CIMA

Chartered Institute of Management Accountants

Do you want to be the go-to person in your job for all things finance? Progress in your career with the CIMA qualification. Become a chartered management accountant and work in businesses, lending your expertise in any industry you choose.

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CIMA Certificate in Business Accounting ›

CIMA Professional Operational ›

CIMA Professional Management ›

CIMA Professional Strategic ›

About CIMA

If you’re looking to develop your accountancy skills to lead finance departments or provide management accounting consultancy, CIMA is your ticket. CIMA is split into Certificate, a standalone ‘beginner’ qualification, and Professional, which is split into three levels: Operational, Management, and Strategic.

CIMA Certificate in Business Accounting is the entry level qualification into business accounting. No prior knowledge or qualifications are needed. If you have an accountancy or finance degree, or are AAT qualified, you may be eligible to start studying CIMA at the Professional qualification. Otherwise, you must complete the Certificate in Business Accounting first. We provide training for all levels, and we offer four study methods to suit your lifestyle: OnDemand, Classroom, Live Online, and Distance Learning.

Our courses and study material are designed to give you the support you need to succeed, however with all of our courses there is an expectation that you will need to study outside of your scheduled or recorded classes.

The amount of additional time needed will vary per study method, but even with our Live Online and Classroom courses there will be question practice and additional study that will be needed outside of the course material.

At Kaplan we want you to succeed in your qualification, and will support you every step of the way, but we need you to put in the effort too. Practice makes perfect, so make sure to leave as much time as possible for exam preparation and practice questions.

£63k

AVERAGE SALARY

3-4 yrs

AVERAGE TIME TO COMPLETE

96%

FTSE 100 FIRMS EMPLOY CIMA ACCOUNTANTS

179

COUNTRIES THAT CIMA OPERATES IN

CIMA is made up of four levels:

Certificate in Business Accounting keyboard_arrow_up keyboard_arrow_down

The Certificate in Business Accounting (Cert BA) is your starting point if you’re new to accountancy. You’ll learn the fundamentals of business economics, financial accounting, management accounting, and ethical considerations of commercial activity. Most students take around 12 months to complete the qualification, which consists of four subjects, assessed by computer-based exams.

Once you’ve passed this qualification, you can work in roles such as accounts clerk or within administration roles, and earn between £25,000 - £28,000. You can then move onto studying CIMA Professional qualification, and begin with CIMA Operational.
Find out more about CIMA Certificate in Business Accounting >
Professional Operational keyboard_arrow_up keyboard_arrow_down

CIMA Operational teaches you about organisational management, costs and analysis used in production, and financial reporting and taxation. You also take a Case Study, which tests your overall knowledge of the level. You’ll take around 12 months to complete the level.

After completing this level, you can move into roles such as a financial analyst or management accountant, and earn up to £33,000. You can then move onto the CIMA Management level.
Find out more about CIMA Professional Operational >
Professional Management keyboard_arrow_up keyboard_arrow_down

CIMA Management equips you with the skills to perform advanced management accounting and advanced financial reporting tasks. You’ll learn how to manage companies, from internal and external contexts. You also take a Case Study, which tests your overall knowledge of the level. You’ll take around 12 months to complete the level.

After you pass this level, you can become a fund accountant, financial accountant, or management accountant, and earn up to £34,000. You can then move onto the CIMA Strategic level.
Find out more about CIMA Professional Management >
Professional Strategic keyboard_arrow_up keyboard_arrow_down

CIMA Strategic develops your leadership and strategic management abilities, and teaches you about risk management and financial strategy. You also take a Case Study, which tests your overall knowledge of the level. You’ll take around 12 months to complete the level.

After completing this level, you can work in challenging and rewarding roles like financial controller, managing director, and financial manager. As a chartered accountant, you could be looking at a starting salary of £35,000, rising to £63,000 and above as you progress in your career. After being chartered for five years, you can look forward to working in roles such as head of finance or CFO.
Find out more about CIMA Professional Strategic >

Other CIMA courses

CIMA Gateway keyboard_arrow_up keyboard_arrow_down

If you have an MBA or Masters in Accountancy, CIMA Gateway allows you to progress straight to the Strategic Level of the CIMA Professional Qualification upon successful completion of the Management Level Case Study exam (the Gateway exam).

Gateway students are exempt from all Certificate and Operational subjects and all Management level Objective Test exams. You start at Management Case Study. After this you will then move straight onto the standard Strategic level courses.
Find out more about CIMA Gateway >

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For information on CIMA, and to help you get started, view our free guide.

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Why study CIMA with Kaplan?

When studying with us, you get complete support throughout your entire CIMA learning experience.
Our expert tutors provide support until late, seven days a week.
We offer four study options that suit a range of different learning styles and lifestyles, and our pass rates consistently exceed the national average.

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Stuck or need to speak to someone? Contact a tutor 7 days a week. Get an instant response by Live Chat, or within 4 working hours by email. UK students can request a callback.

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8 out of the top 10 UK accountancy firms have employees studying with us.

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Official CIMA publisher

We’re the only official CIMA publisher, meaning you can study with confidence in your learning materials.

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4 ways to study

Whether you prefer online study, or learning in a classroom, you’ll find a study option to suit your lifestyle.

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4 ways to pay

Pay directly online, invoice your employer, or choose from more flexible options like interest free payment plans, or study through an Apprenticeship. Terms and conditions apply.

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100s of practice questions

Get exam confident with testing at every stage of your studies, including 100s of practice questions and marked mock exams that look like the real exams.

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“Kaplan is the best CIMA provider. They know what they are doing and what they are talking about. Their material is the best available. No wonder Kaplan is the oﬃcial CIMA Publishing partner!”

Vivi Sargioti
Kaplan CIMA Live Online student

“The tutors have surpassed my expectations in making the classes easy to understand, interesting and enjoyable.”

Frank Fagan
Kaplan CIMA classroom student

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If you’re not sure how you’d like to study CIMA, you can try out our free demo or trials below, which demonstrate all our study methods. All you need to do is sign up, and you’ll have access to some of the real study materials our students work with.