what the primary difference is between the UK and US certification model.
It is interesting to note that this same difference is also reflective of the general educational ideology of both countries, and pours into the business and corporate culture. That said, it is safe to say that public accounting certifications in both countries, the Chartered Accountancy (ACA) licensed by the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales (ICAEW) in the UK and the Certified Public Accountant (CPA), licensed by the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants (AICPA) in the US, follow a rather similar pattern. They start with pretty basic level papers and work their way upto technical financial accounting with the ultimate goal of preparing you for conducting audits, and work experience is a requirement before you can even sit for some of the papers.
However, when it comes to management accounting certifications for industry, there is a massive difference in the way the two countries market and manage the qualifications. In the UK, CIMA, ACCA, AAT etc. are all guaged toward accounting and non accounting college majors / graduates alike. They start with the basic, classic, outdated financial and cost accounting concepts, and work their way up to fancy financial and management reporting. The early papers are a waste of time for students who are accounting majors in university, the these certifications don’t give it any value. There are no experience or educational requirements before you can sit for the exam. The exams are driven to help you memorize concepts, rather than understand and apply them. The study material is not very practical in approach, and as a whole, the quality of business relevant financial education you get from these certifications in the UK may not really be that good. However, they are still considered vital to the stamped-paper, bureaucratically obsessed, paper-pushing UK market.
In the US, however, the standard is different. Take the Institute of Management Accountants, for instance. They offer to Financial Management Certifications: the Certified Management Accountant (CMA) and the Certified Financial Manager (CFM). Both Certifications require accounting degrees (like the CPA) or several years of experience in the accounting industry. The reason: Management Accounting Certifications are not geared toward non-accounting majors. The content is technical, and the idea is to further train accountants help enhance their knowledge and application of management accounting concepts and financial accounting regulations. With that in mind, the IMA does not flood you with waste of time, silly, O’Level based accounting papers that discuss the basics of debits and credits. For both Certifications, the IMA has a total of 6 papers you need to pass. However, and this is where the primary difference flows through into corporate America, you need 78% to pass IMA exams, whereas you need only 50% to pass CIMA papers? Why? Well, it would seem like CIMA is just trying to churn out accountants; people who can do the basics of accounting. IMA, on the other hand, is aiming for financial managers: accountants who understand the ramifications of various financial and management accounting principles.
I, personally, have been disappointed with the content of CIMA in the UK. You walk away with very little, and the education is highly impractical for business purposes. IMA, on the other hand, focused on know what you did well, and the exams were based more on your understanding and application of concepts, rules, and regulations rather than committing concepts and definitions to memory. I would say the IMA definitely offers better knowledge in less time and challenges you more to succeed while providing more practical and corporate education. CIMA content desperately needs an overhaul given the state of the business world in the 21st century.