Add-ing value to CA course

The proposed changes in the chartered accountancy curriculum will entail a shorter training schedule geared to meet the changing needs of industry, writes Vibha Sharma

FROM next year onwards, joining the lucrative profession of chartered accountants will take lesser time as the Institute of Chartered Accountants of India (ICAI) is in the process of forwarding recommendations for emerging in the curriculum to suit the changing needs of industry and the economy to the Ministry of Company Affairs.

The ICAI Secretary, Ashok Haldia, says the changes require the government’s stamp of approval and hopefully a smarter and more focussed curriculum should be in place by mid-2006.

While the recommendations for the makeover have already been drafted for being forwarded to the Centre by the ICAI Committee for Review of Education and Training, constituted in December 2003, the ICAI is now in the process of devising institutional changes that will become necessary when some subjects are changed and new ones added.

The changes, as per Dr Haldia, have been made keeping in mind national and global requirements and after a complete review of the current curriculum and inputs from students, ICAI members, stakeholders etc. " The focus will now be on strategic financial management subjects, information technology, case studies, global developments in accounting etc," he says.

"It has always been a part of the ICAI’s policy to regularly update the syllabi, the scheme of education and training of CA students to be in sync with international education trends and the government, business and societal demands," stresses Dr Haldia.

The ICAI, a statutory body established under the Chartered Accountants Act, 1949, for the regulation of the profession of chartered accountancy in India, has more than 1,30,000 members. Every year 5,000 to 7,000 persons join the profession. The last time the ICAI had made changes in the curriculum was about five years back.

“The new curriculum will be in concurrence with the emerging needs of the national and the global economy. The idea is to mould CAs into IT-savvy, globally-tuned professionals.” — Ashok Haldia, Secretary of ICAI

The existing scheme of education and training includes the Professional Education-I (PE-I), which is the foundation course for a minimum duration of 10 months. After doing PE-I or after graduation, students can enroll for the 10-month PE-II course.

After passing PE-II , students have to undergo the article training-cum-final course for three years. The total duration of the entire course after which an aspiring student becomes a professional CA is about five years and three months.

A major change that will take place when the new curriculum comes into force is that the duration of the course will be reduced from the present nearly five-and-a-half years to four years, making it shorter and more focussed.

However, as per Dr Haldia, all changes will be made without affecting the training needs of the profession. " The new curriculum will be in concurrence with the emerging needs of the national and the global economy. The idea is to mould CAs into IT- savvy, globally-tuned professionals," he says.

Another important change is that students will be able to register for the Common Proficiency Test (CPT) at any time after passing Class X and they can prepare for the CPT while doing plus two. "The CPT examination can be taken after the completion of Class XII, without waiting for results," says Dr Haldia.

The syllabus for the CPT, a single objective-type question paper of 200 marks, will cover accountancy, mercantile law, quantitative techniques and general aptitude. It will be held once every three months throughout the country and initially will be on traditional mode. It will later be made online.

Those who have passed the Class XII examination and CPT students can register for practical training of three-and-a-half-year duration. They can appear for the Professional Competence Examination (PCE) on the completion of 18 months of practical training.

An important part of the new scheme is that the students should complete 100 hours of compulsory computer training during these 18 months. "They can appear for the final examination after three-and-a-half years and passing the PCE," adds Dr Haldia.

And they can complete Restructured General Management and Communications Skills (GMCS) after 18 months of practical training.

The first and foremost advantage of the new curriculum is that the time required for becoming a CA after passing Class XII will be reduced to four years. "There will be a blend of theoretical education and practical training. 250 hours of the CCT will be reduced to 100 hours of IT training and the GMCS can be completed even during the articleship training," says Dr Haldia.

Besides this, with periodical CPTs, including those conducted online, the ICAI now hopes to attract the cr`E8me de la cr`E8me among students.

The new curriculum, says Dr Haldia, is expected to commence by mid-June, but it will be ensured that the transition is smooth for those studying to be CAs under the present scheme.

Students, who are doing the PE-1 course at the time of the commencement of the new education scheme, can qualify in the CPT and thereafter register for articleship. And those who are doing the PE-II course at the time of commencement of the new scheme can register for articleship in case they have already passed PE-I or the CPT.