CIMA

Company Overview

CIMA is the world’s largest professional body of management accountants offering the most relevant accounting qualification for a career in business. If you are considering a career in finance and business, the CIMA qualification will open doors with employers all over the world. As a CIMA management accountant you’ll earn more and go further. By studying CIMA, and going on to become a CIMA member, you will join the world′s largest professional body of management accountants. Anyone can study CIMA, whether you′re new to business and accounting or an experienced professional. If you already have qualifications you may not need to sit all of the exams in the CIMA qualfiication. Find out more by visiting www.cimaglobal.com/gradlink

What key advice would you give to Uk students/graduates who would like to work for your company?

Here at CIMA we want to ensure you′re equipped with the right skills when entering the workplace. Studying the CIMA qualification will set you apart from your peers as it shows dedication and motivation. We have also pulled together some advice to help when applying for jobs. Don’t panic if you’ve not got any relevant work experience under your belt yet. Grab other opportunities to develop your skills; part time jobs, sports, hobbies and clubs all count. The ability to demonstrate the skills you have developed, and relate them to the requirements of the job, is more important than where they were acquired. How well do you really know yourself? Self awareness is the number one skill that employers report is lacking, particularly in graduates, and they often test for it by asking you to critique your performance at assessment centre. In order to become more self aware it is important to figure out what your strengths are, know what motivates you, identify your core values and be aware of any habits and weaknesses. Now you know yourself really well. There’s someone else you need to get to know; the employer. Do your research, look at employers’ websites and get to know the company you’re applying to really well. Make sure you are able to articulate why you want to work for them specifically and tailor your applications to meet their requirements. It also helps to show you have researched professional qualifications on offer, that you are aware, for example, that the CIMA qualification is particularly suited to those wishing to enter industry. Commercial awareness. We’ve all heard of it. And most of us think we’ve got it. But what does it actually mean? Put simply, commercial awareness is all about having some understanding of the business world. It is all about being able to look at situations from a commercial perspective and keeping up to date with business news. There are other skills that employers are looking for in potential recruits and can help prove your worth. If you’ve got an interview or assessment centre coming up prepare to be evaluated on a number of different areas including initiative, enthusiasm, client handling, group work, leadership, report writing and presentation skills.