Can you get Certified Management Accountant (CMA) credentials without a relevant college degree, or will you have to return to the school?
You can, indeed, become a CMA without an accounting degree. If you are a detail-centered numbers person and think a career as a CMA may be perfect for you, there are numerous recipes for success. But don’t let your lack of an accounting certification keep you back from a promising career as a CMA.
So, read on to know how you can become a CMA without an accounting degree.
Kick-start with Reference Materials
Get versed with accounting basics. You can browse your local bookstore or library for the same sorts of textbooks that you may use in an ‘Accounting 101’ lecture in college. Go through them top-to-bottom and jot down notes to help you grasp the content quicker.
Education Requisites
For CMA, you need to fulfill either of the following education benchmarks:
Hold a bachelor’s degree. Luckily, the Institute of Management Accountants (IMA) allows a bachelor curriculum that lasts at least 3 years.
Have a professional accounting credential. The IMA has an entire list, which includes the Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA), the Certified Internal Auditor (CIA), the Chartered Accountant (CA) from India and the UK and India, and so on.
If you can’t tick either of these criteria, you can consider a bachelor’s in accounting or a closely associated field. As such, you’ll be aiming for the education requisites while grasping the concepts that the CMA exam will cover.
Prepare Well Before for the Exam
The IMA recommends at least 150-170 study hours per section. But that’s for those with accounting backgrounds. As such, plan on studying longer as per the level of your current accounting knowledge.
Luckily, you can leverage some tools out there to help you study and clear the exam. For instance, various CMA review providers conduct online lectures and have other learning tools that teach you the topics that’ll come on the CMA Exam.
Display Relevant Skills
You’ll need at least 2 years of full-time work experience in management accounting or financial management before you can get your CMA credential.
The good thing is that you have 7 years after you clear the CMA exam to fulfill this criterion. So even though you’re a non-accounting major, you have time to look for a full-time job and get this certification.
Furthermore, if you have attended any conferences or seminars related to accounting, mention those on your resume. This type of experience can truly appeal to potential recruiters.
Miles Education is a premier training institute for finance & accounting professionals looking to earn US CMA credentials. The focus of Miles Education has always been to up-skill students and professionals to help them be future-ready and enable their career progression through the US CMA qualification.
Committed to achieving this goal, today, Miles is the largest International CPA/CMA Review! It has been instrumental in building India's CMA ecosystem, holding offices in 20+ cities and partnerships with 160+ MNCs, including all of the Big 4s. Miles Education provides student/professional-centric services while keeping concept-based learning at its core which has helped it climb to the top ranks in the US CMA course in India.