Evaluating the difficulty level of CIMA exams
Individuals thinking about accounting will come across institutions offering credentials like Chartered Investment and Management Accountant (CIMA). It is associated with a business-oriented career that helps one prepare for several strategic and future leadership roles. To earn this certification one needs to pass 2 levels of exams, but some of these exams may be exempted depending on degrees held by candidates. This includes management accounting, financial, and business strategy. But are we trying to understand how difficult it is to get a CIMA certification here?
Why passing a CIMA examination is difficult?
Different candidates with different qualifications and criteria will attempt the CIMA exam where the level of difficulty may vary depending on the following factors such as:
· Very little to no knowledge about management accounting and investment.
· The methods chosen to study might not be right
· The speed chosen to pass all examinations may be rigorous
· The level of commitment one has chosen to pass these exams
· One’s support network (colleagues, family, peers, friends, employers).
How to measure the difficulty level of the CIMA exam?
This section is subjective, but we will make every effort to evaluate the situation analytically and objectively.
CIMA exam syllabus
CIMA exam offers to specialize in investment and management accounting that powers an individual to professional attractiveness for CXOs and boards of companies that address opportunities, challenges, and impacting value for stakeholders, investors, and customers at the same time for USD 250 (CIMA exam fee). CIMA examination offering such combination power with a vast syllabus to cover level 1 and level 2 exam each given 240 minutes to answer 150 questions in each level is not everybody’s cup of tea.
Passing percentage of CIMA exams
One of the major criteria to pass CIMA examinations are passing rates. These rates are completely dynamic and vary across batches. These percentages are not shared with candidates and we can assume them to range somewhere between 45 percent to 85 percent. In addition, the quality of candidates in the two levels one about general understanding of management accounting and investment concepts, and the other about candidates’ ability to apply knowledge and understanding is also quite different. Henceforth, one can use the passing percentage as a measure to estimate the complexity of CIMA exams.
To conclude ‒ is CIMA examination complex and hard?
It requires a lot of dedication, concentration, and hard work to pass such examinations that in the end will give fruitful results for a candidate’s career pathway. Overall, the CIMA exam is so extensive that it can be expected to take a lot of time and effort to pass both the examination levels. At the same time, it is feasible if one can take the time to prepare each part step by step and succeed in one go. Candidates need to make sure that they:
· Take one exam at a time and focus intensely on every topic instead of rushing to complete all two levels within a rigid time frame.
· Rely on other sources of information apart from textbooks such as online lectures from reliable sources, journals, and articles to have a blended approach to learning.
· Be an active learner and recall regular sessions that are extremely important such as skimming over chapters to have a rough idea about the concepts learned or trying to recall main points learned from a YouTube tutorial and so on.
