Careers
In recent times, accountancy has grown in popularity as a profession.
Wherever there are users of money, however small the business may be,
the services of a CA are required. Moreover, under the Companies Act,
only CA's in professional practice are entitled to be appointed as auditors
of companies in India.
A chartered accountant is a person who is accepted as a member of the
Institute of Chartered Accountants of India (ICAI) after having passed the
final examination for the chartered accountancy course conducted by the institute.
WORK
The main areas of work for Chartered accountants include : Accountancy,
Auditing, Cost accountancy, Taxation, Investigation and Consultancy.
Accountancy includes writing up of accounts and preparation of financial
statements from the simplest receipts and payments to complex and detailed
accounts, and the maintenance of books of accounts as required by the
Companies Act.
The purpose of Auditing is to satisfy the users of financial statements
that the accounts presented to them are drawn up on correct accounting principles.
CA's perform financial, cost and tax audits, and some aspects of secretarial audits.
Cost Accountancy :
Chartered Accountants are trained at maintaining cost auditing records, compiling
cost information, installing cost controls and even performing cost audits.Taxation :
CA's practising in the field of taxation usually deal with direct
taxes (those which are collected directly by the government ) like income tax
and wealth tax. However, they do provide advice on indirect taxes (those which are
borne by the public through increased prices and surcharges like sales tax and
excise duty). CA's are also required by the revenue authorities in making proper
assessments.
Investigation :
CA's are experts at examining specific aspects of businesses for the information
of interested parties on new issues of share capital, the purchase, sale or
financing of a business and for reconstruction and amalgamation. Their services
are also sought for undertaking investigation.
Consulting :
Accounting being an information-related service, the area of consulting is
extremely popular and coveted not only among senior CAs, but also among
the bright and ambitious starters in the profession. The various areas of
consulting include : Management accounting and internal audit ; corporate
law advice ; project planningand finance ; business advise ; systems design
and information consultancy.
Chartered Accountants are also sometimes appointed as executors under
a will or trust in order to carry out the administration of an estate or
settlements. On such assignments, they are often required to work in
co-operation with solicitors and lawyers.
CAs can also perform functions under special positions such as directorships of
companies, arbitrators for settling disputes, handling work related to insolvency,
bankruptcy, etc. They are free to go in either for professional practice or to be
employed by the industry sector ( private companies, public sector undertakings, etc.).
ENTRY
A candidate who desires to become a member of the Institute of Chartered
Accountants of India (ICAI) and thereby a practising chartered accountant must :
(a) Clear the intermediate and final examination of the institute.
(b) Register as an articled or audit clerk with a practising chartered accountant.
(c) Register with the board of studies of the institute.
Eligibility:
In order to be eligible for appearing in the intermediate and final exams of the
institute, the aspirant must have successfully completed and passed the
foundation course. Registration to the foundation course of one-year
duration is open to those who have completed 10+2. The foundation
course can also be taken up simultaneously with graduate or postgraduate
studies. However, commerce graduates with 50% marks, non-commerce
graduates without maths, with 55% marks and non-commerce graduates
with maths and an aggregate of 6 0% marks are exempted from the
foundation exam and are permitted to register as articled clerks for
practical training.
The training for CAs is a highly elaborate procedure. Aspiring chartered
accountants should pass the intermediate exam within ten years of the
commencement of their practical training. During the training period candidates
would be required to work in different areas learning the basics of auditing and
taxation. This enables them to learn the technical details of the job as well
as to get an idea of the working environment of the profession. During this
period the articled clerk will also need to continue studies for the CA exam.
As the professional training for chartered accountancy is training-on-the-job,
an a rticled clerk is entitled to receive a minimum monthly stipend. This is
not the case in most other professions.
After successful completion of the final exam, the aspiring CA can apply for
membership of the ICAI. All members are deemed Associate members of the
institute. Associate members who have been in practise for a minimum of 5
years and possess the experience prescribed by the council for this purpose
are entitled to apply for Fellowship.
INSTITUTIONS
The CA course is conducted through lectures and postal tuitions by the Institute
of Chartered Accountants of India (ICAI), head-quartered in New Delhi.
The ICAI has 5 regional offices at Mumbai, Calcutta, Chennai, Kanpur, and New
Delhi, with 81 branches to these regional centres.
COST ACCOUNTANCY
Cost and management accounting is primarily a product of the twentieth century.
The success or failure of business decisions today depends on the quality of
information made available to its management.
Those qualified with an ICWAI training have several career options, as all
business organisations require their services. A q ualified CWA can
work with a practising cost accountant, or be employed in a cost
accountancy firm. There are also openings in financial institutions,
government departments, banks- both public sector and private, insurance
companies, international organisations, multinational companies,
industry - both private and public sector, investment companies and so on.
The option of teaching cost accountancy in universities / institutes is also
always open to cost accountants. Those with experience can opt for private
consultancy.Moreover, those who go in for an additional qualifications such
as a Chartered Account (CA) or MBA will greatly increase career options and
improve career prospects
WORK
A cost and works accountant (CWA) specialises in stabilising budgets and
standards, evaluating operational efficiency of an organisation and the
effectiveness of production and service management, formulating the profile
planning programme, guiding managerial decisions, identifying accountability
for cost and profit variance, and thus renders valuable assistance to the
management.
In other words, the cost accountant collects, collates, and interprets data relating
to the organisation's business activities and converts them into money terms to
enable non-financial executives to arrive at the right decisions, or to select the
right course of action at the right time
ENTRY
To be qualified as a cost accountant, a candidate has to take the examinations
conducted by the Institute of Cost and Works Accountants of India (ICWAI). This
is an examination comprising of three stages :
preliminary, intermediate and final.
Eligibility:
To sit for the preliminary examination, an individual should have passed the 10+2
exam. However, gazetted officers, postgraduates, engineering graduates and
graduates with at least 50% marks are eligible for direct registration.
It is obligatory for registered students of the ICWAI to undergo either postal or oral
tuition before appearing for the intermediate and final stages of the exam. Tuition is
conducted by the regional councils and certain other institutions recognised by the
Directorate of Studies of the ICWAI.
Duration :
The exams can be taken at an interval of one year between two exams.
An important aspect of the training is the three years practical experience students
need to undergo before they can apply for associate-ship of the institute. This
experience can be undertaken after the final exam or during the period of study
and must cover different branches of costing or industrial accounting.
A degree or diploma certificate is awarded to students at the end of the course.
INSTITUTIONS
The ICWAI, with its headquarters in Calcutta, has its branches in New Delhi,
Mumbai, and Chennai.
JOB PROSPECTS
For Financial services professionals :
* Financial companies,
* Corporate houses,
* Multinational corporations,
* Industry,
* Government,
* Banks,
* Start one's own financial consultancy,
* Teaching in universities / institutes.
Company Secretaryship
An important member of a corporate management team is the Company
Secretary, who assists the efficient management of a corporate body. The role
of the Company Secretary is that of an advisor to the management of the
company with regard to legal and business matters. It is a statutory requirement
that all companies with a paid up share capital of a minimum of Rs. 50 lakhs
are required to appoint a Company Secretary.
Company secretaries find employment at senior posts with the Government of
India, and on the panel of bodies such as the Bureau of Public Enterprises,
State Government Financial Institutions, and Stock Exchanges , and in Grades
1 to 4 in the accounts branch of the Central Government Law services of the
Department of Company Affairs, as specialists in the fields of finance, law,
accounts, and merchant