CIMA South Africa is a professional body for management accountants. They are known for their high-quality qualifications and training. CIMA South Africa qualifications are recognised locally and internationally. Employers feel confident to employ CIMA candidates in their companies.

What is CIMA South Africa?

CIMA stands for the Chartered Institute of Management Accountants. Their courses prepare bold management accountants. You will learn how to make strategic decisions in an organisation by looking at previous financial information. If you are interested in the business and finance industry, then CIMA South Africa is the for you.

Why Choose CIMA South Africa?

CIMA qualifications are receiving a lot of recognition for their quality standards and training. The qualifications focus on theory but also how you will put it into practice. Having a CIMA qualification can increase your employability and salary. If you have completed your Here are more benefits about CIMA South Africa:

1. Knowledge of the business and finance industry
2. Locally and internationally recognised
3. You will be able to make strategic business decisions based on previous financial information
4. CIMA stays updated with the latest business developments
5. You can apply for multiple jobs, not only in the business, finance or accounting field
6. Employers are happy to employ CIMA candidates

CIMA Syllabus

There are four qualifications that you can do. It starts with the CIMA Certificate and then progresses to the CIMA Professional Qualification. The courses are:

You can read more about the courses on CIMA Accounting Qualifications.

CIMA South Africa Registration

You can either register on the CIMA website or through a training provider. All you have to do is complete the online form, choose your qualifications and follow the steps. Once you have made payment, CIMA will send you a confirmation email with your CIMA contact ID. The contact ID can be used to log into different platforms. 

CIMA Registration Fees

When you register with CIMA, you need to pay a registration fee to finalise your registration. If it is your first time as a CIMA student, your first year’s subscription fee is free. If not, you need to pay a one-off subscription fee to stay on top of CIMA. 

Registration Fees

You can view the fees by going to CIMA’s student fee structure.

Please note: South African Rand value calculations were made on 14 May 2018 on https://fx-rate.net/GBP/ZAR/. The Rand is subject to change every day. We’ve used the ratio 1 British Pound = 16.654. 

How To Make Payment

Knowing how and where to make payment is important. By knowing this, you can plan ahead and make payments on time. Find the different methods of payments listed below: 

• Pay online through MY CIMA
• Card payment (Debit or credit card)
• Phone to make a payment. Students outside UK: +44 (0) 20 8602 0861 or call CIMA on +44 (0) 20 8849 2251 and pay with your card
• Post – Send a cheque payable to them. Write your contact ID on the back of the cheque
• You can also make payment through your training provider and then they will pay CIMA

Skills Academy as a Training Provider

Skills Academy is a distance learning college in South Africa that’s CIMA accredited. Distance learning means that you can work and study at the same time. Skills Academy has tutors and online study groups to help you with your studies. Register today with Skills Academy by completing the form on the right-hand side. You can also contact them at their toll-free number: 0800 39 00 27.

CIMA Exemptions

If you have studied a degree relevant to CIMA, then you can apply for CIMA exemption. The exemption will excuse you from exams. You could finish your qualification sooner. CIMA does not want you to repeat work that you already know. Only CIMA can award you an exemption.

How Do You Apply for CIMA Exemptions?

You need to be a registered CIMA student to apply for CIMA exams. When you are registered, you can send your application via email or fax. Send your documents as proof to CIMA, that you have studied the qualification. Don’t forward your original documents, CIMA cannot guarantee their safe return. Follow these steps to apply for a CIMA exemption.

1. Search for your qualification
2. Email documents to [email protected] (Graduation Certificate, a letter from the University, transcripts)
3. CIMA will let you know within 72 hours if they have received your application. It takes up to 20 working days to get feedback from CIMA. They will tell you if it has been granted or not.
4. Accept or Decline the exemption offered.
5. Pay for your exemptions.

CIMA South Africa Exams 

Exams are there to test your knowledge and to see how you would apply your skills to the situation. CIMA has two exam types: Objective Test and the Integrated Case Study exam. Both of these exams are computer-based. 

Objective Tests

Objective tests consist of short questions like multiple choice questions. The availability of these tests is available all year round. There is no timetable for these exams. These exams are computer-marked, and the results are available within 48 hours.

Integrated Case Study Exam

These exams are only available to students completing the CIMA Professional Qualifications. The questions are longer and focus on how you would demonstrate your skills in real-life scenarios. These exams are human-marked, and the results are available within 5-6 weeks. The case study exams have a timetable.

CIMA Case Study Exam Timetable

The timetable gives you the dates available for the integrated case study exams. Familiarise yourself with these dates to plan ahead for your exams. 

February 2018

May 2018

August 2018

November 2018

All CIMA exam timetable information is on the CIMA website.

CIMA Certificate Level Exams

You need to write four objective tests for this level. The exams are 2-hour long question papers. All of the Certificate exams are computer-based and computer-marked. It is great because you can get your results immediately or within 48 hours. 

How Many Questions Can You Expect In The Exam?

You need to answer 60 questions in subjects BA1, BA2 and BA3 and 85 questions in BA4.

What Should You Get To Pass?

You need to get at least 70% to pass.

The CIMA Professional Qualification Exams

The Professional Qualification has two types of exams: Objective tests and the integrated case study exam. The integrated case study exam prepares you for the real-world with real-life scenarios. The Objective tests are 90 minutes long. The case study exams are 3-hour long question papers.

What Should You Get To Pass?

You need to get a score of 80 out of 150. Case study exams are not in percentages.

How Do You Schedule an Exam?

You can schedule your exam on My CIMA, which is an online service which provides you with resources, your student information and much more. You need to have a contact ID and password to log in.

How Do You Register for MY CIMA?

You need to be a CIMA student, member or business partner to register. Click on the link and complete the form: https://www.cimaglobal.com/MY-CIMA-Registration/.   

How Much are the Exams?

You need to pay before you can write the exam. If you don’t pay your exam fees, you won’t be able to write. You should also settle your outstanding fees before you can schedule a new exam. Take note of the exam fees and plan ahead for your exams. 

All CIMA fees information is on the CIMA website.

Please note: South African Rand value calculations were made on 14 May 2018 on https://fx-rate.net/GBP/ZAR/. The Rand is subject to change every day. We’ve used the ratio 1 British Pound = 16.673. 

What Type of Jobs Can You Do with CIMA?

Having a CIMA qualification will definitely open more job opportunities. CIMA qualifications allow you to enter different career paths, not only in the business, finance and accounting industry. These are the most popular job types for the CIMA:

• Bookkeeper
• Auditing Clerk
• Accounting Administrator
• CIMA Junior jobs
• Senior Finance Manager
• Financial Accountant
• Management Accountant
• Financial Manager
• Group Accountant
• Cost and Management Accountant

| 10 of the highest paying jobs in South Africa – and how to get one

CIMA South Africa Contact Details

If you have any queries, you can contact CIMA South Africa for assistance. Always contact your training provider first for any questions.

The information is on the CIMA website.

Written by: Olivia Pika

Last updated: 17 May 2018