CMA - Certified Management Accountant

Hello everybody,

I know this is not really a distance learning question, but maybe one of you knowledgeable folks has some insight, because Google did not bring back so many interesting links. Has any of you ever did the CMA - Certified Management Accountant? With a solid background in accounting, what would you think it the minimum preparation time one would need to pass? Assuming you are full time employed, being able to spend your 10-15 hours a week studying?

Many thanks in advance!

 

This is not an easy exam(perhaps easier than the CPA) you will need to eat, live and sleep this exam (that is if you do it by yourself), also it will depend on you, how good you test on it and your experience in accounting. The good thing is that you really do not have to be an accountant (but it sure helps) per Se (economics and finance are other fields accepted and two years of management accounting experience are required prior to applying for certification). If you have the accounting background and meets the CPA requirements you are better off doing the latter. There are several reviews online that guarantee your passing the exam but you must follow an strict study plan in order to qualify for the guarantee.

 

I haven't taken the CMA exam but I did read somewhere on the interwebs that the most difficult question on the CMA exam is about as hard as the easiest question on the CPA exam.

 

The CMA exam has a different focus than the CPA. There is a very large component that covers cost accounting. I would recommend using one of the test resources. They have test questions that mirror the exam. Work through a practice exam and it will help you gauge how much time you need to spend. I have a lot of accounting experience with financial statements but not so much in cost accounting. I have taken part I and was not successful. That particular part is the cost accounting component which I knew was my weakest area. I am planning to retake the exam in the near future.

 

Okay, thanks a lot - I tried this 20 question mock exam from Gleim and got 55% of the questions right, so there is for sure room for improvement. I am outside of the US, so I would have to look deeper which state would accept my education for the CPA... Decisions, decisions...

 

The CMA in the USA is from IMA - The association of accountants and financial professionals working in business, which is not a member of IFAC: IFAC Member Bodies and Associates - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Now there are other CMA designations from other countries that are members of IFAC, but given the way things are going it's a matter of:
a) does the US Based IMA CMA give you some benefit where you are now?

or

b) do you want something that's well received?

Now I am a CMA (from Canada) and I can transfer that designation to other countries. I also hold other designations but as we become more global these designations will collapse into fewer bodies.