All you need to know about becoming a Certified Public Accountant (CPA). A careers presentation by the Institute of Certified Public Accountants in Ireland.
8. INTERNATIONAL PARTNERS INSTITUTE OF CHARTERED ACCOUNTANTS OF INDIA (ICA INDIA) CERTIFIED GENERAL ACCOUNTANTS ASSOCIATION OF CANADA (CGA-Canada) CERTIFIED PUBLIC ACCOUNTANTS AUSTRALIA (CPA Australia) RECOGNISED BODY OF AUDITORS NEW ZEALAND
9. MEET SOME CPAS – AT HOME JOHN McCORMACK, CEO Irish Cancer Society GEOFF MEAGHER, Former Deputy MD/ Former Group Finance Director Glanbia ELAINE VESEY Accounting Manager EOC Finance Microsoft Ireland
10. MEET SOME CPAS – ABROAD JOHN DONNELLY Associate Director Russel Bedford Ltd. Dubai KERSTIN SCHEIDL Financial Analyst Amazon Germany MAEVE CRONIN Senior VP Planning & Forecasting Take Two Interactive New York
11. OUR STAR STUDENTS JOHN KELLY, FORMER INTERNATIONAL RUGBY PLAYER, TRAINEE ACCOUNTANT, KPMG CPA PRIZE WINNER “The flexibility that CPA offer was key for me. The qualification allowed for me to study at night and play rugby during the day”
16. Want to win €5,000? CPA Student Development Award 2011 Find us on Facebook to win www.facebook.com/cpaireland
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Hinweis der Redaktion
Hello and welcome to our Webinar about Becoming a CPA. I hope you will find it informative. I will spend the next few minutes talking though some key points that may be of interest to you if you are planning on taking the CPA qualification and thinking about following a career in accountancy.
First of all some quick facts – CPA has over 5000 members and students who work in amazingly diverse roles ranging from an emmy nominated casting director to entrepreneurs, CEOs and CFOs of large corporate concerns. The Institute itself is there to train, monitor and regulate members and also to provide information and support. When you take on the CPA qualification you automatically have access to this network of students and members. As we know networking at present is key to obtaining a new job or moving within the sector so having access to this support network is vital.
There are over 2,000 employers of CPAs in Ireland and roughly speaking there is a 70:30 split between members working in industry and members in practice.
CPA has over 100 Approved Training Partners.
I have included a small sample here including a range of blue chip companies, small medium enterprise and accountancy practices. This programme provides a quality framework for accounting trainee programmes in companies and ensures that you as a student have a structured training environment; an effective career management strategy and even improved exam pass rates. However, you do not have to train with one of our approved training partners. If you secure work in a company or practice not listed as an ATP don’t worry. Once your training is relevant and signed off by a professionally qualified accountant it will count towards the training requirements set out by CPA.
CPA is one of the best known international accounting designations. At last count CPAs were working in 32 countries around the world, everywhere from the US, Canada, Australia to the Bahamas and the Cayman Islands!
Emigration is reality at present and with that in mind CPA has worked at creating opportunities in markets less affected by the downturn. We have a number of mutual recognition agreements in place including ones with Canada, Australia and India. CPA is also recognised as a body of auditors in New Zealand. Keep in mind however that as a CPA you can work anywhere around the world. The qualification is based on international financial reporting and auditing standards so as a CPA you will be qualified to operate in any jurisdiction internationally.
As I mentioned previously the CPA qualification allows you to work wherever you want in whatever field that interests you. Meet some CPA members both at home and abroad who have excelled in their chosen fields:John, CEO with the Irish Cancer SocietyGeoff, a past President of CPA and former deputy head of GlanbiaElaine credits CPA with providing her with a platform to grow and develop her career within the finance management team of a very successful multinational company
As I mentioned previously CPA members work right around the world. These CPA members are based abroad, John in Dubai and Kerstin in Germany with Amazon. Kerstin was conferred as a CPA member in 2009 and as a CPA student had won awards for excelling in exams on a number of occasions. Maeve is based in New York with Take Two Interactive who produce software for PlayStation.So as you can see the qualification offers some very exciting opportunities.
And not forgetting our CPA students…….John, one of CPAs prizewinning students, came into the CPA qualification from an engineering background. Recognising the restrictions in his chosen sector John wanted to ensure that when he retired from rugby he had his next move carefully planned. The flexibility of the CPA qualification meant it was an obvious choice for John. He could study part time at a pace of his choosing while playing rugby professionally.
There are various different routes into the CPA qualification. You do not have to be from an accountancy or business background but obviously the more relevant your background the more exemptions you may be entitled to. More and more people are looking to upskill or change career track. At CPA there are no barriers to entry. So what are the next steps………
Firstly you will confirm exemptions with the CPA Institute. Let’s say for example that you have a degree in Accounting and Finance. We would need to see your transcripts from each year of the degree – that is the official list of subjects you studied each year and the corresponding grades. If you would like exemptions checked I would suggest you contact the Institute and we can tell you exactly what you need to do to progress. Perhaps you don’t have a degree or you have another qualification that isn’t relevant to accounting & finance again just call us and we will go through your next steps in person. Once you have exemptions confirmed you can then register with CPA and with an approved educator. To register with the Institute just download our registration form fill out and return by post. We have approved educators located right around the country where you can take the qualification through a part time or weekend lectures, distance learning and eLearning also. Chose an educator that suits your needs and register with them. You are then ready to get started. There is a full list of educators on our website.Obviously you must study and sit exams and obtain relevant training. CPA requires 3 years relevant training in practice, industry or both under the supervision of a qualified accountant. I have some more information coming up on our training requirements.
There are 4 stages of exams in the CPA syllabus. Naturally if you are entitled to exemptions you will not be required to sit all 15 exams. CPAs academic year runs from September to April with exams at the end of every April and the end of every August. This modular exams system means that you as a student can decide to fast track or to take your time through the qualification. You will note that there at 6 subjects listed at P2 stage of exams. You will take four subjects. Two are mandatory ….you can see the letter M beside those subjects. You then chose tow from the remaining electives. Here you have the ability to tailor your career towards working in practice or industry. So for example if you feel you want to work in practice or more importantly set up your own practice down the line you would need to take Audit Practice and Assurance Services and Advanced Tax. If your career is industry based you may decide the more strategic subjects are for you. Alternatively you can choose subjects that best suit you.
Part and parcel of a professional qualification is relevant training. It’s what differentiates it from a purely academic qualification. With CPA you must obtain three years relevant training in practice, industry or both under the supervision of a professionally qualified accountant. Employers are telling us that they are looking for broadly qualified accountants who can add value to the bottom line almost immediately. They just don’t have the resources anymore to engage niche accountants or those with a narrow range of experience. With the CPA qualification you have a strong range of skillsets that you can adapt to the economic environment whatever it may be. With CPA you will not be tied down to a contract. You are free to chose your employer and you will be in charge of your career from the get go. You do not have to be in relevant training/work to start the CPA qualification. If this is the situation you find yourself in why not get started with the qualification and use this to boost your CV? If you have past relevant experience be sure to let us know. This may count towards some of the required training you must obtain to become a CPA. Remember we are here to help. We have an excellent careers corner on our website with lots of great articles and webinars showing you how to put CVs together and how to prepare for interviews. Our open door policy means we are always here to take your queries in person, telephone or email
And now couldn’t be a better time to consider the CPA qualification. CPA is running an exciting competition via our facebook page. To enter all you have to do is like our page which is facebook.com/cpaireland follow the instructions and be in with a chance to win €5,000 towards your CPA tuition. It couldn’t be easier!
One more thing before we finish….. our registration deadlines are 1st December for April exam sittings and 1st June for August exam sittings.
These are my contact details. Please do not hesitate to get in touch if you have any queries. I would be delighted to help. Thanks for listening !