ICAEW exams

The ICAEW qualification is designed purely by the on-going needs of business. ICAEW exams are very different from sitting any other exams in the accounting world. The methodology used in the course and exams is global best practice - for example the final Advanced Case Study examination is modelled on the Harvard Business School Case Study methodology. The content mirrors extensive real life scenarios and global financial challenges, so the Case Study has an element of pre-seen material that is sent out 6 weeks before the exam.

In real life, your manager would not give you a problem to solve, or a task to do without allowing you to use your own resources, so in the same vein, you can take in any text books and your own notes into these exams, for you to put together solid business advice. ICAEW prepares you for the real world to emulate real life through these vigorous exams. The 2 Advanced level papers which precede the Advanced Case Study ensure that you have the right skills and knowledge to be able to complete the final advanced Case Study.

ICAEW will assist you to develop the “Broader and integrated thinking needed to make business decisions”

The arrangement provides that existing members of ICAI with two years of post-qualification experience will be eligible for ICAEW membership on passing the ICAEW's one paper on Case Study. The ICAI members with less than two years of experience will be required to pass 3 papers: the 2 Advanced level Technical Integration papers - Business change and Business Reporting, and then the Advanced Case Study.

It is recommended however, that ICAI members with 2 years post qualification experience still take the 2 Advanced level Technical Integration papers and exams, in order to gain better communication and critical thinking skills and also be well prepared for the rigour of the Advanced Case Study.

The 2 Advanced level exams are known as technical integration modules - Business Change and Business Reporting. These 2 papers integrate your knowledge of business strategy, law, tax, financial and management accounting in a variety of global situations. On average, 60-70% of the marks are given for how clearly you can communicate your business advice and whether it is effectively written for a particular level of user (fellow chartered accountant or entrepreneur with no real detailed financial knowledge).