Innovation drives the continued success of ACCA exams

The Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (ACCA) has reported that 125,000 students around the world entered its latest exam sitting held in June, in which almost 160,000 exams were taken and 4,923 students completed their final exams to become ACCA affiliates.

Innovation drives the continued success of ACCA exams

A further 56,700 exams were taken on demand between 1 April and 30 June 2019.

Globally, enrolment for computer-based exams (CBEs) has especially grown, as almost 100 per cant of session-based exams at Applied Skills are by CBE with ACCA having delivered on its ambition to withdraw paper-based exams at this level.



Commenting on the latest exam results, Alan Hatfield, ACCA executive director strategy and development said: “The results from the June 2019 session were very consistent for computer-based exams (CBE), demonstrating that the great learning support we have in place is working. All countries where CBE is possible are now taking exams through this mode of delivery, with the exception of some tax and law variant exams. Malaysia and African countries have been amongst the most recent markets to have paper withdrawn. Through these CBEs, ACCA is better preparing students to be effective in the workplace. The exams require demonstration of the skills employers expect, as they replicate the real workplace using spreadsheet and word processing skills, as well as testing technical skills.

“Innovation drives the success of the ACCA Qualification, and we have used pioneering approaches for our exams by introducing on-demand CBEs as early as 1998, making ACCA the first professional body to offer this flexible option for its students. Subsequently, we introduced innovative multi-task questions to the on-demand exams. We then introduced unique session based CBEs in 2016, available four times a year, fully using word processing and spreadsheet tools. We look forward to introducing our innovative digital desktop CBEs for Strategic Professional exams next year.”

CBEs now include tax variants in China, Czech Republic, Hungary, Malaysia, Singapore as well as UK. The law variant was available in CBE in Malaysia and Singapore for the first time. The remaining tax and law variants will become CBE over the next 12 months.

“We were also pleased with the pass rates for Strategic Professional exams,” Alan Hatfield continued.”Results for Strategic Business Leader reached 51% this session and Strategic Business Reporting remains in line with previous sessions at 48 per cent. Introduced in September 2018, these two exams have been designed to meet the needs of employers and better equip students to be professional accountants of the future, with both having a strong focus on professional skills and meeting the needs of stakeholders.”

The latest developments to the ACCA Qualification recently saw the launch of the ACCA Advanced Diploma in Finance & Business (Russian) in June 2019, with the first exams scheduled to take place in December 2019.

The ACCA Advanced Diploma in Finance & Business (Russian) is a suite of exams aligned to the Applied Skills exams of the ACCA Qualification, available in the Russian language, as well as training in ethics. It is available to people who are based in Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Estonia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Georgia, Republic of Moldova, Russian Federation, Tajikistan, Ukraine and Uzbekistan. On successful completion of the ACCA Advanced Diploma in Finance & Business (Russian), students are able to progress to the Strategic Professional level of the ACCA Qualification which, combined with relevant experience and ethical and professional skills training, will lead to ACCA membership.

Mr Hatfield added: “Our qualification connects students to the world of work, in whatever sector they choose. That’s because it rigorously tests the skills, abilities and competencies a modern day accountant needs, preparing people for a rewarding career as a qualified and ethical finance professional. Our students continue to make great strides in achieving their career goals, progressing along the pathway to making a valuable contribution to society and economic sustainability around the world.”

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