“Accounting” and “Finance” Two Worlds Apart

I have received a lot of queries on from people interested in pursuing CFA. I was shocked to hear that some of the people having 1-2 years of accounting experience in audit firms (which was their articleship) wanted to start CFA as an addition to their resume, without knowing why!

One very important thing that you need to realize over here in Pakistan is the difference between “Finance” and “Accounting”. Owing to developments in both fields, you can either be a finance professional OR an accounting guru at a time. You need to understand that CFA will not be advanced set of skills if you are in an accounting/auditing field. Both of the things are way apart.

I have witnessed an example where a qualified CA (with 5 years of experience) went for CFA and after doing that he tried to move into the financial industry. The guy was offered a salary of PKR5,000 above what is offered to a fresh graduate since he did not have any relevant experience.

I, being an analyst, have no clear idea how proper audit is performed. With my experience as an analyst, I will not be allowed to join any audit firm at management level since I do not have any relevant experience in the accounting field.

So instead of running blindly behind certifications, please make sure you are going in the right direction. Any qualification or certification, no matter how privileged it is, is designed for its own scope of professionals. If you are in auditing profession and you have experience in that field as well, why don’t you go for something that will add up in your own field like CIA, CISA, ICAEW. CFA has nothing to do with auditing/accounting.

Think rationally and realize it now please. I know some people who have gone through this and it really shakes you when you do so much hard work to achieve something and it does not pay off.


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