, however, if you write a post in 6 months time saying the same thing about your new position. So think carefully about any decision you make.And good luck!

It;s becoming much more common for people with a few years experience to decide on a career change - I trained as an accountant and a number of people (c30%) were older, having had other jobs previously.The thing with accounting is that you have to be committed because you'll have to give up some of your spare time to study - the exams aren't impossible but they are time consuming.I trained as a CA and think that it was a great investment of 3 years - I don't actually work as an accountant (and nor do lots of people I trained with), but I have that to fall back on. As a trainee, you'll have a peer group, a great social life, a reasonable salary and great prospects - I would train at a big 4 firm if you can though - looks much better on the cv.