Beginners Guide To Choose Best Courses With BCom

With the increasing competition in the job market, having an "X-factor" to land a decent job is non-negotiable. A professional course rather than just a B.Com is necessary if one wants to do better than decent. Pursuing additional short-term courses with a BCom degree gives students an upper hand in finance. If you choose courses like US CPA, US CMA, ACCA, EA, and so on with B.Com degree, they can guarantee you better career opportunities. India and other significant countries highly value these courses. Below are some amazing professional certification courses to consider.

Key Takeaways

• Certified Public Accountant

• Certified Management Accountant

• The Association of Chartered Certified Accountants

• Enrolled Agent

CPA: Certified Public Accountant

As the name suggests, CPAs (Certified Public Accountants) are accounting professionals authorised by the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants (AICPA) and have global recognition. If you are looking for a career path after 12th grade or after completing a BCom, a CPA is an amazing choice. They deal in various accounting and financial fields like financial accounting and reporting, audit and attestation, regulation, and business environment concepts. Their scope of work includes assisting their clients in making various accounting and financial decisions to keep them safe and prospering. We divide the US CPA course into four parts to help students better understand the various accounting and finance-related concepts. The course also ensures that the students have extensive practical knowledge; therefore, practical work experience in accounting is mandatory. However, the duration of such training may vary depending on the jurisdiction.

Certified Management Accountant (CMA)

Students who have completed their bachelor of commerce degree and are looking for the best courses available should consider CMA. The US CMA is a prestigious course that is famous in different countries around the world. This course sets the global standard for accounting and finance professionals. Once you become a CMA, you can get various job roles, both in India and abroad.

To qualify as a US CMA, students must pass a two-part examination, each with six sections, i.e., 12 sections. While the exam is extensive, with dedication and hard work, the course can be completed in six to nine months with expert training partners like NorthStar Academy. Students also get a three-examination window to qualify for this exam. Further, pre-qualification requirements in accounting, finance, and economics and a minimum training requirement as a finance or accounting professional ensure that CMAs certified by the IMA are dependable and top industry experts.

The Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (ACCA)

Students with a comprehensive understanding of accountancy can enhance their career prospects with an ACCA course. The ACCA course prepares students to become highly reputed accountants and is available for commerce students. The degree has global recognition in over 180 countries. Being a comprehensive degree in accounting, the ACCA stands equal to several international accounting courses, like India's CA. However, with its global recognition and more accommodating eligibility criteria, the course offers better opportunities for young accountants than several other courses.

With an ACCA degree, students can land major positions: public accountant, finance analyst, finance reporter, finance manager, tax analyst, finance manager, CFO, auditor, etc. But before that, students have to qualify for the three levels of exam set by the ACCA:

The first stage of the ACCA is applied knowledge. The stage focuses on introducing the students to the basic accounting concepts, thereby building a solid base.

The second stage is applied skills, which is more rigorous than the first. The course consists of six subjects to sharpen the students' accounting skills.

People consider the third stage, known as the strategic professional, to be the most challenging of the three. Here, the focus is on nurturing students' strategic and critical thinking skills to turn them into young professionals.

Exemptions

The ACCA course has provisions for exemption from certain exams. However, to qualify for such exemptions, students must have some pre-qualification in accounting. The exemption level depends on the expertise previously gained through such courses. Following are the courses that are eligible for exemption, along with the quantum of exemption:

• The Bachelor of Commerce is the first course to qualify for an exemption. A student with an undergraduate degree in Bachelor of Commerce can avail of up to five exemptions while pursuing their ACCA degree.
• The second course to get an exemption is CA Inter-CCMA India Inter. So, if students have cleared the inter-level examination in the CA or CMA courses, they can avail of exemptions for up to six papers.
• The third and final course is Fully Qualified CA & CPA to get an exemption under the ACCA course. This course also gets nine exemptions, as a fully qualified CA or CPA is considered an accounting expert.

EA: Enrolled Agent

After completing a bachelor of commerce, pursuing the EA course is a good option. It is especially an amazing option for students with a strong foundation. An Enrolled Agent, popularly known as an EA, is a tax practitioner authorised by the Internal Revenue Service (IRS). The EA enjoys 100% representation rights in all states, regardless of geography or other restrictions. Further, as an IRS-authorised professional, an Enrolled Agent (EA) is empowered to represent taxpayers, provide tax preparation services, and offer tax advice and advocacy.

As their scope of work is wide and important, the EA students must develop a keen understanding of the various taxation laws. Therefore, they must pass a rigorous examination that is divided into three levels:

• Level one, the individual level, covers taxation laws applicable to individuals. With time, individuals have ventured into varied financial dynamics, and individual taxation has become complicated. Given this factor, the Enrolled Agent syllabus now includes a variety of subjects on the topic.
   
• Level two of the US EA exam, Business Level, is the most extensive of all three levels in terms of subjects covered. It covers tax and taxation laws for businesses and business entities, which have always been tricky and have become even more complex with time. Therefore, the second level of the EA exams has several comprehensive subjects to prepare students for such complexities and difficulties.
   
• The third and final level of the US EA examination, Representation, Practices, and Procedures, is the most unique. The students are trained to practice and represent themselves in front of the IRS. In some ways, this level is about the practical application of theoretical knowledge.
   

In terms of examination and qualification, all three exams are 100% objective and total 130 marks each. To qualify, students must attain a minimum score of 105 in each exam. Once they have started the course, students have ample time. They have two years to clear the remaining two exams, and there are numerous chances to retake an exam they cannot qualify for.

 

Conclusion

A generic B.Com or MBA, or maybe Chartered Accountant, Financial Analyst, Cost Accounting, or Law if you feel daring, is not the end for BCom graduates in 2024. Unlike earlier, there are many more options for BCom degree holders in all fields of commerce, enabling students to choose the right career. There is something for all BCom students, from taxation to cost and management, from law to accounting, auditing, budgeting, risk management, and financial management. 

 These courses enhance students' knowledge and skills and open the door to international job opportunities, allowing them to practice worldwide. With several undergraduate courses after 12th commerce, you do not have to wait for your bachelor's to be completed to pursue these professional courses. You can pursue several of them with your graduation. This provides students with a comprehensive understanding of the field, resulting in the best career options. However, these comprehensive courses at B.Com require students to be hard-working and dedicated. One must also use quality study material and learn from professional lecturers with expertise and long-standing experience. Students who are interested in pursuing a degree to enhance their career should choose the right college.

 Sir M. Irfat, lovingly known as "the God of Costing," is the epitome of an excellent teacher. With several national and international degrees, like CA, CPA, CMA USA, and CIMA UK, under his belt, Sir M. Irfat at NorthStar Academy ensures that his students excel academically and win professionally. So, if you want to pursue short-term courses like ACCA, EA, etc., join our courses and prepare for your success.