ACA or ACCA?

scoot on

loadabollocks wrote:

the dividend stuff in the CT question really threw me. didnt know where to put any of it! and the single assessment in IT wtf! hasnt happened in years! where was the tough partnerships question that i spent ages practicing and eventually had them down!
as regards to the theory -- farm avergaing wtf! i studied sub-contractors, revenue adit, PSWT, employees, badges of trade cos every other year you are GUARANTEED to get ONE of them! but no not this year.

so so disappointed i was really confident going into this. depressing.

The CT question was horrible. I mean you always get your straight forward workings like motor leases etc that you'll pick up marks in and there was none of those! The dividends thing threw me aswell, didn't have a clue what I was doing!

The capital gains questions was a pain too. That and CT were the two I was most confident about and they were both awful.

I was the same as you, confident going into it. I'd done enough work to pass... or so I thought! Have 2.6 now on Tuesday and can't get myself motivated for it at all!

scoot on

hivizman wrote:

In Australia, the Institute of Chartered Accountants in Australia (ICAA) is the body that assesses the qualification status of accountants for immigration purposes. The Institute of Chartered Accountants in Ireland (ICAI) is an Approved Overseas Accounting Body, and ACAs can apply for membership of ICAA by doing some additional 'bridging studies' in Australian Tax and Company Law. ACCA is only a partially recognised overseas accounting body, and it is necessary to study Australian Tax and Company Law formally at an Australian university to be able to apply for membership of ICAA. So ACCA certainly has lower status for getting a visa to emigrate to Australia. The ex-supervisor probably qualified as a family member of an Australian citizen rather than for her accountancy qualification.

See http://www.charteredaccountants.com.au/A117138529 for details.

But she's not a family member.
They're going out but aren't married.

Anyway, not that it matters to me. I won't be going anytime soon.

loadabollocks

scoot on wrote:

Have 2.6 now on Tuesday and can't get myself motivated for it at all!

I have 2.4 on Wednesday...2nd time lucky hopefully...so much in it though. i can't get my head around all that absorption costing with mix and yield variances blah di blah. two days to go and not feeling confident tbh.

scoot on

loadabollocks wrote:

I have 2.4 on Wednesday...2nd time lucky hopefully...so much in it though. i can't get my head around all that absorption costing with mix and yield variances blah di blah. two days to go and not feeling confident tbh.

2.4 is a horrible paper. I've always hated management accounting. I did a good bit of the stuff in 2.4 in college and was still lost when it came to studying for it. I hope you pass it now, it's a right pain with the new course coming in in December. I won't fancy sitting the new tax paper.

I'm really under pressure with 2.6 aswell. Spent so much time on 2.3 that I left 2.6 go untouched. Trying to play catch up now but it's not working. The sun doesn't help matters!

loadabollocks

scoot on wrote:

2.4 is a horrible paper. I've always hated management accounting. I did a good bit of the stuff in 2.4 in college and was still lost when it came to studying for it. I hope you pass it now, it's a right pain with the new course coming in in December. I won't fancy sitting the new tax paper.

I'm really under pressure with 2.6 aswell. Spent so much time on 2.3 that I left 2.6 go untouched. Trying to play catch up now but it's not working. The sun doesn't help matters!

the sun is a killer! the key is to sit away from the windows and pretend its raining outside. yeah i hope the exam gods will look favourably on me for the effort ive put in but im struggling with this material. its so boring and quite complicated i find.
anyway good luck with 2.6. hope it goes well.

scoot on

loadabollocks wrote:

the sun is a killer! the key is to sit away from the windows and pretend its raining outside. yeah i hope the exam gods will look favourably on me for the effort ive put in but im struggling with this material. its so boring and quite complicated i find.
anyway good luck with 2.6. hope it goes well.

Hopefully if a lot of other people found 2.3 very hard the marking will go in our favour!

Anyway, good look on wed... it'll be all over soon enough and we'll be able to enjoy the rest of the summer

tallaghtoutlaws

Comparing the two is like comparing Coke and Pepsi. Some like Coke Some like Pepsi.

Someone pointed out that unless you have actually sat both sides would you actually know the difference and this would be the truth.

ACA = Geared towards practiced
ACCA = Geared towards industry.

Look each to their own. Who cares if one is better everyone has there opinion.

kluivert

Newaglish wrote:

3) CPA isn't very good

Not true.

smcgiff

kluivert wrote:

Not true.

Does your PC show Smilie faces, Kluivert?

BTW, All ACCA's paper's have elements of consolidation, even the starter paper. With that said there's a huge difference between the 1st and 2nd stage ACCA accounting papers, and very little between 2nd and 3rd.

And just to depress ye more, if ye think 2.4 is bad avoid the 3.7 equivalent in the new syllabus!

djdeclan

Right folks, i think i can give a balanced view on this as ive sat exams for both ACCA and ACA.
1) ACCA exams are harder, no ifs buts ands or maybes FACT
2) the reason big firms want trainees to do ACA is because they can tie you into a contract for 3 or 3.5 years. Its cheap labour. Its also a snob thing. after all its the queens charter for ACA
3) The reason for the higher pass rates in ACA is threefold; More time off to study, easier exams and the fact that you can compensate for getting below the pass mark with surplus marks in another subject passed at the same sitting....you cant do that with ACCA.

All this about people doing ACA being brighter or more intelligent is horse manure.

smcgiff

Djdeclan, If I were a priest I'd be giving you the last rites right about now!

djdeclan

im halfway through the prof threes at the min....reckon i could do with the last rites!!

Newaglish

djdeclan wrote:

The reason for the higher pass rates in ACA... the fact that you can compensate for getting below the pass mark with surplus marks in another subject passed at the same sitting....you cant do that with ACCA.

Yes, you can compensate for getting below 50% in ACA, down to a minimum of 40%.

The pass rate in ACCA is 40%. Anyone see a hole in your logic?

Also, you haven't actually finished the ACA exams, so how the hell can you think they're easier? Or do you do FAE level papers in your spare time?

Take your "horse manure" somewhere else, thanks.

chump

djdeclan wrote:

Right folks, i think i can give a balanced view on this as ive sat exams for both ACCA and ACA.
1) ACCA exams are harder, no ifs buts ands or maybes FACT
2) the reason big firms want trainees to do ACA is because they can tie you into a contract for 3 or 3.5 years. Its cheap labour. Its also a snob thing. after all its the queens charter for ACA
3) The reason for the higher pass rates in ACA is threefold; More time off to study, easier exams and the fact that you can compensate for getting below the pass mark with surplus marks in another subject passed at the same sitting....you cant do that with ACCA.

All this about people doing ACA being brighter or more intelligent is horse manure.

Are you comparing like with like - surely if you could do with the last rites for your prof3 right about now you haven't sat similar papers at ACCA level? Therefore you're not exactly comparing like with like.

And the thing about being brighter is a broader statement - in that you need good results to get into the big4 - therefore good students - therefore used to passing.
Just because you do ACA doesn't mean you're bright - but it must be agreed that per 100 students, ACA has greater numbers who excelled in their uni courses and are 'cream of the crop' for their graduation year. No?

By the way I don't for a minute think I am 'cream of the crop' or anything such - I'd stuggle with acca or aca but you can't dismiss the reality.

smcgiff

Newaglish wrote:

The pass rate in ACCA is 40%. Anyone see a hole in your logic?

It's 50% - Looks like there's a lot of misunderstanding about the other bodies in general.

djdeclan

ill leave the manure right here newaglish, where it belongs. As the poster above me stated the pass mark in acca is 50%..did you not think i would know that seeing as ive actually sat the exams?
And in order to pass an acca exam you have to do just that - PASS IT, no compensation..I failed an ACCA exam by 3% and i know plenty who've failed by less and in my opinion its proper order that we failed,we couldnt get half the available marks so we didnt deserve to progress.
There are no holes in my logic, someone earlier stated that in order to determine whether either of the exams were more difficult to pass you would need to have experienced both sides, I have.
Chump: the thing about the last rights was just a joke, or at least thats how i intended it, i actually have sat acca level three papers (they've changed the names of the papers now but the level three papers were the final level) which were somewhat more advanced than prof three, however at the time i was studying full time, somewhat like college. I did tax and audit for acca and im doing the same subjects for prof three now..so in fairness i am comparing somewhat like with like.
Unfortunately I sat acca tax a couple of years ago (cant remember much of it) so Ive a lot of studying to do this evening.

Newaglish

djdeclan wrote:

As the poster above me stated the pass mark in acca is 50%

Apologies about that - always thought ACCA was 40%, given that I get ACCA exemptions in college for a 40% grade and ACA only for 50%. My mistake!

djdeclan wrote:

someone earlier stated that in order to determine whether either of the exams were more difficult to pass you would need to have experienced both sides, I have.

You haven't done the FAEs yet though? How can you say that they are easier?

Plus, I don't have much opinion of what the ACCA are producing at the moment, given that esteemed professionals such as yourself still don't know what working capital is.

djdeclan

to be fair newaglish that working capital remark was a low blow, you can have a go at me if something i say is factually incorrect but that kind of snide remark in my opinion is just disgraceful.
I didnt finish acca (was forced to change associations when i commenced my current job) so no remarks about the standard of professionals produced by acca either if you please.
As i say i didnt finish acca nor have i finished aca but from having studied for and sat exams for both associations at similar levels i can safely say that it is a lot easier to pass the aca exams. you cant argue with that, you have never been in the position of having sat acca exams.
Until you have had the experience of the other exams ill thank you to keep your snide remarks and attitude to yourself.
By the way seeing as you have pointed out mistakes in my answers (its from another thread in case anyone is wondering) let me be the first to congratulate you on getting 100% in your exam today. well done, that is a fantastic achievement. you muppet.

And by the way I never studied financial accounting for acca so any faults in my knowledge have come after studying (or not studying enough of) the prof three syllabus.

Leon11

Just to throw in on the college exemptions, we don't get exemptions from ACCA papers unless we get a C+ which is anything over 50%. Up in Tallaght or (ITT Dublin) as they now call themselves.

u2livecd

kluivert wrote:

Not true.

CPA = Car Park Attendant

chump

djdeclan wrote:

Right folks, i think i can give a balanced view on this as ive sat exams for both ACCA and ACA.
1) ACCA exams are harder, no ifs buts ands or maybes FACT

It's not a fact but an opinion!

djdeclan wrote:

2) the reason big firms want trainees to do ACA is because they can tie you into a contract for 3 or 3.5 years. Its cheap labour. Its also a snob thing. after all its the queens charter for ACA

How is it cheap labour when big4 aca's rise to close to 30k after 9months in the work, with 2-3 of those spent 'studying' at home?
Also the fact that ACA is in practice, surely this increases the students knowledge of auditing, accounting, possibly tax, and possibly mabf? Surely this extra scope of work is beneficial, certainly in respect to many ACCA's who work in one function, in one department, in onecompany.[/QUOTE]

djdeclan wrote:

3) The reason for the higher pass rates in ACA is threefold; More time off to study,

Agreed

djdeclan wrote:

easier exams

Possible

djdeclan wrote:

and the fact that you can compensate for getting below the pass mark with surplus marks in another subject passed at the same sitting....you cant do that with ACCA.

Possible but also an over-stated benefit, as the rules aren't straightforward

djdeclan wrote:

All this about people doing ACA being brighter or more intelligent is horse manure.

see below

Hi declan you didn't answer some of my questions ... see below, also see above... straight answers required. :eek:


And the thing about being brighter is a broader statement - in that you need good results to get into the big4 - therefore good students - therefore used to passing.
Just because you do ACA doesn't mean you're bright - but it must be agreed that per 100 students, ACA has greater numbers who excelled in their uni courses and are 'cream of the crop' for their graduation year. Would you agree with this?

djdeclan

chump wrote:

It's not a fact but an opinion!

Fair point.


How is it cheap labour when big4 aca's rise to close to 30k after 9months in the work, with 2-3 of those spent 'studying' at home?
Also the fact that ACA is in practice, surely this increases the students knowledge of auditing, accounting, possibly tax, and possibly mabf? Surely this extra scope of work is beneficial, certainly in respect to many ACCA's who work in one function, in one department, in onecompany.

Acca is in practice too! it is more flexible though as a member can train in practice or industry (provided the workplace is approved)

Extra scope of work, where should i start? I work in a large firm, in a certain department providing a certain function....when i worked in a small firm (with all acca staff and partners) I worked on a vast array of different jobs. so that point isnt exactly relevant.


Hi declan you didn't answer some of my questions ... see below, also see above... straight answers required. :eek:


And the thing about being brighter is a broader statement - in that you need good results to get into the big4 - therefore good students - therefore used to passing.
Just because you do ACA doesn't mean you're bright - but it must be agreed that per 100 students, ACA has greater numbers who excelled in their uni courses and are 'cream of the crop' for their graduation year. Would you agree with this?[/QUOTE]


I would agree with this, the cream of the crop do go to work with the bigger firms, They then proceed to do aca exams....because they have no choice in the matter! I would have preferred to finish acca (i'd be finished with exams at this stage) but this was not allowed within my firm..

The cheap labour point, when you are in a training contract you are tied to a firm for the duration of it to the best of my knowledge..
The contract is between the student, the firm and icai.
With acca you join the body to complete the exams, where you work is up to you..provided your workplace is approved. You can switch jobs if you see fit.
Fair enough the big 4 pay big wages, but they treat a lot of staff badly. Why do you think they are constantly recruiting seniors and managers? they cant keep their trainees post training contract. Life is easier in smaller firms/industry.

Bren1609

u2livecd wrote:

CPA = Car Park Attendant

ACCA = Any C*** Can Audit

Did anyone know that the same examiner for the ACA exams writes the exam questions for CPA? Half of the CPA members council are ACA's, whats the story there?

smcgiff

Bren1609 wrote:

ACCA = Any C*** Can Audit

CPA - Cut Price Accountant

honeymonster

At the end of the day which one gets you more money?

chump

honeymonster wrote:

At the end of the day which one gets you more money?

ACA

honeymonster

****! Where can I get further info on this before I sell my acca books?

Newaglish

Whoa! I don't think either can claim to be a better money-earner. It's entirely down to the individual's career choices/ambition/luck/etc!

Theboinkmaster

Just saw this thread and thought it was very funny.

There is no doubt that ACA is the better choice for starting off in the accountancy prodession - i worked in a big 4 for 4.5 years and EVERY FC/FD I encountered was ACA - the only people who were studying for their ACCA were the accountants junior in each client posting journals. Any senior accountant i ever heard of who had ACCA was in a crap company.

Ie if you want to work in a great company like Airtricity you need ACA - if you want to work in some crap company in the arse end of nowhere then ACCA will do I guess. Also ask anyone who's gone to nz/oz/us to work for - equal job applicants with ACA and ACCA the ACA will always win.

Anyone who recommends ACCA over ACA is off their head - and yes alot of it's to do with snobery (ive actually no idea what course material is in the ACCA) but that's the world we live in...i know it's wrong but that's the way it is and by the way do a quick search for salary reviews on the web - ACAs earn snignicificantly more

u2livecd

smcgiff wrote: »

CPA - Cut Price Accountant

Loving this