Alumnus conquered CIMA A-Star Programme

2018-19 CIMA President Steven Swientozielskyj FCMA, CGMA (left) presenting the certificate to Young

Bachelor of Accounting (Hons) student Young Teng Wai conquered the prestigious CIMA A-Star Programme, an examination, which he sat for in November 2018.

“I did not know about the programme earlier. I pursued my career as a tax professional since many, including me, used to think that the career path for accounting will be in the audit and tax service line. However, I found this programme to be an opportunity for me to discover other areas of accountancy in the commercial world,” said Young.

The A-Star Programme aimed to provide high achievers with a fast track programme to a global designation - Chartered Global Management Accountant (CGMA). The CIMA A-Star Programme was launched by the Chartered Institute of Management Accountants (CIMA). It is a unique ONE exam pathway to a global community of CGMAs. It is also a direct entry route into the Strategic Case Study (SCS) examination. University students and alumni are eligible to take the examination with certain requirements that include CGPA of 3.5 and above.

“It was indeed challenging with only two months of preparation given. I had to think and act as if I was the senior financial manager of the company. The situation, during the exam, was designed as if I was really inside an office and I was required to respond to the issues using a computer,” he said. The examination required one to score more than 80 marks over the total 150 marks to pass as well as getting at least ‘moderate’ for five important areas of skills of a CFO/CEO/Finance Director.

Justifying his choice for taking up the examination, he said, “The technology is getting more advanced and routine works are gradually being replaced by advanced technologies. Therefore, it is vital for us to make ourselves indispensable. CIMA is an added value for my future career because the rapidly changing business models will change how we perform our tasks today. Although I am currently in the tax service line, applying both CIMA and tax knowledge can ultimately assist the business to grow profitably (internal) and sustainably in the tax regime (external). Therefore, in my opinion, CIMA is worth a try as you get to see whether you are ready for the dynamic world or not.”

Offering some tips to prepare for the examination, he said that there is no standard answer and that it all depends on relevancy and logic. “Think and act like a professional. As a leader, how would you communicate with your subordinates? As the company representative, how would you react to stakeholders’ claims? This will show that you have the necessary skills to undertake the job professionally as expected from your employers,” he added.