Meet Charles Sturt University Australia Apply for AUD 4000 Scholarships

On 24th February 2.00pm onwards – on appointments 077 38 444 38

Undergraduate and postgraduate degrees in Accounting, Business and Information Technology.

High employment rate with a 5-star rating ‘ for success in getting a job’ in the 2014 Good Universities Guide

Hands – on and practical courses accredited by leading professional bodies such as CPA and ICAA.

Dr Humayun Murshed, CSU Study Centre ’ s Associate Professor in Accounting, advises: Australian accounting education is fully in line with international standards and obtaining a professional accounting qualification from Australia can be very rewarding.’ ‘ Undergraduate and Postgraduate accounting qualifications are recognised by the three professional bodies working in Australia: CPA Australia, Institute of Chartered Accountants in Australia ( ICAA) and Institute of Public Accountants (IPA).’ ‘ CSU Study Centres have launched MPA ( 12 subjects) to provide students with extensive support and to qualify them for CPA Associate membership. Studying this program will enable students to build both capabilities and professionalism.’ Australia’s accounting education has earned global recognition due to its focus on practical implementation of international standards in the area of accounting and auditing and having a linked pathway to the internationally recognized professional memberships. There are three professional bodies working in Australia and they are: CPA Australia, Institute of Chartered Accountants in Australia (ICAA), and Institute of Public Accountants ( IPA). Undergraduate and postgraduate accounting qualifications, such as Bachelor of Accounting ( BAcc) and Master of Professional Accounting (MPA), offered by Australian universities are recognized by these professional bodies. The MPA is designed primarily as a conversion course giving students from a non-accounting background the opportunity to develop accounting skills and knowledge in the backdrop of today’s increasingly complex and fast- growing discipline of accounting and finance. A large majority of international students studying accounting degrees in Australia wish to enhance their academic qualifications through obtaining membership from Australian accounting professional bodies. Upon completion of an accredited university degree in accounting; students are eligible to pursue further professional studies in order to become a qualified professional accountant. For example, CPA Australia has two levels of academic requirements – Foundation and Professional. Students having either a bachelor degree in accounting or MPA meet the educational requirements of the foundation level and thus are exempted from having to study the CPA foundation level subjects.

In order to become a recognized professional accountant in Australia; candidates must meet membership requirements of one of the professional bodies. This requires completion of both educational and practical training experience. In the case of the CPA, candidates are required to complete 6 ( six) CPA professional subjects known as CPA Professional Segments. Traditionally candidates have undertaken largely selfdirected studies in order to prepare for the professional level examinations. In a recent move, some Australian universities have developed tailor made pro- grammes to support the CPA professional level studies whilst enabling students to gain a postgraduate qualification. These programmes are geared to provide students with a face- to- face learning environment enabling them to build their skills and knowledge to the level required. In these course classes are run by skilled professionals where theory and practical applications are intertwined. Indeed some of the very recent programs combine the CPA professional level subjects with additional accounting, finance and business subjects to build students’ capabilities and professionalism. One university offering courses that include subjects which provide extensive support and preparation for the CPA Program ® professional level examinations is Charles Sturt University (CSU). These programmes are: MPA (CPA Extension) and Master of Accounting Practice ( MAP). Both these programmes embed six CPA professional subjects. Studying these programmes will enable the students to complete the CPA professional subjects while obtaining a postgraduate qualification from CSU.

Obtaining a professional accounting qualification from Australia can be very rewarding. An Australian qualification has global recognition which allows the Australian qualified professional accountants to work overseas with an enhanced bargaining power for having a globally recognised qualification. In the Australian market, there is an increasing demand for professional accountants. According to a survey conducted over the last year by Hays, a leading recruiting agent, the demand for junior to mid-management level operational staff in the area of Accounting and Finance is increased by 4 per cent (www1.hays.com. au/salary/output/. According to this survey the salary of a person having professional accounting qualification ranges from AUD 90,000 while it could go up to AUD 250,000 per year. These salaries are very attractive in the current Australia labour market. A similar indication was given by another survey conducted by Robert Half ( www. roberthalf. com. au/ EMEA/.

In essence, graduating with an Australia accounting qualification that is linked with a globally recognised professional membership provides a huge prospect for a gratifying career with good potential for high remuneration and career progression both in Australia and other countries around the world. Australian accounting professional bodies are putting in place mutual recognition arrangements with a range of other professional bodies ensuring global mobility of accountants qualified from Australia.

In order to become a recognized professional accountant in Australia; candidates must meet membership requirements of one of the professional bodies. This requires completion of both educational and practical training experience. In the case of the CPA, candidates are required to complete 6 (six) CPA professional subjects known as CPA Professional Segments