08-12-2007, 04:12 PM
This is a slightly modified version of a post which I made earlier in regards to a query of similar nature.
ACCA will not get practicing status any time soon.
Why?
Disclaimer Please note I am not criticizing the ACCA profession in Pakistan. I am attempting to repeat some facts I have already explained in another post so you can collectively work to develop the profession.
There are simply not enough qualified ACCA's in Pakistan who can have a collective majority to even get considered for practice rights over here.
There is a far, far lower number of fully qualified members of ACCA residing in Pakistan compared to ICAP.
Take the current ACCA member count, by ' ACCA member' I mean FULLY qualified ACCA's,...according to this official ACCA document http//www.accaglobal.com/reputation/performance/ the number of ACCA members in ALL of South Asia is only 551 out of nearly 20000+ students and Affiliates, which is unfortunately, very low...and an even lower amount is admitted to membership annually compared to ICAP.
Deduct from that...
The amount of members who have NOT chosen the local law and tax variant examinations, which were only recently introduced.
The amount of members who have NOT chosen the advanced auditing and taxation exams. Most chose the financial management exam over advanced taxation.
The amount of members who have NOT trained in an audit practice.
Arrive at a ballpark figure. I'd say you'd be left with less than 10 ACCA members in Pakistan who satisfy hypothetical 'practice' requirements, assuming that ACCA is their standalone qualification.
Now, compare that with 3800+ ICAP members.
I would not like to dwell on the reasons for the low member count over and over again but anyway I'd summarize some of them...
1) 21 year olds who have simply passed the examinations start calling themselves 'ACCA Qualified' and end up damaging their profession when they really arent qualified. Then they start suffering a 'complex' that they have no value while being 'qualified' and instead go on trying to collect other degrees or go abroad for greener pastures. This, automatically dilutes the benefits of gaining membership. THe local ACCA body is doing nothing to help this. While ACCA publications boast about the numbers of students in Pakistan, they deliberately ignore mentioning growth in qualified members, since its nothing to boast about!
2) Teachers who have been selectively brainwashing students into gathering as many degrees in the minimum time possible. They have relegated ACCA into simply an interim platform to gain footing for supposedly 'higher' qualifications. In the UK, the case is completely opposite. The choice between CIMA, ACCA, and ICAEW is dictated by your future anticipations, employer needs and of course your personal requirements.
3) Abysmal industry awareness of the ACCA qualification. Its hilarious to see newspaper ads asking for fresh qualified ACA's or ACCA's "with 3.5 years experience", stipulating that the ACCA qualification has no training requirements. I wouldnt blame them however, since ACCA's flexibility allows people to clear the exams before they even start work, while in almost 90% of ICAP cases you have your articleship far in the past by the time you clear the exams.
Regarding the profession in the UK, currently ICAEW has been going somewhat downhill with only 0.3% growth last year, with the ICAS having the highest compounded growth and ACCA following close behind. Last year only about 800 individuals sat the ICAEW final examinations with an 80% pass rate compared to about 55% for ACCA and 45% for CIMA. People are now choosing ACCA over ICAEW because of its more flexible training requirements. In Pakistan these same "flexible" training requirements are the reason ACCA is shunned by people who have gone through ICAP's articleship scheme, especially those who went through the '5 years after BCOM programme' and never managed to qualify. More in the UK who want to commit to an articles based training program are now trying to go for ICAS over ICAEW, because of the notions/perceptions of higher prestige and discipline ICAS sometimes enjoys over the ICAEW.
I will recall an amusing conversation I had once with an England & Wales FCA. I asked about the numbers of ACCA and ICAEW trainees in his past firm. The conversation later moved to trainees from Pakistan. He remarked "Only Pakistani trainees are obsessed about doing ICAEW after ACCA. They appear complexed/confused and want to gather as many qualifications as possible and their sole focus is on remuneration, perhaps its because of impressions in the country, since ICAEW is not as accessible in Pakistan compared to ACCA. We dont complain however. Having already gained ACCA Affiliate status we get a trainee who is far more competent than an ordinary graduate! Infact, I have seen some of your ICAP ACA's who are willing to start afresh as entry level trainee just to secure the ICAEW qualification after ICAEW allowed more exemptions for ICAP"
Work hard for your profession. Prove your worth with elegance and dignity. Trust me on this. Theres nothing stopping you if you work hard.
ACCA will not get practicing status any time soon.
Why?
Disclaimer Please note I am not criticizing the ACCA profession in Pakistan. I am attempting to repeat some facts I have already explained in another post so you can collectively work to develop the profession.
There are simply not enough qualified ACCA's in Pakistan who can have a collective majority to even get considered for practice rights over here.
There is a far, far lower number of fully qualified members of ACCA residing in Pakistan compared to ICAP.
Take the current ACCA member count, by ' ACCA member' I mean FULLY qualified ACCA's,...according to this official ACCA document http//www.accaglobal.com/reputation/performance/ the number of ACCA members in ALL of South Asia is only 551 out of nearly 20000+ students and Affiliates, which is unfortunately, very low...and an even lower amount is admitted to membership annually compared to ICAP.
Deduct from that...
The amount of members who have NOT chosen the local law and tax variant examinations, which were only recently introduced.
The amount of members who have NOT chosen the advanced auditing and taxation exams. Most chose the financial management exam over advanced taxation.
The amount of members who have NOT trained in an audit practice.
Arrive at a ballpark figure. I'd say you'd be left with less than 10 ACCA members in Pakistan who satisfy hypothetical 'practice' requirements, assuming that ACCA is their standalone qualification.
Now, compare that with 3800+ ICAP members.
I would not like to dwell on the reasons for the low member count over and over again but anyway I'd summarize some of them...
1) 21 year olds who have simply passed the examinations start calling themselves 'ACCA Qualified' and end up damaging their profession when they really arent qualified. Then they start suffering a 'complex' that they have no value while being 'qualified' and instead go on trying to collect other degrees or go abroad for greener pastures. This, automatically dilutes the benefits of gaining membership. THe local ACCA body is doing nothing to help this. While ACCA publications boast about the numbers of students in Pakistan, they deliberately ignore mentioning growth in qualified members, since its nothing to boast about!
2) Teachers who have been selectively brainwashing students into gathering as many degrees in the minimum time possible. They have relegated ACCA into simply an interim platform to gain footing for supposedly 'higher' qualifications. In the UK, the case is completely opposite. The choice between CIMA, ACCA, and ICAEW is dictated by your future anticipations, employer needs and of course your personal requirements.
3) Abysmal industry awareness of the ACCA qualification. Its hilarious to see newspaper ads asking for fresh qualified ACA's or ACCA's "with 3.5 years experience", stipulating that the ACCA qualification has no training requirements. I wouldnt blame them however, since ACCA's flexibility allows people to clear the exams before they even start work, while in almost 90% of ICAP cases you have your articleship far in the past by the time you clear the exams.
Regarding the profession in the UK, currently ICAEW has been going somewhat downhill with only 0.3% growth last year, with the ICAS having the highest compounded growth and ACCA following close behind. Last year only about 800 individuals sat the ICAEW final examinations with an 80% pass rate compared to about 55% for ACCA and 45% for CIMA. People are now choosing ACCA over ICAEW because of its more flexible training requirements. In Pakistan these same "flexible" training requirements are the reason ACCA is shunned by people who have gone through ICAP's articleship scheme, especially those who went through the '5 years after BCOM programme' and never managed to qualify. More in the UK who want to commit to an articles based training program are now trying to go for ICAS over ICAEW, because of the notions/perceptions of higher prestige and discipline ICAS sometimes enjoys over the ICAEW.
I will recall an amusing conversation I had once with an England & Wales FCA. I asked about the numbers of ACCA and ICAEW trainees in his past firm. The conversation later moved to trainees from Pakistan. He remarked "Only Pakistani trainees are obsessed about doing ICAEW after ACCA. They appear complexed/confused and want to gather as many qualifications as possible and their sole focus is on remuneration, perhaps its because of impressions in the country, since ICAEW is not as accessible in Pakistan compared to ACCA. We dont complain however. Having already gained ACCA Affiliate status we get a trainee who is far more competent than an ordinary graduate! Infact, I have seen some of your ICAP ACA's who are willing to start afresh as entry level trainee just to secure the ICAEW qualification after ICAEW allowed more exemptions for ICAP"
Work hard for your profession. Prove your worth with elegance and dignity. Trust me on this. Theres nothing stopping you if you work hard.
