CHARTERED ACCOUNTANT COURSE

In India, CA is one the most respectful designation and therefore to earn that respect one has to work really hard to complete this course. The number of CAs in India is just over 2 lakh and the gap in between the demand and supply of CAs makes this degree invaluable.

CAs are, with no doubt, one of the highest earning individuals in the society and earning of CA depends heavily on his experience. In India, CA course can be pursued from the Institute of Chartered Accountants of India. The course has 3 levels of examination and takes at least 4.5 years to complete. The 3 stages of the course are:

·         Common Proficiency Test( CA-CPT )

·         Integrated Professional Course ( CA-IPC )

·         Final ( CA-Final )

The course also involves a 3 year training known as Articleship. A student must clear his 1 group of CA-IPC exams before being eligible to start Articleship. A minimum of 2.5 years of articleship completion is necessary to appear for CA-Final exams. Articleship from a good firm ensures that a student has brighter future and better future prospects.

CA course can be pursued by a student of commerce or science right after his class 12^th exams. The entrance exam for the course is held in the month of June and December, each year. The exams for the latter 2 levels are held in the month of May and November, each year.

A commerce graduate student with more than 60% marks need not appear for the entrance exam as they can get registered with the course, without appearing for it, via the Direct Entry Scheme. However, they must complete 9 months of articleship period before appearing for CA-IPC exams. The Direct Entry Scheme is also applicable for post graduate students but the minimum marks required is only 50% for them

Students preparing to join the course must be hard working as the course requires a lot of hard work and is considered to be the toughest course not only in India but throughout the world. With that being said, the course also offers great futures prospects and respect.

When shall we apply?

Rules of ICAI  on articleship clearly states that a candidate must clear his or her IPCC group 1 examination along with 100 hours of ITT and 35 hours of Orientation. A student having completed all the three can pursue articleship. A student who has his result awaiting cannot start articleship.

As the rules state, a student can apply only if the above conditions are satisfied by the student. Student should prefer to start articleship after completion of both groups of articleship because maximum of the good firm do not want articles who have their exams pending. Reason is simple; a firm does not want to give leaves to its article. Moreover it has been the trend of Big4 firms that they do not entertain group-1 pass students (exception to this situation are there).

A very frequently said line of a student is "koi reference hai?" There are many cases where students have no reference or in simple words "jugaad." A student should start building up references as soon as he clears CA-CPT. Start building network of professional people and use social networking sites to your advantage. More the references you have more the chance of entering good firm.

Student should make a proper CV or resume. Your resume reflects you therefore you should ensure you have not copied it and have made it on your own. You should enter only those points which justify you and your personality. Keep it simple and do not overstate yourself as the interviewer would come to know once you start talking with them. Students can drop the resume in the firm's office or can simply submit it online on the firm's website.

HOW TO REACH BIG4?

As we all know reaching Big4 is a dream for any articles as it gives a jump start to your career. The million dollar question is "how to reach Big4?"

First of all you need to understand that Big4 needs you more, than you want it. It might sound funny but this the truth of the industry. The problem lies in the fact that there are too much competition. "How to outclass the competitor?"

It is very obvious that you have got to be a gem if you want to be there. Big4 do not need book worms, they need quality. Marks are not the lone thing which will take you to any of the Big4 but it is the combination of Intelligence, Communication Skills, Good Personality, Confidence and Quick Responsiveness. A student possessing all of the above has very bright chances of entering Big4.

Out of the above list Intelligence is the most important aspect to focus on, as in the end how much you use your brain will matter. Aspirants should brush up their English as communication skills also matters. A candidate should develop a habit of speaking in flow and not fumble while talking; this shows that the candidate has confidence. Your personality also matter big time, dull personality are easy to identify and are thrown away first.

Reference is another way to enter the Big4. Although it is said that it is necessary to have a reference, but the saying is not true. There many instances where a student has got in Big4 without reference. A good/strong reference can make your way easy and you can reach Big4 even without possessing all the qualities. But there are exception to this fact too, some firms do not accept references and the candidate has to go through all the rounds and interviews even he has any sort of approach.

Why Articleship?

Many students of the CA course think of completing multiple courses at the same time and hence earning more degrees in lesser time.One way to do it by skipping the 3 year training and devote the time of articleship in attending tuition for the CA and other courses.This approach of completing CA course seems lucrative but is it a good option? the answer is NO!

Completing CA by way of dummy articleship is like body without soul. By this way you can attain the degree of a CA but when you will apply for a job in a firm u will be the first person to screened out.If you are thinking of doing articleship by the way of dummy then my friend reiterate your plan.Dummy articleship is just not the option. By this way of articleship you will not gain any working knowledge hence the industry will hesitate from accepting you. ICAI has clearly mentioned that if a dummy article comes to the notice of the Institute , the Institute will cancel the registration of the student and will also take action against the CA firm.

My opinion would be that if you really want to pursue CA by dummy then its better that you drop the idea of doing CA and better concentrate on other courses. By doing articleship you get to know about the working of the CA industry and the work which you will be doing after completion of  course. Its a golden chance to know about the industry you are entering and work in it. It's  your career is like a clay and it is upto how you shape it and what you make of it.

If you really want to pursue any other course or want to specialize in a specific field then you must wait for completion of the course or if you can manage then , pursue articleship and the other course but do not put your career at risk just to save time and skipping the training part of the course.friends remember never skip articleship and encourage others also for the same.

What is Articleship?

                                                               

The first ever question when you hear the word Articleship is "What is Articleship?" frankly speaking i was also like the most of the student who gave their CA-CPT without knowing what all is their in this course.Here's the solution to all your queries.

Learn more about CA course : CA course

Articleship is the most important phase of your CA course.It is 3 year training which a student has to go through to complete the course.There is no escaping as the Institute has made it clear that the it is must for a student to undergo training.From the students point of view , articleship is very important as by devoting hard work in it can be very fruitful for the future.Instead of headache it is more of an opportunity.So, instead of skipping(by doing dummy articleship) the 3 year training, just to complete another course, your emphasis should be on doing articleship by yourself.

Articleship can be pursued by a student who has cleared CA-IPCC group-1 examination, along with this completion of IT training and Orientation is also a must.Student should prefer to first complete both the groups of CA-IPCC and then move forward to start the 3 year training.One also must see that during training he associate himself with good firms not any ordinary firm as this hampers your future and your hard work may go in vein.

Articleship is a wonderful opportunity for a student learn and earn simultaneously.It gives you the chance to work under the best professional of the industry.Coming to the part of stipend, your stipend depends on the firm you choose to offer your services. better the firm, more will be the stipend (there are exception to this fact).You must ensure that you are applying for articleship in a good firm instead of giving up to the demand of your parents and landing in a firm where the quality of the work is average or poor.Do not shy away from working hard as you are working for a bright future.

Completion of articleship is a must to be eligible to appear for CA-FINAL. Although articleship is of 3 years but a student can appear for his exams after completion of 2.5 years of his articleship, which means you can become a CA even before completion of your articleship.More prominence should be given to the articleship than any other phase of the course.