CLARIFICATION APPENDED*
Accounting students take note.
After accepting an invitation by the Institute of Management Accountants, Boston University became the only university in New England to offer a preparatory course for the Certified Management Accountant examination.
The new online course was launched in January.
The course is run by the Center for Professional Education, a segment of Metropolitan College and Extended Education, and covers all four areas of the exam, including Business Analysis, Management Accounting and Reporting, Strategic Management and Business Applications.
CPE Director Ruth Ann Murray said the program could help BU’s accounting students shape their future career paths if they take advantage of it.
Murray said while most students work toward becoming Certified Public Accountants after graduation, most go on to careers as CMAs instead and lack the preferred certification.
Murray said the difference between the two is that a CPA “prepares and does audits or tax returns” while a CMA “handles a company’s own finances.”
Murray said students should think about the advantages of taking the CMA exam as soon as possible because studies suggest students and recent graduates score higher than accountants who have been out of school for a long time.
“It would give new grads a credential that other graduates won’t have,” she said, “which could give them a competitive edge in the marketplace. It would show a student’s dedication towards the profession, not to mention their ability to pass a challenging exam.”
Murray said higher salaries are the biggest benefit of becoming a certified CMA. In 2005, CMAs earned 19 percent more than CPAs and 89 percent more than non-certified accountants, according to a study by Smartpros.com that compared salaries within the industry.
Murray said although some work experience is required to become a certified CMA, passing the exam as a student or before that experience is achieved qualifies the person as a candidate.
Murray said most of the program’s participants already have a Bachelors of Arts or Masters of Arts degree in accounting and have worked in the industry for several years.
“Part of our job [at the CPE] is to offer courses current to a particular profession,” she said. “All of our programs are high-quality programs taught by field practitioners who understand the content and the market.”
Murray said while the classroom program, which began in 2004, and the online program have different formats and a different set of materials, they are both excellent ways to prepare for the exam.
“Our programs are based on the new body of knowledge and are taught by experienced faculty members who have high pass-rates for their students,” she said.
*CLARIFICATION: The IMA invited Boston University to offer a classroom version of the preparatory course for the Certified Management Accountant examination, not the online version, as is indicated in the second and third paragraphs. The Center for Professional Education developed the online course on its own, not through the IMA.