Chartered Accountants - Study &Training

Chartered Accountancy can be pursued after Class 10 or 10+2 or graduation. The following section gives details for entry after Class 10 and 12..

To become a CA, you need to enrol with the Institute of Chartered Accountants of India (ICAI) the only statutory body in India, which conducts the CA course, holds examinations and prescribes qualifications for membership. Head quartered in New Delhi, the Institute has five regional offices and 97 branch offices in the country, apart from 12 Chapters outside India. To start practising, a CA has to clear all the exams and become an Associate Member of the Council.



At present the ICAI has a strength of one lakh Members. There are close to 1,75,000 students who appear for the CA exam at different stages every six months at 170 centres in the country. The qualifying figures are low perhaps due to the tough course curriculum.



Institute of Chartered Accountants of India (ICAI) website : www.icai.org , has designed a new syllabus to keep pace with the changing environment.



Entry to the course after Class 10

Under the new schemes, after Class 10 a student has the option of registering with the Institute of Chartered Accountants of India for pursuing the new syllabus.

After Class 10 boards candidates can register for Common Proficiency Test(CPT) as compared to the earlier scheme where they could register only after Class 12. The CPT examination is an objective type paper of 200 marks and is held once every 3 months across the country. The emphasis in CPT is on core subjects- accountancy, mercantile law,quantitative aptitude,and general aptitude. Students who clear the CPT can begin articleship training, the duration of which has been increased from 3 years to 3 years and 6 months.Following this articles can appear for the Proficiency Competence examination. On clearing the PCE the student can apply for the final examination. Around 100 hours of IT training is also mandatory as per the new norms. General Management and communication skillscan be completed during articleship training .This scheme allows students to qualify as Chartered Accountants in 4 years.

Entry to the course after Class 12

Registration to the ICAI can be made after Class XII. The course comprises of 3 stages and only 5 attempts are permitted for each stage.. PE1 or Professional Examination 1 can be followed by Professional Examination 2 . This is then followed by the Final Examination.

PEI has theoretical training of 10 months. The fee for registration and tuition is Rs. 2,000. Candidates, who are graduates with more than the specified marks or those who have passed the final examination of the Institute of Cost and Works Accountants of India or the Institute of Company Secretaries of India (ICSI), are exempted from PE-I. After PE-I, a student has to appear for PE-II, which is again of 10 months duration. Registration and tuition fees is Rs. 2650. After passing PE-II and before appearing for the final examination, candidates have to register as articled clerks.

In the new system the three-year practical training can be taken after clearing both groups of the PE II Exam. The PE II Syllabus has IT as a subject. The successful completion of a 250 hour computer-training program, prior to practical training is mandatory. The student has to submit a multi-dimensional project after completion of the programmee. Thirty hours, out of the total of 250, have to be devoted to this. After completing the practical training candidates have to take compulsorily courses in General Management & Communication skills before applying for membership of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of India.

Salient features of CA training

-- PEI - Compulsory for students planning to enter after +2. Exemption far Graduates scoring more than stipulated aggregate/CWA/CS qualified candidates.

-- Minimum of 40% in each paper and 50% aggregate is required for passing PEI

-- PEII mandatory for all irrespective of the point of entry.

-- 250 hours of computer training compulsory to begin article slip. This can be done alongside PEI and PE II study.

-- On passing PE II (10 months study) practical training of 3 years,

-- Final Examination can be taken an completion of PE II and practical training of 3 years.

-- After final exams, a candidate subsequently has to undergo a programme on ‘General Management and Communication Skills’, after which he or she can register as an ‘Associate Member’ of the ICAI. After continuing for five years, an associate moves up the ladder to become a ‘Fellow Member’.



Articleship

Practical training as an ‘Article’ (Apprentice)

Articleship is of 3 years and includes training in conducting audits in the area of taxation mainly. The articleship period is one in which the student can learn all the technical details of work. The training begins under close supervision but later the article is left to manage larger assignments. Articleship includes a year of industrial training. This can be done in the last year of articleship and after clearing the Intermediate examination. This is a rotating training in each of the departments in a financial, commercial or industrial undertaking. Final exams of the Board can be taken in the last year of articleship.



The practical training helps in assimilating and learning the applications of theoretical principles and skills required in the profession. Articleship requires working for the whole day. An article or audit clerk cannot pursue any other course of study or training without the permission of the central council of the institute.Only one course is permitted along with the practical training. The options are graduation/postgraduation/CWA/CS/MBA/law. Articleship has to be done for a period of 3 years to 4 years. Experienced Chartered Accountants can enrol articles for training under them. There are certain rules for allowing Chartered Accountant’s to enrol articles. A Chartered Accountant with over 16 years experience can train 8 articles while someone with lesser experience may take fewer articles. Students look for reputed Chartered Accountant’s and Chartered Accountant firms for their articleship. ‘Principal’ as the Chartered Accountant is called can be changed also during the training. Audit clerkship entitles the trainee to earn during this period with the chartered accountancy firm for training of 4 years. The entire period of practical training can be served under a practising member of the institute or it can be divided in part with an industrial firm. Industrial training involves gaining practical experience in internal audit, computerised systems, financial controls etc.The period extends over nine months to a year.



After completing articleship

Membership of the Institute of Chartered Accountants is essential for practicing as a Chartered Accountant. After the completion of articleship membership can be taken. This is the formal authorization for independent practice. After 5 years of membership fellowship of the Institute can be taken.



Qualified Chartered Accountants can further specialize in management accounting, corporate management or tax management.



Continuing professional education

From 2004 it is mandatory for all Chartered Accountants to complete a minimum of 10 hours for non practising CAs and 20 hours for practising CAs CPE (continuing professional eduation) credit in a year. This has to be acquired though attending professional workships, seminars conferences. Minimum of 25 hours CPE credit will be required over a 3 year period.

Address for contact - Institute’s Headquarters are at Indraprastha Marg, New Delhi - 110002. Board of Studies, C1-Sector 1, Noida - 201 301.



International accounting qualifying examinations

Recognition of Indian CA course

ICAI and Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales mutually recognise each others courses and qualifications. Hence Indian CAs get an exemption of seven of the eleven subjects taught in their course.

Certified General Accountants Association of Canada, Italian Accounting body CNDC and the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants, USA also have recognised the ICAI.

International certifications

ACCA

The British Accounting Course of the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (ACCA) is a training in audit and financial management. The Association of Chartered Certified Accountants(ACCA) is a UK-based, almost 100-years old body of professionals present globally in over 160 countries(out of 194 countries as recognised by UN). With over 200,000 professionally qualified members and 1,62,000 registered students, ACCA is one of the world’s largest accountancy bodies. Its syllabus is recognised by the United Nations. Therefore, ACCA members often enjoy wide professional mobility. The ACCA qualification is also recognised under the UK Companies Act for audit of Company Accounts and UK Insolvency and Financial Services Act. In India ACCA has four offices(in Gurgaon, Calcutta, Chennai and Mumbai) and five examination centres, with Bangalore being a recent addition. To qualify for membership, one has to pass an examination in finance and management-related functions and in a practical test.

Eligibility

Eligibility is Class XII.5 subjects are required including Maths/Accounts, English with 65% and 50% in the remainder.Certain course exemptions are offered to Commerce graduates and MBA’s, CA’s and M.Com’s get exemption from the foundation course. In addition, there is an entry scheme’ Mature Students Entry Route’ for people without any formal qualification and those above 21 years of age. However, they have to appear in certain qualifying courses for an entrance examination.

Study

The course is offered through 3 methods of study-Tuition from colleges and institutes (Study centres are located in Delhi, Calcutta, Bombay, Chennai and Bangalore), open learning systems or through textbooks and seminars.



Courses are structured to cover accounting and auditing; taxation and legal framework; financial management and strategy; and management control and information. Interestingly, in order to take into account the varying legal and taxation regulations in different countries, the courses on taxation and legal framework are offered in local (Indian) variant on optional basis.



The examination for all the three stages are held twice in a year(in June and December). A student can pass the exam in a span of two to three years though the maximum time frame allowed is ten years. On clearing all three stages, the student qualifies to become an affiliate of the Association.

Practical training

A mandatory practical training of 3 years is required This can be taken in any size or type of organisation and in any country. ACCA offers a structured practical training programme in all 160 countries around the world. The mandatory training requires a student to attend 15 modules out of the 45 identified modules covering five key areas, including management. This training can be acquired in an industry or commerce, public service, or in a practising firm. The training could be taken before, after or along with the academic studies.There are a choice in practical functions which a student can choose from depending on the function of auditing or financial management he intends to pursue. The student’s training record book is approved by a london-based central authority, before she/he is declared as a qualified manager.

Examinations

The examinations are divided into three parts

Foundation stage, certificate stage(both having four courses each) and the professional stage(with six courses). Graduates, post graduates and other professional: CAs, ICWAs and CS are also eligible for exemption in certain courses.



Examinations are held twice a year in June and December. A maximum of 4 papers can be attempted at a time.All 14 papers can be completed in 3 years. There is no age limit for ACCA. In India the exams can be taken in Mumbai,Chennai, Kolkata, and Delhi and is conducted under the supervision of the British Council.

Placement

For placement, there are four regional directors in India who maintain close tie-ups with leading corporations and audit organisations.



AddressACCA India Representative’ Map Consultants, 124, Sector 14, Gurgaon-122001 or e-mail them at map.acca@axcess.net.in

Website http://www.acca.org.uk