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The ACCA vs CIMA debate generated a lot of interest. These two qualifications are often seen as rivals. Bridie wanted to know the difference between the two.

Tom Cadogan spoke from a CIMA background, and said: "CIMA is more geared toward generating information for use within the company, rather than strict compliance work for external publishing."

But Yvonne Buckland boasted an ACCA past, and pointed out that each syllabus has a different focus - ACCA has a greater concentration on personal taxation, whereas CIMA focuses more on company taxation.

"If you want to work in public practice, you will probably find it more difficult to find a position with the CIMA qualification, unless it is in the management consultancy aspect," she said. But otherwise, there was little difference.

Andrew Randall said that it depended on your career aspirations, and the type of company you work for. Thiru Vasagam was adamant - choose CIMA for a career in industry, ACCA for the same in practice.

And Simon Lim had some excellent advice. "ACCA is more relevant for those who intend to go into public practice, as the subjects covered have an obvious bias towards financial accounting, audit and taxation.

"CIMA, on the other hand, is more relevant if your goal is to work in industry, as there is a greater emphasis towards management accounting, strategy and information management within an organisation. CIMA better prepares you for this function, as its syllabus is heavily skewed towards management accounting, strategic management, IT and marketing."

Source: Accounting Web

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