Economic development is very much dependent on transparency and sound reporting to provide a cohesive and investment-based environment and also provide confidence to the investors. This helps in attracting financial investment opportunities. This not only helps in creating financial stability but also helps in reducing corruption and mismanagement of resources. This is where the power of accountancy comes in. Trained accountants assist in developing dynamic businesses, that can provide long-term value by maintaining accountability and transparency. ACCA is one of the oldest and most credible qualifications in the world, for creating a strategic accounting infrastructure, which is important for the growth of the business of any scale and industry.
ACCA or the “Association of Chartered Certified Accountants”, is the largest and the oldest accounting association in the world, and was formed in the year 1904 in the UK. It is considered the fastest entryway to enter into critical functions of management and financial accounting.
ACCA has more than 117 offices around the world with around 500000 members in 180 countries. After completing the course, the association provides a Chartered Certified Accountant designation. The course not only helps prepare you for accounting and management roles in the business but also provides an opportunity to work in any part of the world as a valued and qualified professional.
Higher Secondary Students are interested in Accounting careers
As the certificate provides flexibility in learning and student-friendly examination systems, it provides an opportunity to stay off the block. It also equips the students for various roles beyond accountability to create a long-term career.
ACCA programs for graduate students
As the program provides many exemptions, the program acts as a faster and cheaper way to prepare for many different kinds of roles that can open doors in multinational companies.
ACCA for experienced professionals
ACCA provides an opportunity to refer your concepts and prepare you for strategic roles that will help you enhance your career prospects in the future.
The least eligibility criteria for studying ACCA are:
An important aspect of ACCA is that different from CA, you are provided with many exemptions. This means that in case you have an existing qualification, you can be exempted from taking all the exams to get an ACCA certification. Therefore you can start your preparation based on your existing knowledge and skills.
However exemption is awarded, in case the related qualifications have been earned recently. The past qualification date should not exceed more than a decade. Also, the exemptions are provided only on recognized qualifications and help you receive credit points, if the course has more than one topic covered in two places in the requirement for exemption.
Here is a list of ACCA exemptions in more detail:
| Qualification | Exams to give | Exemptions |
| 12th standard completion | 13 | 0 |
| Commerce graduate | 9 | 4 |
| MCom | 9 | 4 |
| CA IPCC (Both groups) | 8 | 5 |
| CA | 4 | 9 |
As you become a member of ACCA you have the signing authority in almost every country. You can perform self-practice and sign audit reports in many countries:
Also, it is important to remember that ACCA is not provided with the signing authority in India, however, you can work in and audit firms, along with the Big 4 and other MNCs.
ACCA fees in India
ACCA has a large number of benefits. ACCA certification is considered the gold standard in accountancy, which provides opportunities such as global exposure and a lucrative salary package.
Some of the major benefits of pursuing ACCA are:
Job role in different levels of ACCA
ACCA provides many excellent job roles, for the students. Let's look at some of the exciting job roles.
Management Accountant
In this role, you will be responsible for evaluating, identifying, and measuring the operational and business costs of the organization. This information is essential to keep the business on track and make critical decisions.
Financial accountant
As a financial accountant, you are responsible for analyzing and recording the transactions of the organization. Financial statements are very significant as they are required by the investors, creditors, and other important stakeholders of the organization.
Credit Controller
A credit controller is responsible for managing the corporate debtors, and ensuring the recovery of credit. You will also approve and evaluate new credit applications, and credit ratings of the customers in the banks.
Finance manager
As a finance manager, you will be answerable for managing the aspects of the finance division. You will need to perform financial analysis and manage accounts to create business and financial reports. You will be required to find ways to reduce costs, analyze market trends, and locate investment opportunities for clients.
Tax specialists
As a tax specialist, you will be required to advise clients on various tax rules and meet their taxation requirements.
Over the last few years, the salary scope of ACCA-qualified professionals has been increasing manifold. Candidates completing the ACCA, demonstrate the necessary skills to get hired hired by the companies such as:
The ACCA certification is considered as the most aspiring career option, due to its lucrative salary benefits. Depending on your experience, role, country, and many other factors, the average revenue can range somewhere between :
| Country | Entry level | Mid-level | Senior Level |
| India | INR 7.00 lac | INR 11.17 lac | INR 19.00 lac |
| UK | GBP 39,000 | GBP 52,500 | GBP 68,200 |
| UAE | AED 60,000 | AED 1,20,000 | AED 2,40,000 |
| Hong Kong | HKD 17,400 | HKD 22,800 | HKD 31,900 |
ACCA itself, is not a normal degree such as any any graduation degree. However, ACCA provides a fundamental level of skills and knowledge that is considered similar to a bachelor, degree. The level of professionalism is considered equivalent to a master's degree. So actually ACCA is not a conventional degree, it is a professional certificate.
Generally, in the ACCA, qualified professionals are employed in the Big 4s or MNCs. As the employers of India are now aware of ACCA, they are actively hiring. Some of the main employees of ACCA in India are Price Waterhouse Coopers, Ernst and Young, Deloitte, KPMG, TATA Communications, Embassy Group, Grant Thornton, etc.
As India has a large number of financial KPOs, India has emerged as the central outsourcing hub for many accounting and financial functions. The Employers prefer ACCA-qualified to be responsible for handling these tasks. In India, the salary offered to ACCA freshers is somewhere between 300000INR to 800000INR.
To qualify and get the ACCA certificate a candidate needs to do the following:
Attempt all 13 subjects although ACCA provides an exemption to a maximum of 9 subjects depending on the previous qualifications of the candidate.
Submit experience of 36 months in any relevant role. Although the candidate can acquire the required experience before, during, or after the completion of the certification. The candidates are also required to complete the ethics and professional skills module.
Now let's move a little deeper into different levels of ACCA.
Applied business level:
At this level, the students are awarded the certificate of ACCA Diploma in Accounting and Business (RQF Level 4) after completing management accounting, business and technology, and Financial accounting. At least one paper from this module should be sat and passed.
Applied skills level:
After completing this module students are provided with an Advanced Diploma in Accounting and Business, At least two papers from this module should be sat and passed.
Strategic professional Level:
Students are required to pass 4 subjects out of 6. The module is divided into two sections, optional and essential modules.
Options: (Any 2)
Essentials:
After passing these modules, the students are awarded with Strategic Professional Certificate, when they clear all the strategic professional exams of the ACCA qualification. There are mainly two strategic professional examinations and two strategic professional optional exams.
Ethics and Professional Skills Module
The students are required to complete the 20 hours of ethics and professional skills module which helps in developing the complete rand of various skills required by the employer. Making the students aware of the full spectrum of advanced professional and ethical skills and exposing them to realistic business situations, helps the students shine among the recruiters, and become credible in their workplace.
Practical experience required
To qualify as an ACCA member, the candidates need to complete 36 months of work experience in relevant job roles and achieve 9 performance objectives. A practical, experienced supervisor is required to sign the candidate's time in the relevant job role and performance objective.
| Foundations Level | Applied Knowledge Level | Applied Skills Level | Strategic Professional Level | |
| Exam Duration | 2 hours | 2 hours | 3 hours | 4 hours |
| Passing Marks | 50% | 50% | 50% | 50% |
| Total Marks | 100 | 100 | 100 | 100 |
ACCA provides a flexible study approach and provides two types of computer-based exams.
ACCA is an easy exam to clear when compared to other exams such as CA, and CFA. However, it is a more challenging exam when compared to school exams or undergraduate exams which are more common for students.
Any career in finance is considered very rewarding and equally dynamic. Therefore to provide a great learning path to yourself and be at the top among others, it is important to develop some skills in yourself. Some of the important skills that need to be present in ACCA aspirants are:
Quantitative ability: The students will be required to spend a large part of their time dealing with numbers from real-time data and financial reports. The candidates will also be asked to employ their analytical skills to create sense from numbers and provide relevant insights to help your organization make critical decisions in the business.
Accounting knowledge: The candidate will be required to have an aptitude for rules, laws, and standards to help your business maintain its financial account.
Technical Skills: Many companies are working towards digital technologies. The candidate needs to know about cloud computing. The candidate will also be expected to know about software systems and tools making their job easier.
Communication skills: The ACCA professionals are expected to have good communication skills as they will be responsible for presenting the numbers to the stakeholders along with analyzing them. The candidate will also be responsible for communicating with different teams to get the work done.
Decision making: Sharp judgment is very important as it will help in making sound business decisions and reduce losses. You will be required to offer advice and ensure the profitability of the business.
Integrity: Ethics form the basis of professionalism. Therefore it is important to maintain the highest level of professionalism along with transparency in work. These skills also become important in today's changing regulatory frameworks.