Bhopal (Madhya Pradesh): Chartered Accountancy (CA) has emerged as one of the favourite career choices of students from Madhya Pradesh. Around 22,000 students in the state are at various stages of completing the CA course - Foundation, Intermediate and Final.

The state has around 12,500 qualified chartered accountants. Around 800 students from the state qualify the CA examination every year. The pass percentage has grown from 5% in 2010 to 14% -15% now.

According to chairman of the Bhopal branch of ICAI (Institute of Chartered Accountants of India), Arpit Rai , the papers are as tough as ever but what has changed is that resources are now available to students to help them make better preparations.

The ICAI conducts online coaching and abundant study material is available online as well as offline. Also seminars and knowledge-gaining sessions are organised for the aspirants. On an average, four such events take place every month,” he says.

The period of articleship has been reduced from three years to two and that also means that the students have more time for preparation. “Chartered Accountancy is no longer only about audit,” Rai said, adding that there is demand for CAs in almost all financial sectors like manufacturing, trading, MSMEs, financing, GST, Income Tax, mergers and acquisitions and consultancy.

The ICAI is known for upgrading and changing course content to keep up with the changes. When AI came, within six months, the ICAI upgraded its syllabus and launched courses in AI for both students as well as professionals.

Rajesh Jain, a senior chartered accountant , said that while earlier graduation was the minimum qualification for enrollment in CA courses, now students can go for the profession after Class 12. “This has led to more intelligent students taking up this profession. Earlier, medicine, engineering and civil services were the choices of the students

How CA course is different from earlier

• Intermediate will now have six papers instead of eight (three in each group)

• Final will now have six papers instead of eight (three in each group)

• A new paper has been added in the final level which will be based on a case study.

• Company Law and Business Law have been combined together.

• Stipend has been increased.

• Case study based paper now in place of open book elective.

• Emphasis on ethics, corporate governance, strategic thinking and technology in the core subject.

• The syllabus has been updated according to the global standards and industry requirements.