Cost Management: A Strategic Emphasis 5th Edition by David Stout, Edward Blocher, Gary Cokins

Exercise 32

Different Professional Certification Programs There are several professional certificate programs that are of interest to management accountants. Each certificate is awarded based on the results of a comprehensive exam plus other education and experience requirements. Perhaps the best known is the CPA which is administered by each of the 50 states and five other jurisdictions in the United States. The CPA certificate represents achievement of a broad knowledge of the accounting profession, including auditing, tax accounting, and governmental accounting, among others. Information about the CPA is available at the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants (AICPA) Web site.

The Institute of Management Accountants (IMA) has a professional certification program leading to the Certificate in Management Accounting (CMA). The CMA exam has a framework similar to that of the CPA exam except that its focus is on broad business knowledge, strategy implementation, and competence in management accounting, rather than taxation and auditing.

American Institute of Certified Public Accountants: www.aicpa.org/index.htm

Institute of Management Accounting: www.imanet.org/

Required

Review the AICPA and IMA Web sites and, in 200 words or less, explain how the two certificate programs differ, and which certificate program (if any) might be most appropriate for you given your current career interests. Use specific examples that you notice in reviewing the Web sites.

Step 1 of 10

Professional certificate programs:

Professional certificate programs are the sequence of the courses that is developed by the industry experts and the top universities to boost and increase the professional skills that are required for most of the field to succeed. Generally, a professional certificate program is concentrated on a specific career.