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[tier1capital]

I'm currently in the coursework phase of a PhD program in Accounting and am seeking the collective wisdom of the forum about the usefulness of credentials.

My professional experience is in the area of management accounting.  I checked with the IMA and my experience qualifies me to sit for the CMA exam and to be certified upon passing the exam.  I have gotten mixed input, however, about the usefulness of having that in terms of my career.  Some professors say it's only worth getting a credential if its a CPA, while others think a CMA would be useful in identifying myself as a "legitimate" management accountant on the job market.  This advice isn't split along CPA's vs. non-CPA's, as I'd expect: it's sort of random who says what.

I wonder if other Accounting students or professors have anything to offer about how useful the test would be.  The time and money spent preparing for and taking the exam would be moderate...I am familiar with the material, so it wouldn't be as time consuming (nor is the test as difficult) as the CPA exam would be.  Any advice would be appreciated.

[need_help_pleasee]

I'm both a CPA and CMA - A couple of things to consider perhaps .......

First - the CPA is the only "true" professional accounting credential; there is no legal licensing requirement that comes with the CMA.

Second - why do the IMA's CMA instead of the AICPA/CIMA's CMA credential ?

[tier1capital]

That is exactly the sort of thing I am hearing from the pro-CPA crowd: that a CMA is not a "real" accounting credential.  Are you saying, then, that no other credential aside from a CPA has any value to me?  If it is, that's important for me to know.  I don't intend for the question to sound snippy - I don't want to waste any time on a useless bit of paper, if that is what a CMA would be.

I didn't even know that the AICPA/CIMA had a credential.  When I was searching initially (this past summer), my faculty pointed me toward the IMA.  Some searching shows tha there will be a Global Chartered Management Accountant credential forthcoming in 2012 which I may qualify to apply for.  I appreciate you pointing that out.  Do you think that credential would be more valuable than one from the IMA?

Thank you, again, for your advice.

[need_help_pleasee]

Well I certainly did not say that any other credential other than the CPA might not be of any value to you - only you can decide that in the end.

What I would say is that getting any other credential, including the CMA, while working on your PhD is probably not going to make a bit of difference in your future endevors, including your initial placement upon completion of your terminal degree.

What I've seen a lot of profs do is get these additional credentials AFTER completing their degrees for whatever reason, but in the end, I don't think they matter all too much.

Again, if a credential doesn't come with legal licensing requirements, what does it really mean.

IMA vs. AICPA/CIMA, again, in the end, is it really going to matter ?  Get them both, nobody's going to really care. 

[tier1capital]

I appreciate the clarification.  Thank you very much for the information.

[psyche74]

I concur with the above: probably not the best use of your time to study for extraneous (to academia) certifications. Instead, expend that energy getting publications in TAR, JAE, or JAR. Now *that* would help your job prospects upon earning your PhD! :)

[need_help_pleasee]

Haa !

You're not going to get published in the TAR or JAR - not before you get a PhD nor after.

[tier1capital]

Haa !

You're not going to get published in the TAR or JAR - not before you get a PhD nor after.

That was unnecessary!

Thanks for the helpful comment, Psyche.