C.I.M.A or ACCA

David_Rutherford · 19 April 2017 at 9:12PM

Hey, was wondering if anybody on here could help me.

I graduated with a degree in Business Management in 2010, I work for the civil service on an accounts team, its not accountancy as its customs based but we deal with processing payments.

I want to become a Management Accountant and was initially thinking of doing the CIMA qualification, first the Certificate in Business Accounting then the Professional Qualification.
Does anybody have experience of doing this?
Does anyone know what jobs can I apply for whilst studying the Certificate? Or straight after?

I do not want to start a qualification for this and not be able to apply for jobs to get the experience.

I know I need 3 years experience in order to get Chartered Status on the professional qualification as well. How difficult is this? Is it very difficult to get a trainee position for Management Accountancy?

I have read that doing an AAT/ACCA qualification can be more beneficial to getting to become a Management Accountant? Does anybody have any information regarding this?

Many thanks in advance for your help

David

xapprenticex · 19 April 2017 at 10:54PM

best advice i can give is to get the job THEN do the qualification. Too many people out there with qualifications, no real experience and wonder why its so difficult to get a job.

Management accounting best accessed through graduate schemes if you can get on one, lot of competition, no way are you just doing a qualifications then getting a job like that.

boliston · 19 April 2017 at 11:02PM

One of my workmates has just done AAT and is now looking at CIMA rather than ACCA as he specifically wants to do management accounting. I think ACCA is good if you want to work for an accountancy firm rather than for a business.

Timpu · 20 April 2017 at 9:16AM

xapprenticex wrote: »

best advice i can give is to get the job THEN do the qualification. Too many people out there with qualifications, no real experience and wonder why its so difficult to get a job.

Management accounting best accessed through graduate schemes if you can get on one, lot of competition, no way are you just doing a qualifications then getting a job like that.

^^This. There are also 'Trainee Accountant' positions out there that will also offer training contracts in support of your CIMA studies, while giving you the experience you need.

There are Public Finance qualifications too but I'm guessing OP wants something broader?

On the question of comparing qualifications all I can say is I've worked within teams made up of people who have gone the ACA/ACCA/CIMA route and we all pitched in to help make sure the work was done. Having the basic knowledge is important, the rest you learn.

asajj · 20 April 2017 at 10:46PM

Agree with xzapprenticex and Timpu. I have worked with people who hold ACA/ACCA/CIMA and Australian CPA, US CPA etc. Very little difference.

Get the job first and choose the qualification later.
Also, I saw some CIMA exam questions and they were significantly easier than ACCA/ACA papers. One thing to keep in mind I guess.

Kynthia · 21 April 2017 at 9:51AM

I did AAT and then CIMA. I chose CIMA rather than ACCA because I looked at both qualifications, the course content, how to gain your full membership after, and whether there were any jobs I'd like to do that required you to have one of them in particular, and picked the one that suited me best. You need to do this as everyone is different.

There are too many people out there with qualifications and no experience. It sounds like you might have some entry level experience where you are so once you are part way through your studies you should concentrate on getting a job suitable for part-qualified people.

Tiggy_Wiggy · 21 April 2017 at 12:56PM

I have been qualified ACCA for years and have never worked in practice always in industry.

xapprenticex · 21 April 2017 at 6:29PM

I dont see why not, it may not be best suited for industry but it can still work.

Pennywise · 21 April 2017 at 7:36PM

Really, get a trainee accountant job now. Most employers will provide a study assistance package, including provision of training materials, course fees, time off for revision, etc.

As said above, it's very common for people to do the qualifications, often in their own time and at their own expense, and be unable to get a suitable job simply because of lack of relevant experience.

Being a qualified accountant needs two aspects. The relevant experience is just as important as the qualifications. One without the other doesn't really cut it when there are more candidates than jobs.

You may think it hard to give up your job and take a trainee accountant position, probably on a lower pay package, but it will pay dividends and be far better than having to take an entry level job in a few years' time when you have a piece of paper saying you've passed the exams, but you still aren't a qualified accountant due to lack of experience and can't get a qualified level job for the same reason.

Makkusu · 21 April 2017 at 8:27PM

It's all well and good saying get a job before a qualification but (in my opinion) accountancy is quite a competitive field at the moment for trainee positions, and industry work is harder to get into than practice, again in my opinion.

There will be candidates stamping ACCA/CIMA students all over their CV so having chosen a path, signed up, started studying gives you an edge above others, and also shows you're serious about it. It is hard graft studying and working and employers know it, they will worry you start and don't like the lifestyle...

The cost of doing so, very minimal, so you're better off signing up now and then any trainee position will hopefully cover the remaining costs under a study budget of sorts.

Keep in mind that both paths are a good 3-5+ studying years alongside a full-time job, CIMA is purely industry orientated, ACCA gives you scope and flexibility... Perhaps you might meet some like-minded individuals and start your own practice with them one day, who knows, ACCA gives that flexibility.

Hope that helps, any questions on either let me know. I've worked my way up in practice.

Whatever route, skip AAT because you have a degree and you'll cover the essentials in either route.

skintpaul · 22 April 2017 at 3:49PM

AAT is industry standard, afaik, for accounting..

level 1 is dead easy.

For 2 and up you would really need to be in accounts role full time, for it to be useful (and make any sense!)

C.I.M.A or ACCA

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