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As we embark on our careers, it is better we have some guidelines at hand. The world we are entering is in many ways very different from that it was a few decades back. All need cushy jobs. When it comes to choosing our careers, we have to take charge of our destiny. To become an internationally recognized Accountant we require professional qualification. CMA and CPA programs have relevance in this regard.
The Certified Management Accountant (CMA) program has been designed to recognize the unique qualification and expertise of those professionals engaged in Management Accounting and Financial Management. Any Bachelors degree holder is eligible to take up the program.
The Institute of Management Accountants (IMA) (www.imanet.org), New Jersey, USA offers CMA qualification which gives it international accreditation. With a worldwide network of about 60,000 professionals, IMA is the world’s leading organization dedicated to empowering accounting and financial professionals to drive business performance.
IMA provides dynamic forum for professionals to advance their careers through CMA certification, research, professional education, networking, and advocacy of the highest ethical and professional standards.
CMA has much highlights compared to other professional qualifications, the most important being the average of 6-9 months time period taken to qualify the two paper exam. The online, objective exams and the high pass percentage (55-60%) add to the vogue of CMA. As per IMA standards the average salary drawn by a CMA per month would be$2000, in global view. While completing the CMA program abroad is highly expensive, in India its expenses are far less.
The two papers included in the exam are Financial Planning, Performance and Control and Financial Decision Making respectively. The first paper covers areas like Planning, budgeting, forecasting, Performance Management, Cost Management, Internal controls and Professional Ethics whereas the second paper concentrates on Financial Statement analysis, Corporate Finance, Decision Analysis and Risk Management, Investment decision and Professional Ethics. Exams are conducted in prometric centers across the globe.
A candidate could schedule his exam in any of the three testing window periods spread across 6 months in a year (January, February; May, June; September, October). The exam tests the cognitive skills of the candidate. One who is a qualified CMA will be entering into job profiles like Financial Manager, Management Accountant, Cost Analyst, Financial Analyst etc.
To reflect the globalization of business and importance of sound management accounting practices in all parts of the world, the Institute of Management Accountants (IMA) and the Institute of Cost and Work Accountants of India (ICWAI), a statutory body enacted under an act of Parliament of India have entered into a joint partnership agreement as per which there is a mutual recognition of each organization’s respective certifications.
Certified Public Accountant (CPA) is the license issued by one of the 55 states or territories of US to authorize holder to practice as a certified Public Accountant in that jurisdiction. The board of Accountancy of each jurisdiction, National Association of State boards of Accountancy (NASBA) and American Institute of Certified Public Accountants (AICPA) regulates CPA program.
CPA exam includes four papers as Auditing and Attestation, Business Environment and Concepts, Financial Accounting and Reporting and Regulation. AUD paper of 4.5 hours covers knowledge of auditing procedures, generally accepted auditing standards and other standards related to attest engagements, and skills needed to apply in those engagements. BEC (2.5 hours) covers knowledge of general business environment and business concepts to understand the underlying business reasons for and accounting implications of business transactions. FAR (4 hour) paper covers knowledge on generally accepted Accounting principles of business enterprises, not-for-profit organizations and governmental entities.REG paper (3 hours) covers knowledge of federal taxation, ethics, professional and legal responsibilities and business law.
Once Applied for CPA program the candidate receives Notice to Schedule (NTS) after which he/she can schedule for the exams conducted in 4 testing windows (January, February; April, May; July, August; and October, November). CPA exams as CMA are prometric exams but the only limitation is that it could be taken only in the specified jurisdiction in USA.
In the present day scenario of booming MNC’s across the globe the vogue for internationally qualified professionals like CMA and CPA are immense. Compared to non-certified professionals CMA’s and CPA’s express the expertise and excellence at par with global standards.
For more details on CMA/CPA training, contact LOGIC SCHOOL OF MANAGEMENT, Indira nagar, Bangalore. Phone no: 080-65831799, 09738013042;
E-mail: Bangalore@logiccpacma.com.
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