CA IPCC Exam Weights, Study Plan, Tips, Pass Rates, Fees

If you have already appeared and cleared your CPT, you are very well aware of ICAI or the Institute (as students like to call it). ICAI stands for Institute of Chartered Accountants of India, which is the heart and soul of chartered accountancy. It helps students with examinations, training, seminars, articles, etc.

In this article, we discuss the CA IPCC Exam in detail –

As per the rules laid out by the Institute, the following are the various routes available for appearing in the IPCC Exam.

As mentioned above, there are three ways of entry. To finally appear for the examination, the following steps need to be followed:

As mentioned above, there are three ways of entry. To finally appear for the examination, the following steps need to be followed:

1. First and foremost, if you meet any of the above criteria, enroll yourself for Group I or Group II or both groups of Intermediate (IPC) Courses.
2. Attend the orientation program (duration: 1 week) organized by the Institute.
3. Complete the Information Technology Training (ITT) of 100 hours.
4. Complete eight months of study from the enrollment date to the first day of the month when the examination is to be held.
5. Over and above, you need to register for practical training for three years. You need to complete nine months of training of these three years before appearing in the examination. This point applies only to Graduates/Postgraduates who opt for a Direct Entry Route.

There are seven subjects in all, divided into two groups of 4 and 3 subjects respectively. The purpose of forming groups is to opt for appearing in any one of the two groups or both groups together at your convenience.

The minimum passing marks required in each subject is 40. Easy, isn't it?

But since this is the Chartered Accountancy course we are talking about, how can things be so simple?

The twist here is that your subjects matter when you clear the entire group. A minimum of 200 marks in group 1 and 150 marks in group 2 is required to clear a group.

If the above has demoralized you, here is the good news – if you get 60 marks in any of the subjects, even though you might not clear the sectional cut-off, you are exempted from appearing on this subject in your next attempts.

Let us understand this with the following example:

CA IPCC exams are held twice in a year - May and November. They begin in the first week of these months, and the timetable is issued by the Institute well in advance.

Paper 1: Accounting (100 marks)

As the course itself is chartered accountancy, accounting plays an important role in the curriculum. Therefore, the syllabus concentrates on company accounts regarding various accounting standards. It will also help understand the complications of Financial Statements.

Useful Tip:

• The best way to deal with this subject is to practice as many questions as possible. Make a habit of solving solutions using pen and paper.
• Many students read the solution and understand it visually, which is important, but you cannot stop after understanding.
• What needs to be done is to solve the question and arrive at the final solution yourself.
• This will help you realize how much you have understood.

Paper 2: Business Laws, Ethics and Communication (100 marks)        

This subject is divided into the following subparts:

Part A – Business Laws (30 marks)

Some important acts are relevant for a prospective Chartered Accountant from this subject. Accordingly, the Indian Contract Act, 1982, has the maximum weightage in this section.

Part B – Company Laws (30 marks)

This section focuses completely on the Companies Act, 2013. Various relevant sections about the basics of a company, accounting, auditing, taxation, etc., are covered.

Part C – Ethics (20 marks)

The Institute wants its students to understand the importance of ethics and inculcate ethical behavior early on. This section gives an overview of the ethical environment, workplace ethics, threats towards ethical behavior, etc.

Part D – Communication (20 marks)

This covers business communication (written and verbal), such as emails, drafting letters, group dynamics, etc.

Useful Tip:

• It is easier to score well with four different sub-parts of this subject.
• Ethics and Communications do sound easy but do not take them lightly.
• It becomes easier to capitalize on them and secure 60 plus marks to clear the group.

Paper 3: Cost Accounting and Financial Management (100 marks)

This subject is divided into the following subparts:

Part A – Cost Accounting (50 marks)

This subject is about accounting and control of costs. People generally believe that Cost Accounting will apply to a factory environment. However, this is not the case. The service industry can also apply to concepts of Cost Accounting.

Part B – Financial Management (50 marks)

This subject is concerned with planning and controlling an organization's resources in layman language. It helps to understand the difference between wealth maximization and profit maximization. Accounting is done after the transactions occur, but financial management plays a very important role in the organization's future.

Useful Tip:

• It is not a theory-based subject, and needless to say, concept-based understanding is a must.
• Solving the previous year's question papers will give you a good hold on the subject.

Paper 4: Taxation (100 marks)

A prospective Chartered Accountant should have in-depth knowledge about the latest tax laws in a country. The subject is divided into the following parts to cover India's most important Direct & Indirect Taxes.

• Part A – Income Tax (50 marks)
• Part B – Service Tax (25 marks)
• Part C – VAT (25 marks)

Useful Tip:

• It is of utmost importance to check which Financial Year (Assessment Year) does the syllabus pertains to.
• The syllabus for May & November examinations might pertain to different Financial Years.
• Secondly, it is also good to stay updated about the latest case laws. They do appear in the examination as case study questions.

The three subjects which form a part of Group 2 are as follows:

Paper 5: Advanced Accounting (100 marks)

As you have seen, the first subject of Group 2 is also accounting. Company Accounts plays a role in this subject as well. However, this subject also gives weightage to Financial Statements of Insurance Companies & Banking Companies.

Useful Tip:

• As mentioned earlier, solving is important for Accounting.
• You also need to understand that your final solution may be wrong, but the steps involved in solving the question also carry weightage.
• So do not jump to the final solution. All detailed work should form a part of your answer.

Paper 6: Auditing & Assurance (100 marks)

Accounting and auditing are two sides of the same coin. If accounting is the heart of the Chartered Accountancy course, then auditing is the soul of the course. In simple words, auditing ensures the completeness and accuracy of Financial Accounts.

Useful Tip:

• Try to think that you are the owner of a multinational company that wants the accounts, processes, etc., in your company, to be perfect.
• And you will conduct an audit of the company.
• With this perspective in mind, most of the subject's concepts will seem logical and easy to understand/remember.

Paper 7: Information Technology and Strategic Management (100 marks)

Part A – Information Technology (50 marks)

With the advent of technology, the accounting and auditing profession has also changed. Information Technology is introduced to understand the integration between IT and Accounting.

Part B – Strategic Management (50 marks)

The accounting function has always taken a backseat when it comes to strategic business decisions. Still, the role of a Chartered Accountant is evolving, and this subject gives a fair idea about the role of management in strategic decisions.

Useful Tip:

• IT will have a lot of jargon. Be sure to use the jargon well in the exams to score extra marks. Case studies in the Strategic Management exam are interesting.
• Try and visualize things in a real-life scenario before answering the questions.
• Apply logic as far as possible.

The Institute designs the course curriculum and publishes the subject modules (books). They are very extensive and cover every topic in detail.

The volume is huge; students find it difficult to revise from modules. Making personal notes is a good way to revise and brush up on concepts during and before exams.

Apart from the modules, Institute also has the following material readily available on their websites and can also be available in hard copy from their listed centers:

1. Previous year exam papers along with suggested answers
2. Revision Test papers (It is advisable to go through these test papers thoroughly. They are available separately for each exam, and the latest two RTPs should be referred at the least)
3. PowerPoint presentations and webcasts are also available for many topics.

Also note, other reference books are available in the market. Many students prefer these publications rather than the modules.

As already mentioned above, the Institute has given you the liberty to choose the groups as per the convenience of the students. This decision is a tough one, and the following pointers might help you decide:

1. The most important advantage of giving both the groups together is the group totals are added up while considering the sectional passing cut-offs. This means that if you clear the individual subjects in both groups and receive 210 in group 1 and 140 in group 2, you will still pass the exam because you meet the overall cut-off of 350 marks.
2. There is always an overall amongst subjects. If you study the entire curriculum in one go, you understand the holistic perspective, which helps in conceptual understanding.
3. The syllabus is not rocket science, but it is vast, and there are many things to understand and retain. One reading does not suffice. So people with good retention power can opt for both the groups together.
4. The availability of time is also a key factor to be considered. People working may not get sufficient time to concentrate on studies and opt for individual groups.
5. There is no restriction on giving any back-to-back attempts. If you give a particular group in May, you do not have to wait for years before appearing for the next group. It is just a matter of 6 months. There is a lot of flexibility available here, which can be leveraged easily.

It is a known fact that clearing CA exams is not easy. The pass percentages are lower than 10% in these exams. But this should not demotivate you from choosing this career path. There may be 90% of people who do not clear, but there are 10% who do, and that is what matters.

The good part about the CA course is that it is very cheap compared to other courses. So monetarily, not much is at stake. Of course, you invest time and effort, but it is worth it in the end.

The Institute keeps posting updates about the course, registration timelines, exam dates, etc., on its website very frequently. Therefore, it is advisable to visit the website regularly and stay updated.

ICAI website – www.icai.org

Lastly, constant and persistent efforts will help you crack the exam. So all the best and keep at it.

• CA vs. Cfa
• CA vs. MBA
• CA vs. CPA
• CA vs. FRM salary