Accreditation
Exemptions from professional examinations
Accreditation with professional accounting bodies
The main professional accounting bodies recognise the value of studying accounting and finance at Alliance Manchester Business School and offer exemptions from their professional qualifications if you have completed specific accounting and finance courses. This means you are exempt from some professional accounting exams once you graduate - although the precise exemptions will depend on the professional body you decide to join.
It is very important for you to make a well informed choice when deciding which courses to take; we would not recommend that you select courses by only considering the exemption criteria. The majority of employers are interested in students who have a good degree classification, not the level of professional exemptions they have gained. You are much more likely to perform well if you choose to study the subjects you are interested in.
For further detail on the level of exemptions available and the specific courses you need to take, please see below for the details of the exemptions available for the main accounting professional bodies.
Exemptions subject to change
Professional syllabuses are subject to revision from time to time, so the exemptions available at the start of your degree programme may change by the time you graduate.
If you are unsure at this stage which professional body you would like to join, a general guide to the best courses to take in the hope of meeting future exemption criteria would be to consider the core courses for accounting and finance students. Professional accounting body syllabuses will cover the main areas of accounting such as financial reporting and management accounting and so courses covering this type of material, rather than the more specialised, optional courses, are the most likely to meet exemption criteria across many different bodies.
Several of the national professional bodies give exemptions from their examinations if certain courses and programmes have been successfully taken by this School's students. Students must check with the professional body concerned to ensure that the courses they have taken within their programme will be considered as exemptions. You are strongly advised to retain all of your full course descriptions for each year of your programme in case you need to use them later for exemption purposes, as additional copies will incur a charge by AMBS.
Accountancy bodies
Please see below for information regarding Accreditation and Professional Bodies. Some of these exemptions would also be applicable for BA Econ Accounting and Finance specialism students.
The Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales
The ICAEW grant us exemptions where the content of our courses overlaps with their syllabus, see the ICAEW exemption directory.
Should their syllabus change at any time, this may affect our accreditation arrangements. You should therefore consult the ICAEW website to obtain the most up to date information.
Please note that ICAEW will review applications for access arrangements, and awards may differ to those previously awarded by the university. Full guidance on Access Arrangements is available on the ICAEW website.
Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (ACCA)
Full details of the syllabus, study guide and examinations are available on ACCA’s website.
The CFA programme partnership
Please see the current student guide for the CFA Program Student Scholarships. Further information relating to this programme can be seen below.
What is the CFA Institute?
The CFA Institute is a global association of investment professionals with more than 90,000 members and 135 societies worldwide. The CFA Institute publishes research, conducts professional development programmes and sets ethics-based professional and performance reporting standards for the investment industry. They also offer a range of educational services across the world and the associated professional exams. The CFA Programme is an educational programme that entails three levels of exams.
Level I exams are held in June and December and Levels II and III are only held in June. The exams occur at CFA Institute test centres. It is widely considered as the investment profession's most rigorous credentialing programme with less than one in five candidates enrolling in the programme achieving success in earning the CFA Charter. To become a CFA Charter holder, all CFA Institute requirements have to be met in addition to passing all three levels of the exams sequentially and adhering to specified standards of professional conduct.
What is the CFA programme partnership?
The CFA Institute has partnerships with select universities around the world that have imbedded a minimum 70% of the CFA Programme Candidate Body of Knowledge (curriculum) into their degree programmes. Recognition as a partner signals that the degree's curriculum is closely tied to professional practice and is well suited to students preparing to sit for the CFA examinations.
Other accrediting bodies
CIMA
You can find out more via the CIMA website
Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD)
There are currently no exemptions from CIPD examinations.
CIPD can be contacted at:
151 The Broadway
London
SW 19 1JQ
Tel: 0208 612 6208
Web: CIPD
Chartered Institute of Marketing (CIM)
There are currently no exemptions from CIM examinations but this is subject to change. For the latest information, students are advised to contact the CIM direct.