Skip to content

CIMA's CGMA Professional Qualification

Chartered Institute of Management Accountants

Among the world’s most recognised finance qualifications, we offer CIMA (Chartered Institute of Management Accountants) courses online to provide you with everything you need to further your career, all available whenever you need it. CIMA sets the standard for management accountancy training, and once completed, you’ll be awarded with Chartered Global Management Accountant (CGMA) status.
  • Billed every 3 months. Cancel anytime.

  • 12-months access - Save 24%

Average salary

£66k

No formal entry requirements

Average time to complete

3 years

Members worldwide

Over 690,000

Join the ranks of chartered management accountants with our CIMA courses online

Arm yourself with the skills, knowledge and confidence required for a career in management accountancy with CIMA online courses. CIMA’s CGMA Professional Qualification is structured around three learning pillars: Enterprise, Performance and Financial. When studying CIMA’s CGMA PQ, you’ll learn more about the role that finance plays in an organisation, and how to manage data and information in the digital world. Once completed, you will be a Chartered Global Management Accountant (CGMA), with a sound knowledge of strategic decision-making, cyber risks and business valuation.

What is CIMA’s CGMA Professional Qualification?

CIMA’s CGMA PQ is designed to offer valuable expertise in accounting, management and finance for those looking to become a chartered global management accountant.

What does CIMA stand for?

CIMA stands for Chartered Institute of Management Accountants.

What does CGMA stand for?

CGMA stands for Chartered Global Management Accountant.

CIMA Certificate in Business Accounting levels

CIMA Certificate in Business Accounting:

  • The Certificate in Business Accounting is for those with no accounting experience who want to go on to study CIMA’s CGMA Professional Qualification.

CIMA’s CGMA Professional Qualification:

  • Graduates with a relevant degree in business/finance looking to kickstart their management accountancy career
  • Learners who already have a relevant AAT/ACCA qualification, or have passed the CIMA Certificate in Business Accounting.
  • Postgraduates with a relevant Master’s degree in Accounting, Finance or an MBA (Accounting Major)
  • Ambitious, open-minded learners that want the freedom and flexibility that comes with studying part-time

Entry requirements

There are no formal entry requirements for those looking to study the CIMA Certificate in Business Accounting. For CIMA's CGMA Professional Qualification, and to start studying for these exams you must have completed the Business Accounting qualification (which is included in this subscription) or have relevant exemptions. Visit the CIMA website to check whether you are eligible to study CIMA courses online or are exempt from any of the exams.

Assessments

Each level of the course will involve assessments that you will need to sit separately. The Business Accounting Course involves four papers, which typically take 12 months to complete. Following this, CIMA's CGMA Professional Qualification is divided into three achievement levels, and for each level you will need to complete four computer-based exams – three objective test exams and one written case study exam. It usually takes around 3 years to complete CIMA's CGMA professional Qualification, but this will depend upon the time you have available to allocate to your study.

What does the ACCA syllabus cover?

Designed to help you pass, our ACCA courses cover 100% of each subject that you need to study, along with ample practice questions and notes for revision.

CIMA syllabus

The CIMA Syllabus consists of the CIMA Certificate in Business Accounting and CIMA’s CGMA Professional Qualification. Certificate in Business Accounting is Level 1. The CGMA Professional Qualification is split into 3 levels, Operational, Management and Strategic, making up Level 2, 3 and 4. All 4 levels are included in the StaySharp course materials, allowing you the flexibility to study what you want, when you need it, without having to switch products or pay for extra items.

The CIMA Certificate in Business Accounting (Cert BA) is a qualification in its own right and consists of four papers. Upon completion, you can progress onto the Operational level of the CGMA PQ.

  • BA1 Fundamentals of Business Economics
  • BA2 Fundamentals of Management Accounting
  • BA3 Fundamentals of Financial Accounting
  • BA4 Fundamentals of Ethics, Corporate Governance

This level focuses on short-term decision-making. You’ll learn how to implement actionable plans and report on performance. Once you pass this level, you’ll be awarded with a CIMA Diploma in Management Accounting (CIMA Dip MA) and will be able to progress to the Management Level.

  • E1 Managing Finance in a Digital World
  • P1 Management Accounting
  • F1 Financial Reporting
  • Operational Level Case Study

This level is all about how to translate long-term decisions into medium-term plans. You’ll understand how to manage individual and organisational performance and gain a deeper understanding of how to monitor
and report on decision-making. Pass this level and you’ll receive the CIMA Advanced Diploma in Management Accounting (CIMA Adv Dip MA).

  • E2 Managing Performance
  • P2 Advanced Management Accounting
  • F2 Advanced Financial Reporting
  • Management Level Case Study

The final level is centred around strategic, long-term decision-making. Once you pass this level, you’ll be granted the Chartered Global Management Accountant (CGMA) designation, and will be able to advise organisational leaders around strategy, risk management and business valuations.

  • E3 Strategic Management
  • P3 Risk Management
  • F2 Financial Strategy
  • Strategic Level Case Study

What does the CIMA subscription include?

100% syllabus coverage

Gain access to all CIMA certificate levels within the CIMA syllabus as part of your subscription – providing all the learning content you need to pass your exams.

BPP learning resources

Approved BPP learning resources, videos, study notes and reading materials.

BPP's Achievement Ladder

Access to BPP’s Achievement Ladder to progress you to exam success.

No financial tie-ins

Ultimate flexibility around your timescales; stop and restart at any time. You’ll only pay for the time it takes you to complete with our monthly subscription.

No upfront costs or contracts - just a simple monthly subscription

Our subscription-led pricing means you can study at a pace that suits you. Sign up, get started, and hit pause whenever you need to.

  • Prepaid plan

    £550

    one-off payment

    12-months access

    Pay up front and access all your CIMA Courses online learning materials for 12 months.

    A one-off payment of £550 will be taken from your confirmed payment details and you will have access to your learning materials for 12 months.

    Please note that you will need to select the monthly subscription if you want to access the free 14-day trial.

  • Quarterly Subscription

    £150

    billed every 3 months

    Save 20%*

    An initial payment of £150 will be taken from your confirmed payment details. You will be billed every 3 months until you cancel your subscription.

    Please note that you will need to select the monthly subscription if you want to access the free 14-day trial.

    *save 20% compared to equivalent subscription length on the monthly subscription plan.

  • Monthly subscription

    £60

    billed monthly

    Free 14-day trial

    Subscribe now to access your 14-day free trial. You can cancel at any point before the end of the 14 days without being charged.

    Once the trial period is over, a recurring monthly payment of £60 will be taken from your confirmed payment details every 30 days until you cancel your subscription.

Frequently asked questions

  • CIMA stands for the Chartered Institute of Management Accountants. CIMA courses online offer learners a more accessible and manageable way to pursue the CIMA study path. CIMA certification is highly respected within the world of accounting.

  • The CIMA qualification combines accounting, finance and management with the business skills and techniques you’ll need to add real value to any organisation. The CIMA structure of courses covers all the skills required for many entry, mid and high level accounting roles.

  • You can choose to pay monthly with our flexible subscription plan, or opt for a one-off payment option which gives you access to the same content for 12 months. If your employer is funding your course, you can download an invoice from your account.

  • Our monthly subscription cost includes access to all the learning resources you need to prepare for your exams, but you will need to book your exams separately. The cost of each CIMA exam varies, but they currently start from £105. For more information, please visit the CIMA website.

  • It can take, on average, around 3 years to complete your CIMA course. However, the answer to the question how long does CIMA take will vary between learners - you may study at a pace that’s faster or slower than this, and you might need to resit some of your exams if you don’t pass first time. You will also need 3 years relevant work experience before you can become a fully qualified CIMA Member (though you can study and sit the exams without needing any prior experience).

  • The entire CIMA Professional Qualification is exam-based. Each level includes three objective test exams (which are 90 minutes long) as well as a 3-hour case study exam. Our CIMA online courses contain everything you will need to study to prepare you to pass your exams.

  • As you progress through the qualification, you will be CIMA part qualified. This means that you have completed certain exams and CIMA courses online but have not finished the qualification’s modules yet.

  • Both the objective tests and case study exams are available to sit throughout the year. You can choose to take your exams in over 5,000 Pearson VUE assessment centres worldwide or at home via remote invigilation.

  • Due to the need to protect intellectual property, it is not possible to download the majority of course materials. An active internet connection is required to authenticate your account and access your learning content. Some video materials are available to download for later viewing.

Video Testimonials

Hear from StaySharp learners

Ellen Sheehan
CIPD Level 3 Foundation Certificate in People Practice
Henry Wright
CIPD Level 3 Foundation Certificate in People Practice
Katy Baetjer
CIPD Level 3 Foundation Certificate in People Practice
Michael Reid
CIPD Level 5 Associate Diploma in People Management

Read our reviews

Fantastic service at a brilliant price point. Great user-friendly service and designed really intuitively. BPP's material design, study plan and live lectures are easy to learn with and let you go at your own pace - they even have recommended time to spend on each 'step' as you go which makes planning in the run up to exams easy.

Luke Anderson

Flexible way of learning, you get to access all the resources at the same time.

Dimitri

Very well structured and easy to understand, the tutor makes the study enjoyable, I recommend 100%

Shweta Bhatia

It is truly value for money. It has everything in there that you need pass your exams successfully. Supported by the ladder that you walk through until you reach your objectives.

Nasreddine Dilmi