Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales (ICAEW)

To qualify as an ICAEW Chartered Accountant students are required to complete:

• 15 examinations
• 450 days of technical work experience, which you gain by obtaining a training contract with an appropriate employer
• Professional development (delivered through ICAEW or your employer)
• Ethics and professional scepticism programme (delivered through ICAEW)

The ACA Qualification comprises three examination levels Certificate, Professional and Advanced.

Certificate Level (Certificate in Finance, Accounting and Business, or CFAB)

CFAB is the entry qualification for ACA. Students are able to obtain exemptions from all six CFAB modules by studying our innovative, internally assessed Cert HE (Professional Accounting). Under this scheme, students study six modules between Sept-June. Details can be found in our Professional Accounting course information brochure.

Please contact Rebecca Wright for further information.

Professional Level

• Audit and Assurance
• Tax Compliance
• Financial Accounting and Reporting
• Financial Management
• Business Planning: Taxation
• Business Strategy and Technology

Advanced Level

• Corporate Reporting
• Strategic Business Management
• Case Study

At the Advanced Level students are required to study a number of technical areas, which are then examined together in the Corporate Reporting and Strategic Business Management papers. These papers aim to simulate real-life business and accounting practice environments, and the concept is taken further with a final case study examination.

How you will study (Professional and Advanced Level)

Professional and Advanced level papers will generally be taught for one day per week, with a block revision period at the end of each paper. Under our blended learning approach, students are not required to attend campus each week. See more details under the Teaching heading below.

Professional and Advanced level papers will generally be taught for one day per week, with a block revision period at the end of each paper.

Typical tuition lengths:
Professional Level papers 6-11 weeks plus revision block
Advanced Level 14 weeks plus revision block

Knowledge is built up and exam question practice is undertaken week on week. Students build skills gradually and sustainably and are not absent from their workplace for long periods of time (which is particularly important for smaller accounting practices)

Our Professional Accounting and Finance course information brochure provides further details on part-time fees, timetables and the next available entry points.

Our blended delivery model includes a mix of classroom-based tuition plus interactive online elements, with students only required to attend face to face classes in periodic weeks. Our online tuition includes bespoke, bite-sized pre-recorded lectures & tutorials, weekly timetabled live virtual classrooms, discussion boards and 121 pastoral and subject tutor technical support delivered via email, telephone or video call where required, in addition to face to face meetings. All face to face classes will also be broadcast live and recorded to suit students studying at distance. Our blended delivery gives students flexibility in accessing resources at a time thats right for them, in line with their needs, learning styles and preferences.

To learn more about this style of study we'd advise reading an article written by course leader Rebecca Wright on studying a professional accountancy qualification during a pandemic.

Professional Level: 
Modules are assessed by computer based exams. Each exam is two-and-a-half hours long, with the exception of the Financial Accounting and Reporting paper which is assessed by a three-hour exam.

Advanced Level:
Consists of two technical integration papers and a case study:

• Technical integration papers are three-and-a-half hours long
• Case study will be four hours long

The most popular entry route to the qualification is a good undergraduate honours degree (1st or 2:1), but entry is also available to people with no qualifications, A-level school leavers, AAT graduates, apprentices, and members of other Chartered bodies. Trainees are ultimately required to enter a training contract with an approved employer.

Completion of the AAT qualification gives exemption from up to 5 of the ACA exams.

You must apply for student membership and exemptions (where applicable) with ICAEW before joining the course. Visit www.icaew.com for more information.

Please note that whilst this course does not require a DBS Check for entry, some professions will not consider candidates who have certain types of criminal convictions.    Therefore, if you have a criminal conviction and you are considering a particular career path we would recommend that you check with the relevant professional body or refer to their recruitment policy to make sure that your conviction will not disadvantage you.

ACA students enjoy early responsibility and excellent career progression. Many ACA students double their salary during training. Salaries for newly qualified ICAEW Chartered Accountants are on a par with careers in law and banking and many become partners or financial directors early in their careers, leading to a greater variety of opportunities.

ICAEW Chartered Accountants work at the highest levels of some of the worlds largest organisations; 80% of UK FTSE 100 companies have an ICAEW Chartered Accountant on their board.