ACA or ACCA?

Ideo · 12-12-2007 10:38PM

Theboinkmaster wrote: »

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

Yeah from what I hear I would probably agree. Saw this recently on the ICAI website

Chartered Accountancy
Chartered Accountants (CAs) are Ireland’s leading business professionals working across a vast array of business activities and sectors.

In fact, 9 of the top 10 ISEQ companies have a Chartered Accountant as their Financial Director or Chief Executive and the top 10 professional accounting firms are Chartered firms. So it’s no coincidence that CAs are seen as the elite of the financial profession.

Recognised and respected internationally, a qualification in Chartered Accountancy will also bring global mobility, with CAs in constant demand both at home and abroad.

Chartered Accountants in Ireland are members of the Institute of Chartered Accountants in Ireland, the island's oldest and largest professional accountancy body.

BetheChange · 21-03-2009 10:22PM

I only came across this thread by accident looking for something else but I just feel compelled to comment as some of the comments are quite humourous.

At the end of the day the qualification is irrelevant it is the person and what they do with it that counts. The most successfull accountants in Ireland come from across all the qualifications. Historically ICAI is the longest established and thus statistically because they are the largest will have more people in prominent positions in Ireland. If you are going International, ACCA dwarfs the ICAI in some parts of the world but both brands are global really.

If I were advising a family member of mine I would probably advice them to go down the ICAI route. As is reflected by some of the comments on this thread ICAI do an abseloutely brilliant job of building brand belief and confidence into their students. For any accountancy student to become a succesfull professional they have to believe in themsleves. ICAI do this really well and ICAI members have unfailling belief in their qualification and will defend it no matter what. It is unfortunate though that sometimes this belief can transfers into arrogance. Any family member of mine going the accountancy route would be encouraged to go the ICAI route but always reminded to be grounded and balanced and know where that fine line is where over confidence becomes a negative attribute.

I see some of the comments in relation to ACCAs not knowing what working capital is etc. There are always plenty of people in all walks of life who are not exactly perfect and everybody needs to judge the individual and not generalise. However just in case anybody has been asleep for the past 6 months, there are some very prominent accountants in the limelight at the moment in key positions in financial institutions who apparently did not understand the basic concepts of company law in relation to directors loans or ethics. Furthermore their auditors allegedly had some difficulty coming to grasps with their requirements in this area too! So it is not just ACCA who has challenges.

Johnny K · 31-03-2009 04:12PM

Theboinkmaster wrote: »

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

Theboinkmaster - what kind of a name is that for an ACA?
Also what is the "accountancy prodession" ?
who earn "snignicificantly more"

Running Bing · 31-03-2009 04:26PM

Johnny K wrote: »

Theboinkmaster - what kind of a name is that for an ACA?
Also what is the "accountancy prodession" ?
who earn "snignicificantly more"

Correcting typing mistakes on a message board?

Classy:rolleyes:

Johnny K · 31-03-2009 04:53PM

Babybing wrote: »

Correcting typing mistakes on a message board?

Classy:rolleyes:

Posting messages about people posting about correcting typing mistakes.

Even more classy!

Running Bing · 31-03-2009 06:24PM

Johnny K wrote: »

Posting messages about people posting about correcting typing mistakes.

Even more classy!

Posting message about peo......fvck it we could be here all night.

maddogcollins · 01-04-2009 09:27AM

djdeclan wrote: »

And in order to pass an acca exam you have to do just that - PASS IT, no compensation..

No such thing as compensation any more.. The whole system has changed and those of you who are qualified should have a look at the new system before you start trying to advise somebody of what body to sit their exams with.

djdeclan · 01-04-2009 11:25AM

Holy old threads batman!!!
Maddogcollins; have a look at when I posted that message: Over a year and a half ago!!!
A lot has changed since then (I've passed the prof 3s and FAEs!), I still maintain that the ACCA exams are more difficult, thus I would advise anyone I know to do ACA, it is also a more respected qualification, albeit for no good reason other than snobbery.
Although at the minute I wouldn't advise anyone to become an accountant at all!

maddogcollins · 01-04-2009 12:38PM

djdeclan wrote: »

Holy old threads batman!!!
Maddogcollins; have a look at when I posted that message: Over a year and a half ago!!!
A lot has changed since then (I've passed the prof 3s and FAEs!), I still maintain that the ACCA exams are more difficult, thus I would advise anyone I know to do ACA, it is also a more respected qualification, albeit for no good reason other than snobbery.
Although at the minute I wouldn't advise anyone to become an accountant at all!

I didnt even look at the date..My bad..ha..i just assumed when it was on the most recent ones that it was active..As they say never assume it makes an "ass" out of "u" and "me"..please accept my apologies..

ACA or ACCA?

Comments