Born To Be Brilliant

As you all are aware, education is the most important tool for transformation of the society through enlightenment and empowerment. At the age of 17, usually teens explore their university or professional options to get into. Meet Ramani Meiyyammai Meiyapphan who is yet to receive her grade 12 results, but has completed her ACCA chartered accountancy course and has made a strong launch pad for her professional career.

Chartered Accountancy course is a tough nut to crack and people who complete this course are usually in the north of their twenties, but the story of Ramani Meiyyammai Meiyapphan is entirely different. This teenager hailing from Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India, studying in the Indian High School, Dubai, is one of the youngest chartered accountants in the world at the age of 17 years and two months.

She has been recognised by the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (ACCA), which is the global professional accounting body in the Gulf, as the youngest affiliate to have been registered.

Another commendable achievement by Meiyapphan is that she cleared all 13 papers in the very first attempt, which is a rarity in this field. Also, Meiyapphan completed the course in just two years as she took two papers, sometimes three, every sitting. Most candidates appear for only one paper every sitting, or at the most two papers.

Talking about her journey, she discussed how her dreams of becoming a CA were persistent. She said: “I came to know that it is possible to do ACCA before completing schooling and wanted to take up the challenge. Since I did not have any accounting knowledge, my father helped me initially. As the papers progressed, I was motivated to complete the course. The journey wasn’t easy and a tough one. But I was determined to achieve it.

When I completed my last paper, everyone in my institute was very happy. Based on the research, David Thomasson, managing director and Victoria Hartley, operations director of Phoenix Financial Training Institute, conveyed that they believe I am the youngest female ACCA affiliate in the world.”

Motivation and determination are two weapons to overcome any obstacle. Speaking about the same, Meiyapphan acknowledged her family’s efforts that helped her get through the tough course over time. “My parents’ – Meiyapphan Subramanian and Alamelu Meiyapphan – encouragement kept me motivated. They never let me feel down. I could not have achieved this feat without the support of my parents and brother.

I pursued the course through Phoenix Institute. The tutors were awesome and I was always looking forward to the classes and webinars. Ms Hartley was very happy to see my progress right from the beginning and was very much supportive throughout. The school teachers and the principal, Ms Latika Narain were also supportive.”

Meiyapphan’s daily routine included waking up early in the morning. Her day began with prayers, with occasional breaks that included a yoga regime. “My mom taught me yoga when I was a toddler and I’ve been doing yoga since then. This helped me to a great extent. I used to do yoga regularly in the evenings. This kept me energised always.”

She went on to say: “Studies were my priority and I avoided distractions. There were times when I had both school and ACCA exams round the corner. During those days, I even used to study till 3 am. Also, I did yoga with my mom in the evenings, which was an important part of my daily routine.” Meiyapphan initially wanted to study medicine but eventually lost interest and pursued ACCA. Telling about her journey, she said: “When I was in middle school, I was inclined towards doing medicine, but gradually I lost interest in science and decided to follow the footsteps of my dad and become a chartered accountant.”

Interested in investment banking and portfolio management, Meiyapphan plans to do CFA in the future. Besides academics, badminton, singing and playing musical instruments like keyboard and violin are here favourite pastimes. “I’ve always liked to explore and learn new things like different languages, arts, etc.,” she says.

When asked on giving a piece of advice to the young readers, she added: “I was not active on any social media platform. As per my mom’s advice, I used to do something productive/creative while taking breaks from studying. So, overall, I would like to say that with yoga and discipline, it is possible to achieve anything.”