A career as a Chartered Accountant has many rewards. Chartered Accountants are in great demand for their combination of technical skills and practical experience: becoming one opens doors.

If you want a career path that includes broader management and business leadership opportunities than simply accounting, becoming a Chartered Accountant will give you a head start.

For those looking at this challenging yet rewarding profession, the Chartered Accountants Program is widely regarded as the leading industry qualification in Australia.

As well as entitling you to membership of the country’s foremost industry body, completing the Program opens up doors to work in other countries: the Institute of Chartered Accountants is Australia’s only member of the Global Accounting Alliance.

So, what are the steps you need to take to become a Chartered Accountant?

Becoming a Chartered Accountant

For students outside Australia who wish to become a Chartered Accountant, the process is as follows:

1. Academic qualifications: you will need qualifications that are the equivalent to an Australian Bachelor’s degree. The Institute is authorised by the Australian Government to undertake skills assessment - for more details, see our Skills assessment for migration article.


2. A visa: you will need a visa that allows you to both study and work in Australia. See our article on Visa requirements for more information.


3. Employment: you need to be employed with an organisation that is recognised by the Institute. To find out more, please see our article on Finding employment.


4. Pre-enrol on the Program: once you’re employed in an accountancy role, pre-enrol in the Program, and start recording your work experience. You can enrol online.


5. Complete 26 weeks of work experience: you need to have had at least 26 weeks (or the equivalent part-time experience) under the supervision of a Chartered Accountant mentor before you can enrol in the Program.


6. Enrol in your first module: the Program has five modules. Completing all five modules will take around two years.


7. Mentoring: at the same time as you take your modules, you will need to complete three years practical experience under the guidance of a Chartered Accountant mentor.

If successful, at the end of this process, you will be qualified as a Chartered Accountant.

The Chartered Accountants Program in Asia

As well as offering the Program in Australia, it is also available in Malaysia and Singapore.

Because the Program is a gateway to membership of the Institute of Chartered Accountants in Australia, modules are based on Australian accounting and auditing standards and legislation.

From September 2009, new Malaysian candidates will enrol in a course delivered by the Malaysian Institute of Certified Public Accountants and will be eligible to apply for membership in both countries upon completion of the program. Candidates will study a customised tax module that reflects Malaysian tax regulations.