I'm new on here so please bare with me if this info is available elsewhere.
I am a bookkeeper in my 40's who has worked in industry all my working life. Currently I work alone for a £7m private company preparing management accounts/payroll for 400 staff. I am now thinking I should really have done more with my life and am considering studying for CIMA. My boss would fund me to study as he wants rid of the external accountant but I need a bit more knowledge (and confidence) to be able to prepare the statutory accounts.
I have a HND in Accounting from 1990 and could spend about 16 hours a week studying.
So I have some questions -would you recommend CIMA as the route to qualification?
Would I get many exemptions from CIMA exams? And how long would it take me to qualify?
Thanks in advance for reading - hope someone can give some advice
Susan
-- Edited by susanc on Thursday 9th of July 2015 03:45:20 PM
-- Edited by susanc on Thursday 9th of July 2015 03:45:56 PM
Sure that David Ballantyne will be on imminently to answer CIMA specific questions.
In the meanwhile have you considered ACCA which includes pretty much all of the CIMA syllabus.
CIMA and ACCA are pretty much a similar level and take a similar time to attain. They also both have exams at the higher level that are incredibly difficult and only a small number of those who start out towards qualification make it so whichever you achieve is the real life achievement that you seem to be looking for.
If your boss asks they are both at NQF level 7 (Masters degree level)
Realistically you should assume at least five years from start to end with either of those options. It may take longer depending on other commitments.
I cannot see any exemptions that you would be entitled to from what you have written above but even if you did have exemptions it is seldom advisable to accept them as the early papers get you into the mindset of a bodies examiners with each new paper building on those that came before.
An exeption to that might be accepting exemptions from the fundamental papers where you have recently taken either the AAT or CAT qualifications.
Hope that helps to get the vball rolling and good luck in your studies.
Looking forwards to chattig with you regularly as you progress,
Kindest regards,
Shaun.
p.s. I'm ACCA so I'm biased... Although, that I've taken the qualification and swear by my professional body has to be a good sign.
__________________
Shaun
Responses are not meant as a substitute for professional advice. Answers are intended as outline only the advice of a qualified professional with access to all relevant information should be sought before acting on any response given.
I agree with Shaun - 5 years seems a reasonable time frame. I am CIMA qualified (sorry Shaun!) and agree that it's worth the hard work.
I did receive exemptions with my degree although I'm am not sure it benefitted me that much. Obviously it was good to avoid some exams, however, later in the course they picked up on things in earlier levels which I struggled with.
In terms of your current situation you could consider the following qualifications:
Association of Accounting Technicians (AAT) - a level 4 qualification.
Chartered Institute of Management Accountants (CIMA) and Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (ACCA), both level 7 qualifications as mentioned already.
For info, your HND would be a level 5 qualification.
If you are planning to stay in your current role and take on stat accounts, then the AAT qualification plus the ongoing professional development support from AAT should enable you to do that. In terms of earnings potential in the employment market AAT could take you as high as £35k in areas outside of the South East, possibly more in the South East.
If you want to have a chance of earning beyond £35k, then you will need to study one of the chartered level qualifications. To guage the range of earnings potential, go to the Reed Employment jobs website, search for "accountant" in one of your major local towns.
Both CIMA and ACCA are equally marketable in commercial, not for profit and public sector organisations. In your search of the Reed Employment website, you should find that both qualifications are regularly specified as required qualifications for the roles advertised. Some roles will also specify ACA (Institute of Chartered Accountants in England & Wales).
I would agree with Shaun's assessment of a five year commitment for the chartered level qualifications.
In respect of CIMA exemptions, your best bet is to go to the CIMA exemptions webpage. Alternatively, contact CIMA direct.
In respect of studying CIMA, I would recommend the Acorn Live online distance learning which enables you to fit your study around your other commitments and is the best value for money that I have been able to find.
I had not previously considered AAT but have now applied and hope to start at the beginning of August. This should get me into the swing of studying again and I can consider professional qualifications after that.
