In for a shameful (and soured) love affair
In the last post after taking the second level exams, I declared that:
"In case F2 doesn't come through, I have a number of months to revisit each part of the syllabus and have a full-fledged love affair with this one baby, (which is not that bad a proposition, as the financial pillar is still a slightly intimidating one to climb). Also, having a strong(er) command of IFRS principles should pay-off in countries like Australia that are keenly interested in adoption. Having to retake P2 would be a shame, but E2 should come through for me."
Well, I missed the P2 by 5 marks and the F2 by 10 marks, and hit E2 right in the middle for a pass.
Having said that, I would have been in for a shameful love affair this time around then, until I took a fresh look at my predicament.
You see, SEEK results for the last 30 days for all jobs in Australia with keyword "CIMA" returns 73 jobs. That includes only 47 from a total of 2,457 management accountant jobs.
On the other hand, management accountant jobs for CA or CPA s are 91% of the total accounting jobs as more than 9 out 10 jobs for management accountants require the qualification, while there are another 1,500 other jobs waiting to be filled under other classifications.
If the CIMA diploma in management accounting helped me to receive a "suitable for immigration" for my occupation assessment, then I have already reaped the benefits from all the studies to date. The CA/ CPA qualification involves the outlay of thousands of Australian dollars (approx. five thousand), which is something I may be able to afford once I get settled, but is out of the question presently.
However, as things turn out, CPA Australia has a mutual recognition agreement (MRA) with CIMA for gaining reciprocal membership. If I understand correctly, this means that I can simply apply for and get a CPA title once I am a ACMA, though public practice will require additional certification. (Note: the ICAA is not as friendly to CIMA as it only provides exemption for one module).
Completion of CPA Australia's CPD requirements will also satisfy CIMA's CPD requirements and I will be required to report annually to both CIMA and CPA Australia. The MRA is valid for another three years, up to somewhere in 2013.
This means that a shameful love affair will take place after all, as I continue to spade in cheap Pakistani rupees into gaining pounds for CIMA with the hope that I will be able to convert it to a CPA once I get to Australia, making me eligible for thousands of more jobs at a much more senior level than I would have without it - or at least a qualification that is valued in Australia and around the world.
However, management accounting is not an occupation that exactly matches my current work profile.
While years of modeling, reporting, consolidations, MIS and Excel will certainly help my prospects, most management accounting jobs require some core accounting or managerial accounting experience along with a CA/ CPA. This means that I probably need to get some more hands-on experience in such things as budgeting, forecasting, financial reporting and analysis and other things that these guys do like variance analysis, or at least some ERP exposure to financial accounting and reporting systems such as Oracle and SAP, or BI tools like Hyperion and Cognos.
There is also another emerging line of thought - rather than take my current occupation towards finance, or remaining in the shallow parts of the stream between IS and Finance, I could consider amplifying my database skills with a formal role in data warehousing, or ERP/ BI project developments to finally achieve my vision of marrying IT to Finance, particularly with an ACMA/ CPA.
If I do remain in my current role, producing MIS in Excel and working with data maintaining Excel, Access and VB systems, I will at least need stronger SQL skills and VBA to apply for similar jobs. The CA/ CPA qualification would be an added advantage at best, but strong technical skills and relevant experience would be far more important.
While there are a few jobs that require this kind of technical work experience and also ask for a CPA, they usually have many more demands and are senior-level well paid jobs.
Further research will determine whether the investment - keeping in mind that my relevant work experience is limited - will pay off realistically, or whether the money, time and effort that will be spent on getting membership to CIMA is ridiculous and uncalled for right now.
But at least for now, another half-month's salary is going to be spent.
"In case F2 doesn't come through, I have a number of months to revisit each part of the syllabus and have a full-fledged love affair with this one baby, (which is not that bad a proposition, as the financial pillar is still a slightly intimidating one to climb). Also, having a strong(er) command of IFRS principles should pay-off in countries like Australia that are keenly interested in adoption. Having to retake P2 would be a shame, but E2 should come through for me."
Well, I missed the P2 by 5 marks and the F2 by 10 marks, and hit E2 right in the middle for a pass.
Having said that, I would have been in for a shameful love affair this time around then, until I took a fresh look at my predicament.
You see, SEEK results for the last 30 days for all jobs in Australia with keyword "CIMA" returns 73 jobs. That includes only 47 from a total of 2,457 management accountant jobs.
On the other hand, management accountant jobs for CA or CPA s are 91% of the total accounting jobs as more than 9 out 10 jobs for management accountants require the qualification, while there are another 1,500 other jobs waiting to be filled under other classifications.
If the CIMA diploma in management accounting helped me to receive a "suitable for immigration" for my occupation assessment, then I have already reaped the benefits from all the studies to date. The CA/ CPA qualification involves the outlay of thousands of Australian dollars (approx. five thousand), which is something I may be able to afford once I get settled, but is out of the question presently.
However, as things turn out, CPA Australia has a mutual recognition agreement (MRA) with CIMA for gaining reciprocal membership. If I understand correctly, this means that I can simply apply for and get a CPA title once I am a ACMA, though public practice will require additional certification. (Note: the ICAA is not as friendly to CIMA as it only provides exemption for one module).
Completion of CPA Australia's CPD requirements will also satisfy CIMA's CPD requirements and I will be required to report annually to both CIMA and CPA Australia. The MRA is valid for another three years, up to somewhere in 2013.
This means that a shameful love affair will take place after all, as I continue to spade in cheap Pakistani rupees into gaining pounds for CIMA with the hope that I will be able to convert it to a CPA once I get to Australia, making me eligible for thousands of more jobs at a much more senior level than I would have without it - or at least a qualification that is valued in Australia and around the world.
However, management accounting is not an occupation that exactly matches my current work profile.
While years of modeling, reporting, consolidations, MIS and Excel will certainly help my prospects, most management accounting jobs require some core accounting or managerial accounting experience along with a CA/ CPA. This means that I probably need to get some more hands-on experience in such things as budgeting, forecasting, financial reporting and analysis and other things that these guys do like variance analysis, or at least some ERP exposure to financial accounting and reporting systems such as Oracle and SAP, or BI tools like Hyperion and Cognos.
There is also another emerging line of thought - rather than take my current occupation towards finance, or remaining in the shallow parts of the stream between IS and Finance, I could consider amplifying my database skills with a formal role in data warehousing, or ERP/ BI project developments to finally achieve my vision of marrying IT to Finance, particularly with an ACMA/ CPA.
If I do remain in my current role, producing MIS in Excel and working with data maintaining Excel, Access and VB systems, I will at least need stronger SQL skills and VBA to apply for similar jobs. The CA/ CPA qualification would be an added advantage at best, but strong technical skills and relevant experience would be far more important.
While there are a few jobs that require this kind of technical work experience and also ask for a CPA, they usually have many more demands and are senior-level well paid jobs.
Further research will determine whether the investment - keeping in mind that my relevant work experience is limited - will pay off realistically, or whether the money, time and effort that will be spent on getting membership to CIMA is ridiculous and uncalled for right now.
But at least for now, another half-month's salary is going to be spent.
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