Certified Practicing Accountants and Institute of Chartered Accountants Comparison - Essay Example

Running head: CPA and ICAA comparison Student name: Student number: Course title: Lecturer: Date: Abstract The journey to earning the title as an accountant will usually take on different forms. This path will usually depend on the profession that one is in, the qualifications they have attained, the region in which they reside, and the profession they have started practicing. Accounting is a popular profession that is the favorite of many people looking for a career to follow in life. The first decision to make for those who are into taking this career as their path will be to decide which accounting professional body to join to be sure that they get the best in the career. Given the mushrooming of accounting professional bodies that is seen in the world and particularly Australia today, it is an uphill task when it comes to settling on one professional body that will cater for the needs of the various students. To take on the accounting profession, it will require anyone with the relevant educational background can practice as an accountant. For those who would like to practice public opinions which are professional, they will have to have a license to do so. One of these is the auditing option which will require that those practicing it are licensed to do so. This paper will analyze two professional bodies that are common with accounting professionals in Australia. The paper will also look at the capabilities of the students who are taking the business and give the necessary advice on which bodies they will have to take to reach their desired dreams. It is an objective that the strengths of these bodies are analyzed so that those in the dilemma of choosing a professional accounting body will make informed choice in the end. Table of contents Abstract 2 Table of contents 3 Introduction 4 My class needs 4 Certified Practicing Accountants (CPA) 5 Institute of Chartered Accountants (ICA) 6 Recommendations 7 Conclusion 7 References 8 Introduction Accounting is involved with making keeping track of both tangible and intangible resources in an organization. The profession is gaining popularity as it is a required field in the private and the public sector. It has been popularly referred to as the language and the heart of business given the fact that it keeps the financial information that the company has in safe and strategic manner (Nobes, & Parker, 2002). The financial information that is kept by these accountants is used to make informed decisions in the day to day running of the business. This is the more reason that the accounting profession is important to the business. The accounting profession is based on rules, and the general standards that are to be followed by all practicing professional in that field. The standards and norms are what are making the accounting profession readily acceptable by many. The operating functions of the company get their financial information from the accountants and the accounting department. My class needs My class is comprised of students with divergent career aspirations ranging from those who would like to work outside Australia to those who would like to work in the country in the various sectors. The sectors include private, management, or government. Most of my class members want to be outstanding in the accounting profession. Generally, the class members would like to have a career and knowledge on both Australia and other countries. In this age where telecommuting is a reality, it is the desire of all and sundry to understand the accounting standards that are observed in various countries. Based on these needs, the sections that will follow will analyze the two popular accounting professional bodies that are found in Australia. It will look at the requirements and the areas that are strongly covered in these bodies. With the many accounting bodies that are found in Australia, it becomes hard to know which accounting firm is better that one can join in order to get the necessary skills. Certified Practicing Accountants (CPA) This is one of the largest professional memberships in the world. It has managed to produce about 120000 practicing accountants in the world. The body offers their members a chance to continue with their profession. There are mentorship in the program to ensure that the students get the required skills and technical expertise (Kendall, 2006). The CPA program that is offered currently has important aspects of the current world economy. It has the necessary skills today that serve to offer the necessary skills for tomorrow (CPA Australia, 2011). It is more accessible today than ever and offers accounting that is useful for strategic thinkers. It is rigorous and offer integrated education and experience. Though it is a professional certification, it is now recognized in the academic field and one can go on with their academic training even if they start with this professional course. Australia is faced with dynamic issues that come as a result of the financial turbulence in the world. For this reason, CPA has been seen to offer the necessary skills that are required to manage organizations in these turbulent times. Unlike other renowned accounting professional bodies, the CPA body does not fail to have an in-depth analysis of the local financial. The registration process is at par with the current trends of information and communicating technologies (ICT). This is because it has an online registration process which is done online (CPA Australia, 2011). This enables members to register from anywhere without having to travel to the offices to do the registration process. Looking at the needs of the students in my class, most of the students would like to work in Australia. The CPA program has been known to help students and the members to unlock their business potential. It gives the members the required knowledge to understand local and international financial concepts. Institute of Chartered Accountants (ICA) This certification program is fit for those students who would like to take on international accounting more than Australia accounting. Regarding my class, it would not be the better option for most of my class members. Most of them have the desire to work locally. The requirements for the certification are seen to favor those who already have undergraduate diplomas and are looking for advanced qualifications in their accounting career (Chartered Accountants, 2011). Unlike CPA, the qualifications are seen to be competitive as they take people who have a diploma. It does not have the foundation level that act as refresher course for the accounting novices. This option is available in the CPA program. The institute has membership to Global Accounting Alliance (GAA) which gives the students an opportunity to look for employment opportunities in abroad countries (Chartered Accountants, 2011). The ICAA certification is a graduate diploma which is accredited. The good thing of the institute of institute of chartered accounting is the fact that the members are recognized worldwide. It is also an accredited Higher Education provider. The CPA Australia is not. Recommendations Having the comparison of the two, ICAA seems to be more thorough than CPA. Although both of the accounting bodies serve to continue training of the members, ICAA is more geared towards enabling her members to adopt international and integrate with local accounting standards. I would therefore recommend ICA for my class as most of us will be attaining our diplomas and would like to add a feather to our caps. This is provided by the chartered institute. The CPA does not provide avenues for higher education the way ICAA does. Most of my classmates want avenues which would allow them to pursue their higher education and at the same time hone their accounting technical skills. Given this fact, I would recommend that my classmates take ICAA. There are few students from my class who would like to work on their own businesses and I will recommend these few to take on CPA. Conclusion In the end, there are bright accountants who have done CPA and also brilliant ones who have done ICAA. Also, there are students who are dreadful in their accounting professions and yet they have done either CPA or ICAA. After closer analysis, it is the quest for continual of knowledge that matters in the end (Carter, 2007). The CPA program used to provide multiple-choice answers to students. ICAA is known to be rigorous and more drilling. But at the end of the day, it will all boil down to the goal and the dream that someone wants. My advice to my class, ICAA is rigorous and has an international outlook. References Carter, F 2007, Accounting careers: Adding interest to your future! Career FAQs, Victoria, Australia. Chartered Accountants, 2011, The chartered accountants program, retrieved on 28th March 2011 from http://www.icaa.org.au/Chartered-Accountants/The-Chartered-Accountants-Program CPA Australia, 2011, About CPA program, retrieved on 28th March, 2011 from http://www.cpaaustralia.com.au/cps/rde/xchg/cpa-site/hs.xsl/pd-cpa-program-about.html Kendall, R 2006, Accounting (Victoria), Career, FAQsVictoria, Australia, Nobes, C, & Parker, R 2002, Comparative international accounting, Financial Times/Prentice-Hall, California. Read More

 

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