ACCA VS ACA any ideas??

[kris-one]

Hi,

I currently live and work in London and am just about to start working towards my professional accounting qualifications. My firm has given me the choice to either study towards the ACA or the ACCA qualification. After holidaying in Singapore I would really like to possibly one day work over there and would therefore prefer to choose the accountancy qualification that is most recognised over there. I have looked at both websites and I have spoken to a number of different people who I know about which qualification is best however I get the feeling that they always are in favour of the qualification that they did, which is understandable. Therefore is there anyone on these boards preferably those in the accountancy/finance sectors of Singapore who could give me any advice as to which qualification they believe is most suitable. Any comments would be much appreciated.

Thanks


PS. ACA is ICAEW which is Institute of chartered accountants for England and Wales.

[louy]

ACA !!

Think ACA is harder, but it is worth putting in the extra work.

[kris-one]

ok, thanks louy for the reply!

[Biogentic]

In Singapore, NTU, SMU and NUS Bachelor of Accountancy Program are the most widely recognised academic qualification. If you cant get into any of the degree, the next best is a professional qualification from either ACA or ACCA. Both qualification entitled you to register for CPA SG after 3 years of relevant accounting working experience.

I chose ACCA over ACA because of the fact that ACCA is generally more well heard of in Spore and i believe globally too. ACA doesnt have as much training center globally as compared to ACCA. In Spore, anything that is unheard of is no good... However there are really no difference towards getting either one as both give you the same head start into accounting, i dun see anyone having either one being given priority to job.

There are other alternative you might want to explore.

1) Master in Professional Accounting by SMU
2) Bachelor of Accountancy by uniSIM coming 2009
3) UOL Accounting and Finance
4) RMIT Accountancy

[kris-one]

Thank you for the replies. I have just one more question I HOPE some one can help answer. I have been looking on the MOM website at the qualifications that are recognised. I know it states that the list is not complete and that each case is reviewed on its individual merits but all the qualifications listed are from UK universities. So my question is does anyone know if the ACA (ICAEW) qualification is generally regarded as an acceptable qualification in Singapore? I do notice that from this coming December you can actually take the ACA exams in Singapore which will hopefully improve the credibility some what.

Thanks

[Biogentic]

Thank you for the replies. I have just one more question I HOPE some one can help answer. I have been looking on the MOM website at the qualifications that are recognised. I know it states that the list is not complete and that each case is reviewed on its individual merits but all the qualifications listed are from UK universities. So my question is does anyone know if the ACA (ICAEW) qualification is generally regarded as an acceptable qualification in Singapore? I do notice that from this coming December you can actually take the ACA exams in Singapore which will hopefully improve the credibility some what.

Thanks

sorry i don't quite understand what do you mean by acceptable qualification in Singapore?

if you are talking about working in private sector in an accountancy field, you dont look at the qualification listed by MOM because it is the accountancy body that regulate the accounting scene in spore and also grant one the certified public accountant membership not MOM. To qualify as a CPA spore, u have to check the list of qualifications acceptable at http://www.icpas.org.sg and ACA is accepted as one because SAA is providing it. In case you dunoe, saa is the training arm for ICPAS, our local accountancy body.

if u want to work in a govt sector, sad to say, it is close to impossible. govt sector only employ local uni graduates or from world class universities.

[kris-one]

Ok I think I understand now. Thanks.

What I was trying to say was that I thought that to get accepted for a work permit your qualifications had to be approved by the MOM? Anyway I think I understand now and have checked that link.

Thanks for your help!

[qazplm]

Dear all,

wish to apologize for asking this but

1.)Is RMIT accountancy easy to pass cuz I do find it strange that people can still fail the modules despite the fact it is not 100% exam based?
For those who fail is it they heck care?

2.)I understand there are no tutorials for this course. But eh if that is the case how do you all study for exams? Eh my point is even though there are past year papers but I feel tutorial is important because it is through doing tutorial after which you attend tutorial do you truly learn and it help you prepare for exams and make you more confident. Then revising your tutorials will also help you prepare for exams.

3.)I do know having an DL Rmit degree, it is impossible to join government sector and big 4 but other than that with an Rmit acct degree you can work as an accountant in other companies right or other type of jobs in other companies? There is no need to like eh pass acca then get cpa what ever to be an accoutant in a company right?

TIA

btw you guys who joined sim rmit acct, from A levels? Thanks

[Nath21]

Hi,

I currently live and work in London and am just about to start working towards my professional accounting qualifications. My firm has given me the choice to either study towards the ACA or the ACCA qualification. After holidaying in Singapore I would really like to possibly one day work over there and would therefore prefer to choose the accountancy qualification that is most recognised over there. I have looked at both websites and I have spoken to a number of different people who I know about which qualification is best however I get the feeling that they always are in favour of the qualification that they did, which is understandable. Therefore is there anyone on these boards preferably those in the accountancy/finance sectors of Singapore who could give me any advice as to which qualification they believe is most suitable. Any comments would be much appreciated.

Thanks


PS. ACA is ICAEW which is Institute of chartered accountants for England and Wales.

ACA was driven out of the Big four Accounting firms where as CPA was driven out of smaller accounting firms. The ACA is a harder exam because the CPA course is multiple choice. The ACA exam is open book but much harder in questions as they are real life examples you must work through. Also the ACA requires you as part of your assessment to present in workshops which is invaluable. You usually get three topics to prepare and get told within 5 minutes of presenting which one you will have to do so you have to know what your talking about. Saying that the CPA has better work materials.

Note CPA in the USA is the equivalent of ACA worldwide. Also until recently CPA outside of the USA was not really a worldwide accepted qualification. Now it is.

YMy opinion is if you plan on being a management accountant or working in a small accounting firm do the CPA if you plan on working BIG 4 or non management accounting roles do ACA.

Just so you can make an informed decision I am ACA (Institute of Chartered Accountants - Australia) qualified. Also the ACA joke is CPA stands for Certified Probability Accountant because all of lifes awnsers are either A, B,C or D and a CPA is most liekly to be at least 25% right most of the time.

[ilovesushi]

hi, this prob isn't what you want to hear but i have just moved out to Singapore with my bf and am looking for a job.

i am ACCA qualified and the first recruitment consultant that i went to told me that this is not a recognised qualification here, she recruits for major banks. i'm not sure if this is a one off and she is just really unknowledgeable or the general consensus as i always believed that ACCA is a truly global qualification that everyone would recognise.

also in my experience ACA is good if you work in practice but ACCA is geared a lot more towards those working in any other sector and gives a broader training, good luck with your studies!

[Nath21]

Ive already replied to your query in another post. Maybe there is a confusion what you mean by ACCA tell me what your referring to? Im referring to the Institute of Chartered Accountants. from what you said either she is confused or knows nothing. The big banks especially mainly hire ex external audit staff who are all ACCA qualified. What agency is she from? I can pm you some good agents I have used in singapore.

I prefer RobertHalf, MichealPage and Morgan McKinley.

[ilovesushi]

ACCA is the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants, i use to work in external audit so it is definitely seen as an accountancy qualification there. she is from Morgan McKinley!

[Nath21]

PM her name I would be happy to get an answer for you about whether its really true, she has a reason for saying that or its a mistake. I have a friend who work there who is quite senior.

What sort of job you looking for?

[ringo100100]

I agree. She knows nothing about accounting/ auditing. Both are equally recognized here. In fact after you have an accounting qualification- ACCA, ACA, CPA, then it is your experience and the personal qualities that matter. Having said that, Singapore CPA doesn't require any serious exams, so I do discount that.

Historically ICAEW (ACA) required training to be with a CA firm, and there was some prestige involved with that. Now they are trying to mass market the qualification and it can now be taken by other means. Therefore, the really is no difference now. Both are following the recent trends in UK education system by dumbing down requirements.

I'm ACCA qualified, worked for the Big 4 up to Audit Manager, and have worked in IA for two large US multi-nationals. I had no problems.

Having worked with many agents on both sides, most simply act as a CV forwarding service. I would never rely on them for too long. Try Linked In and other direct methods.

But times are tough, we are trying to fill some positions and I’ve looked through a 100 CV and had 10’s of interviews, but the right people are not out there. Just 100’s trying to escape from the Big 4.

[Nath21]

Totally agree with qualifications get you in the door, experience and personal qualities land you the job. I have had one girl rearrange a interview meeting with me twice already and got another request today to rearrange because she has a lunch appointment with a friend. The time for the interview was 2pm to start with. I just told her I wasnt interested anymore. Whats wrong with some people seriously. I know in Singapore the lunch is sacred but that takes the cake for me.