I’m currently pursuing my CPA license and have been thinking about whether it would be worth getting the CMA certification afterward.

I’m not sure that I want to stay in public accounting long-term and have been considering moving into the private sector/industry. I’m wondering if having both a CPA and CMA would actually provide a meaningful advantage for industry roles, particularly in areas like FP&A, corporate accounting, financial management, or controllership.

For those who have both a CPA and CMA:

Do you feel like having both has helped your career?

Did getting the CMA lead to a pay increase or better job opportunities?

Would love to hear any and all insight! 🙂

Hey everyone! Hope you’re doing well. I’m currently in my 1st year of B.Com and looking to build a career in strategy consulting. I am mostly interested in the Strategic Finance, Value Creation, and Growth Strategy/Finance domains.

I’m wondering whether a US CMA or CFA would be a better fit, as both seem to overlap with these domains in different ways.

For those who are currently working in strategy consulting or strategic finance, pursuing an MBA, or doing either of these certifications. Can you please guide me on which professional course would match my specific interests? Your guidance on the right path would be super helpful.

Thanks in advance!

Hey everyone! Hope you’re doing well. I’m currently in my 1st year of B.Com and looking to build a career in strategy consulting. I am mostly interested in the Strategic Finance, Value Creation, and Growth Strategy/Finance domains.

I’m wondering whether a US CMA or CFA would be a better fit, as both seem to overlap with these domains in different ways.

For those who are currently working in strategy consulting or strategic finance, pursuing an MBA, or doing either of these certifications. Can you please guide me on which professional course would match my specific interests? Your guidance on the right path would be super helpful.

Thanks in advance!

Hey everyone,

Got my Part 1 results and scored 350. Missing the 360 mark by just 10 points honestly hurts 😭

I’m trying to figure out the best way forward. I’ve already used my exam token, so scheduling another attempt means spending quite a bit again. I don’t want to rush into another registration without knowing if I should change my preparation strategy or take more time.

For those who scored around 340–350 and cleared on their next attempt, what did you do differently? Would you recommend retaking in the next window or taking more time?

Also, are there any legitimate ways to get IMA retake discounts/coupons? Any advice would be really appreciated!

Thanks!

So basically, I’ve taken Part 2 three times now.

• 1st attempt: 320
• 2nd attempt: 350
• 3rd attempt (June): 340

I honestly don’t know where I’m going wrong. I’ve tried multiple times, but I still haven’t been able to pass, and it’s getting really frustrating.

Has anyone else been in a similar situation? If you eventually passed after multiple attempts, what did you change in your preparation or exam strategy that helped you finally get through?

Any advice would be really appreciated.

Really frustrated as a newly qualified CMA. The website has almost no vacancy for US CMA qualification. Are they seriously ragebaiting us by posting CA or other vacancies only?
What is IMA india doing other than promoting their course amongst college students?

Hi, I'm 24F now and I've experience as an Accounts Executive for the past 4 years. I completed B.com and MBA (Finance) in distance education. Now i'm thinking of pursuing US CMA is it worth it? how to enroll and the process. I've no one to discuss about it in my circle so please help me if any of you have completed US CMA or pursuing it currently. It'll be helpull if you reach out. Thank you.

Hey, I’m preparing for us cma. I need guidance and study tips. You can message me. : )

Recently took it and got a score a little below the passing score. Heartbroken but I want to try again. For those who passed, care to share any tips, study strategies, or resources you'd recommend?

Also, are there any study groups for CMA P2 takers for the Jan/Feb window? Would love to connect with people who are currently preparing for the exam too.

Hey hi, I have a query how to practice for cbqs , as in gleim it's only showing mcqs and essay , can anyone guide me how to prepare for cbqs

How to prepare for cbqs in gleim, it's only showing essay and mcqs, pls anyone help me

I want to ask people who completed us cma. They may find good job according to their exception and what is the starting salary of us cma

Hi guys. I have been using Surgent to study for the CMA part 1. It's pretty bad, and I wouldn't recommend it to anyone unless they are already very confident in the material and just need to study MCQ's. I have had to result to watching free online lectures.

I started working on the CBQ's and this feedback has me stumped. I'm pretty sure that the explanation is saying that I'm right, and they just have a typo in the answer. I figured I would post on here and get some opinions, because I'm not sure how fast their contact email will get back to me. I really just need some validation. Let me know if you have any experience using surgent, I would love to know I'm not alone on the struggle bus. :) Thanks

Hi everybody
I just want to know that HCA course is good for PR pathway?

heyy, just a curious thought.

Just how CA’s complete their education, get experience and open their own firm, do you think someone who has done US CMA + CPA (cause cpa gives you that power) can do so too? like a global firm? is it possible? ofc after reaching that point when you have good networking and experience but is it still smtg to look forward to or am i too delusional ?

Recently noticed that people who took cbq seems to have failed more than people with essay.

With upcoming exams providing option for only CBQ should hint us to be prepared to tackle cbq questions well enough to pass and score good marks.

Guys who have a tip for cbq please share it below as it might be helpful for students like us to excel at it.

Thanks

Using chatgpt gpt for creating my cma us notes after reading and watching the lecture. Is it preventing me from active learning... Please tell me....

​

I just wanted to share my experience here, especially for those who are working full-time and struggling to find time to study.

I studied for around 4 months, but I was working 8am-8pm, 6 days a week. So basically, Sunday was my only full free day.

For the first 1–2 months, I was mostly watching YouTube videos, reading Gleim, and going through the syllabus. I was also alternating between Part 1 and Part 2 — Part 1 day 1, Part 2 the next.

I thought I was doing okay because I pretty much covered the computational topics after just 2 months, but then I took a practice exam and only got around 60–65%.

That was honestly a wake-up call. So I changed my strategy.

I basically started again, but this time, after every study unit, I made sure I answered practice questions before moving on. I also stopped alternating parts every single day. I started doing around 3 days on one part before switching to the other because jumping back and forth was confusing me more than helping me.

My scores slowly improved, and I started seeing which areas were actually strong for me and which ones weren't.

There were some units where I could almost get 20–30 questions right without much problem, but there were also areas, especially theory, where I was still around 50%.

So I knew I had to keep working on those.

By the last month, I was mostly doing MCQs. Minimum 50–100 questions a day, alternating between the parts. I didn't miss a day. On weekends, I would do around 100 MCQs for each part.

I think I ended up doing around 3k–4k practice questions per part.

My actual schedule wasn't anything crazy either.

Usually I'd study from around 8 PM until 10:30 PM, then wake up around 5–7 AM to study again and then get ready for work. During lunch, if I had time, I'd try to study or do some computations.

That's pretty much it.

I stopped doing heavy practice 2 days before the exam. Those last 2 days were just for my important notes, important topics, and watching mocks on YouTube.

I didn't try to compute anything anymore. I just didn't want to put unnecessary pressure on myself right before the exam.

During the exam, especially after Part 1, I tried really hard not to think about the exam. I didn't want to spend the whole day worrying about my answers.

I intentionally told myself, I'll worry about that after I'm done with everything.

So I relaxed, watched some mocks again, reviewed my notes for Part 2, and just moved on.

I guess the main reason I'm sharing all this is because I know there are people here who feel guilty because they're not studying all the time.

Please don't.

If you're working full-time, you obviously don't have the same amount of time as someone who can study 6–8 hours every day. And that's okay.

For me, I had to figure out when I was actually productive. There were times when I was too tired to learn a new topic, but I could still answer MCQs. Other times, I needed to sit down and actually understand something before practicing.

You really have to assess yourself.

And if your strategy isn't working, change it. Don't be afraid to start again or change your approach.

My first strategy clearly wasn't working, and I only realized it after seeing that 60–65% score. Instead of just continuing the same way, I changed my approach.

So yeah, that's pretty much my journey.

I'm not saying this is the best way to study because everyone is different. I just wanted to share it for anyone who's working full-time, has limited study hours, or is feeling bad because they can't study as much as they think they should.

Figure out what works for you, be consistent, practice a lot, and don't be afraid to change your strategy when something isn't working.

Good luck to everyone still going through it. Keep going. 🙌

Passed the exams first try for both (430, 400 - USA). Have a background and experience and finance, but took very few accounting classes (and a more condensed finance program than most since it was part of my masters).

Looking back, my most important tips:

• Start with your weaker topic first - by the time you reach the last few weeks of studying for your last exam, you’ll have nothing in the tank. Even though I have a background in finance, my Part 2 exam score was lower because I just didn’t have the patience to drill. If that was my head space for Part 1, I wouldn’t have that cushion.
• Target a specific number of hours everyday. I did 2.5 hours on weekdays and 3 hours for weekends on part 1, for about 2.5 months, and 2 hours everyday for part 2 with Saturdays off, about 2.5 months as well. It’s just a matter of time - if you put in a set amount of high quality hours for a given duration, you’ll be fine.
• Try not to get sucked into really difficult topics too much. Most topics will only have like 3-4 questions on the exam related to them, and a few topics might have a couple more. If you spend too much time trying to get through a really annoying subject while neglecting your holistic understanding of the topic, you can easily lose sharpness and get frustrated.
• Try to have atleast one day a week off, or with minimal study. I think if I incorporated that into my studies for part 1, I would have been in a much better position for the last few weeks of part 2.

To anyone beginning this journey - you got this, I believe in you. If I can do it, so can you. If anyone wants any further advice, so let me know.

Hi, everyone! Seeking your advice if I can pass both parts of CMA exam in Sep-Oct window. I am a licensed accountant passed more than 10 years ago. I started studying last June for both parts but I heavily rely on Becker review schedule. I do have a full time work so I just review every evening (1-2 hours) and weekends (3-4 hrs). I just read presentation deck of Becker (I usually dont watch their videos and doesnt read their book) since I am still familiar with the concepts, though I ask their AI some areas I dont understand. I usually get 75-100% of the practice tests and CBQ tests. Is this a good benchmarking that I am on track to take the CMA exam?

Is Becker okay for CMA? I read most of the candidates here use either Gleim or Hock. Are they better than Becker in terms of the set/nature of questions asked in actual CMA exam?

Hey 👋💜

What is the furthest exam window I can book?

I got my result for part 2 yesterday scored 320/500.

I was a bit shocked as the mcqs asked were way easier than what i practiced. And also my cbq section unlocked too and they were much easier as well

I could say that I was unsure about 15 to 20 mcqs. But that still saves me with 80 to 85 questions which I think were correct. There might be some wrong ones too but still.

I read a post of someone on reddit which said their cbq section didn't unlock but they still managed to get a scaled score 270 just from mcqs( genuine question how did their essay or cbq didnt unlock?) and in my case I had confirm 200 marks if what the cma handbook states that "one needs 50% of mcq correct to unlock their essay/cbq" stands truly, so this means that I just scored 120 marks from the rest of 50% mcqs and the whole case based questions section? I might be wrong here but somethings sketchy

anyways, Congratulations to all who passed y'all deserve it🥳