The November exams will be the last sitting under the 2005 syllabus.
Next May, our new syllabus will be examined for the first time.
The syllabus changes that CIMA has made are based on research with employers. Our aim is to ensure that CIMA continues to provide financially qualified business leaders with broad ranging business and management skills to complement their financial training.
These changes may have an impact on your choices for the November exams. This article offers some advice about your options and explains why you should not abandon the thought of sitting in November.
The transition arrangements
When the November 2009 results are released, any exam credits that you have received under the 2005 syllabus will be transfered to the new syllabus on a paper for paper basis.
Our transition arrangements (PDF 36KB) document shows which papers you will receive credits for under the new 2010 syllabus if you have passed the matching 2005 syllabus paper. You can also log into your MY CIMA account now to see your personal transition arrangements.
Once you have logged on, select the 'transition arrangements' option. On the left of this screen you will see your 2005 syllabus exam credits/exemptions. On the right you will see the subjects for which you will receive credit under the new 2010 syllabus.
If you sit and pass any exams in November 2009, the lists will be updated accordingly.
Identifying gaps
From August, you will be able to download study guides which compare the 2005 syllabus subject against its matching 2010 syllabus subject.
These guides identify where syllabus content has been removed, added, moved to a different subject; or has been subject to a verb change and will be assessed at a different level of difficulty.
If you are unsuccessful in a November exam and need to sit its matching new subject in May 2010, the guides will help you identify any gaps in your knowledge.
For example, in papers P1 Management Accounting Performance Evaluation (new P1 ' Performance Operations) and P2 Management Accounting Decision Management (new P2 ' Performance Management) there has been a reorganisation of syllabus content.
Some of the current P1 syllabus content has been moved to the new P2 paper, and likewise some of the current P2 syllabus content has moved to the new P1 paper.
This means if you choose to sit P1 Management Accounting Performance Evaluation in November and you pass, you should be aware that you will cover some of the same material again when you sit the new P2 Performance Management paper.
This may be in your favour when it comes to studying for the new P2 paper, but unless you take the time to study the areas of the syllabus which have moved into the new P1 paper, you will have some gaps in your knowledge which may affect you later in your studies.
Decisions
When it comes to choosing what to study in November there are no hard and fast rules. But it is worth considering the following:
- Are you re-sitting a subject in November that you have previously failed?
If so, given that you have already spent time and resource studying this subject we suggest that you attempt it again in November.
- Are you planning on sitting a new subject, or subjects, in November?
If so, before making your choices we advise you to:
- Read the study guide gap analyses mentioned above ' these will be available to download later this month. They will help you understand what new syllabus content you will need to study if you fail in November and also any gaps in your knowledge you may have because of the choices that you make.
- Speak to one of our CIMA Learning Quality Partner accredited colleges ' many of which will be giving free advice to students.
And finally'
Don't be afraid of sitting exams in November ' just make sure you research how your choices may affect you once the 2010 syllabus is in place.
Remember that your aim is to progress through the qualification and achieve CIMA membership as quickly as possible ' so don't get left behind by waiting another six months to take your next exam.
Contact us
You can contact us with your feedback and suggestions for Velocity at velocity@cimaglobal.com.