Professional exams
Exam books, second-hand.
Study texts and exam kits for ACCA, CIMA, AAT, the SQE and medical finals. Buy them used from people who just passed, sell yours on while the edition is still valid - and never guess which printing covers your sitting.
Qualifications
Find your qualification
Paper-by-paper book guides, edition checks, and copies from candidates a sitting ahead of you.
ACCA
Association of Chartered Certified Accountants
ACCA is the world's largest professional accountancy qualification - 13 exams from Applied Knowledge to Strategic Professional, with official BPP and Kaplan texts at £39-£48 each new. A new cohort sits every March, June, September and December, so finished books always have a buyer.
CIMA
Chartered Institute of Management Accountants
The CGMA Professional Qualification runs from Certificate (BA1-BA4) through Operational, Management and Strategic levels. Kaplan is the only official publisher, with study texts at £44-£47 new and one edition per calendar year - so there's a steady supply of barely-used current books.
AAT
Association of Accounting Technicians
AAT is the UK's biggest accounting-technician qualification, from Level 2 Certificate to Level 4 Diploma. Kaplan and BPP both publish texts at £28 or less new - and because most units stay stable across the Q2022 syllabus, used copies keep their value year after year.
SQE
Solicitors Qualifying Examination
The SQE is the route to qualifying as a solicitor in England and Wales, with over 16,000 candidates a year and growing. A full SQE1 prep library - Revise SQE guides, ULaw manuals, OUP revision guides - runs £150-£250 new, and the whole set becomes surplus the day you pass.
Medical finals
Medical Finals, UKMLA & Postgraduate Exams
Every UK medical student sits finals and the UKMLA, and the books they rely on - the Oxford Handbooks, Macleod's, Kumar & Clark - are a canon that changes slowly and holds its value. Buying them used is a medical school tradition; selling them on after finals completes it.
Why second-hand
Read once, sold on
Professional study texts are used for one sitting, then sit on a shelf.
Edition validity, checked
Every book is printed for specific exam sittings. Our paper guides show exactly which BPP and Kaplan editions are still valid, so nobody buys an out-of-date text.
Real savings per paper
New texts and kits run £23-£48 each - a full qualification is hundreds of pounds. Current-edition used copies typically go for half or less.
Constant turnover
With sittings through the year, someone is always finishing the paper you're starting - and their barely-used books need a new home.
The maths
What a paper really costs
Publisher prices against typical second-hand asks for current editions - exact prices vary by condition.
| Books per paper | New price | Second-hand | You save |
|---|---|---|---|
ACCA study text + exam kit BPP or Kaplan, per paper | £62-£78 | £25-£40 | up to £50 |
CIMA study text + exam kit Kaplan (official publisher) | £69-£73 | £25-£40 | up to £45 |
AAT study text + exam kit Kaplan or BPP, per unit | £51-£61 | £15-£30 | up to £40 |
Editions expire on a schedule - selling promptly after your exam is how you get the most back.
Passed? Pass your books on.
Your books are worth the most right now, while the edition is still current. Free to list, paid out after delivery.