Graduate cut into amount in account (7)
I believe the answer is:
balance
'in account' is the definition.
(I know that balance is part of account)
'graduate cut' is the wordplay.
'graduate' becomes 'BA' (someone with a Bachelor of Arts degree).
'cut' becomes 'lance' (I've seen this before).
'ba'+'lance'='BALANCE'
'into amount' is the link.
I am not very happy about this link. Some or all of it may be part of another bit of the clue.
Can you help me to learn more?
(Other definitions for balance that I've seen before include "Equilibrium or steady position" , "Equipoise" , "Scale for weighing" , "Rest" , "Poise" .)