Why CIMA Students Should Be Excited About CGMA

By  •  Updated: 11/15/22 •  6 min read

You are a CIMA student. You chose the CIMA qualification because you know all accounting qualifications are not the same. Your CIMA qualification enhances your CV and opens up many career options for you. It boosts your career prospects.

You may have also chosen CIMA because the qualification blends management accounting, financial accounting and business-focused subjects that cater to what modern employers demand. That means you chose it for employability, its market value. 

You are ambitious and want to be well prepared to chart your career path to success; because you recognise the right mix of skills makes you valuable to potential employers. You most likely chose CIMA because you want to go into business and industry, rather than into accounting practice, auditing, taxation or public sector accounting. Perhaps you wanted a career in management consulting and recognise, rightly, that CIMA is a great stepping stone for a consulting career. You probably also know people with this management accounting qualification working in a wide range of satisfying and well-paying jobs.

Your instincts are right! CIMA is a great career booster, for the beginner and for the professional. Check out our blog post on How CIMA Helps Your Career.

But that is NOT ALL. A recent study by Robert Half in UK found that among finance and accountancy employers, CIMA is a highly regarded qualification for entry-level recruitment. According to Robert Half, “most firms still prefer candidates to hold the largest and most widely recognised qualifications, even for entry-level accountancy roles”. And CIMA definitely fits the bill.

You probably know all of that already.

CGMA opens up the world for you

CGMA is the new global designation for Management Accounting professionals around the world.

There is a lot of excitement among CIMA members and students because now CGMA offers you many more opportunities in the global management accountancy sector. Whatever the reason you chose to study CIMA, now you can add a whole lot more reasons to the list; because of CGMA.

Consider CGMA as a forward-thinking response by the global management accounting profession to changing global business needs. The designation of Chartered Global Management Accountant or CGMA was created as strategic partnership between American Institute of CPAs (AICPA) and the Chartered Institute of Management Accountants (CIMA). It was born of the recognition that the world of business requires accounting and management accounting talent that possess a wider skill set extending beyond mere technical expertise.

No need for additional exams!

Obtaining CGMA designation is easy for CIMA members. This is another exciting fact about CGMA. You are automatically entitled to the Chartered Global Management Accountant or CGMA designation on completion of your CIMA qualification and becoming a member CIMA.

CPAs have a different path to the CGMA designation. To obtain the CGMA designation through the AICPA, qualified candidates must pass the CGMA exam,meet the experience requirements and become a member of AICPA.

Here are 5 reasons you should be excited about CGMA:

Global recognition for high-powered professionals

CGMAs can treat the entire world as their job market. Your qualification is recognized in a wider scale around the world. Your CGMA designation comes with a level of global recognition that was not previously available either to CPAs or CIMA members.

Global is the key word here. CIMA as a qualification had limited recognition in some parts of the world until recently. Traditionally, CIMA has been well recognized only in parts of the world closely associated with the United Kingdom. In those days, a Management Accountant could proudly use their qualification in the UK, Australia, New Zealand, the Middle East, South Africa and some other nations in the African continent and in many parts of Asia and the pacific, including India, Sri Lanka, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Hong Kong and Singapore. But a CIMA management accounting qualification, though valuable in any context anywhere, was not recognized or valued in the rest of the world, including in some parts of Europe, in the United States or in Canada.

Those seeking management accountancy jobs in those countries often had to seek additional qualifications to succeed. But not any more. This changed when two of the world’s leading accounting organisations, the Chartered Institute of Management Accountants of UK and the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants, AICPA got together to create the CGMA designation. Today you can become a Chartered Global Management Accountant or CGMA after completing CIMA or becoming a CPA.

CGMA – A truly global forward thinking designation

CGMA is a forward thinking global designation that increasingly globalized companies need. It offers a lot more than mere technical expertise in a narrow area. The CGMA Competency Framework provides the foundations for the CIMA qualification. It ensures that you, as a CIMA student, develop the right mix of skills and knowledge employers are looking for.

Check out our blog post on What Employers Expect from CGMAs.

Careers in global management accounting

Are you thinking of a career in global management accounting? Armed with a prestigious CGMA designation, you can go forward with confidence.

It is the same if you are applying for jobs in any multinational firm or local firm with many international collaborations and operations.

Easy to develop global collaborations

Management accounting professionals don’t stay as management accountants throughout their careers. They move upwards to become CFOs, CEOs, business directors and members of corporate boards. In these roles, as CGMAs they can help develop global collaborations and do it well. They can work together with their global counterparts because the CGMA designation bestows on them an easy understanding of commonalities in their professions. This is part of what today’s employers expect of CGMAs.

Find out more about What Employers Expect from CGMAs.

Great foundation for startup entrepreneurs

Not every entrepreneur needs to be a college drop out. You can increase the chances of success in your entrepreneurial endeavours if you begin with a great foundation that CIMA provides. But when you need new doors to open up for you, and for influencers to take you seriously, your CGMA designation can make a powerful case for you. It says you are a well-rounded individual with not just technical skills, but strategic thinking, leadership and skills for influencing change. The CGMA is well worth the investment.

What is the difference between CIMA and CGMA? Is CIMA and CGMA same?

CIMA and CGMA are two completely different accounting qualifications. The designation of Chartered Global Management Accountant or CGMA was created as strategic partnership between American Institute of CPAs (AICPA) and the Chartered Institute of Management Accountants (CIMA).

As you can see, there are many reasons that CIMA students and members should explore the CGMA designation today and be excited about it. Here’s the link to the CGMA website.

Keep visiting our blog for more articles that help CIMA students like you succeed.