CMA USA Syllabus: Qualification, Duration, Exam Details, and Career Opportunities Explained
Published on: January 14, 2025
The CMA USA was established in 1972 to provide an objective measure of expertise in management accounting. It is administered by the Institute of Management Accountants (IMA). The content is regularly updated to reflect current business practices, emphasizing financial planning, analytics, control, and decision support.
Educational Qualification
To become a CMA, candidates must fulfill one of the following:
- Bachelor’s Degree: From an accredited college or university.
- Professional Certifications: Holders of certifications like CA, CS, or CMA (India) can pursue the course directly without a degree.
Duration
· 6 – 12 months
CMA Examination
Exam Structure
- Part 1: Financial Planning, Performance, and Analytics
- Duration: 4 hours
- Format: 100 multiple-choice questions (MCQs) + two 30-minute essays
- Part 2: Strategic Financial Management
- Duration: 4 hours
- Format: 100 multiple-choice questions (MCQs) + two 30-minute essays
Note: Candidates must answer at least 50 out of 100 MCQs correctly to unlock the essay section.
Exam Windows
The exam is offered during the following three testing periods each year:
- January/February
- May/June
- September/October
CMA USA Syllabus
The Part 1 and Part 2 syllabus are as follows:
Part I: Financial Planning, Performance and Analytics
Part II: Strategic Financial Management
| · Part 1: Financial Planning, Performance, and Analytics | ||||||||
| A. External Financial Reporting Decisions (15%) | ||||||||
| TOPICS | DETAILS | |||||||
| 1. Financial Statements | · Balance Sheet · Income Statement · Statement of Changes in Equity · Statement of Cash Flows · Consolidated Statements · Integrated Reporting | |||||||
| 2. Recognition, Measurement, and Valuation | · Asset Valuation · Valuation of Liabilities · Equity Transactions · Revenue Recognition · Income Measurement · Major Differences Between U.S. GAAP and IFRS | |||||||
| B. Planning, Budgeting, and Forecasting (20%) | ||||||||
| TOPICS | DETAILS | |||||||
| 1. Strategic Planning | · Analysis of External and Internal Factors Affecting Strategy · Long-Term Mission and Goals · Alignment of Tactics with Long-Term Strategic Goals · Strategic Planning Models and Analytical Techniques · Characteristics of a Successful Strategic Planning Process | |||||||
| 2. Budgeting Concepts | · Operations and Performance Goals · Characteristics of a Successful Budget Process · Resource Allocation · Other Budgeting Concepts | |||||||
| 3. Forecasting Techniques | · Regression Analysis · Learning Curve Analysis · Expected Value | |||||||
| 4. Budgeting Methodologies | · Annual Business Plans (Master Budgets) · Project Budgeting · Activity-based budgeting · Zero-based budgeting · Continuous (rolling) budgets · Flexible budgeting | |||||||
| 5. Annual Profit Plan and Supporting Schedules | · Operational Budgets · Financial Budgets · Capital Budgets | |||||||
| 6. Top-Level Planning and Analysis | · Pro Forma Income · Financial Statement Projections · Cash Flow Projections | |||||||
| C. Performance Management (20%) | ||||||||
| TOPICS | DETAILS | |||||||
| 1. Cost and Variance Measures | · Comparison of Actual to Planned Results · Use of Flexible Budgets to Analyse Performance · Management by Exception · Use of Standard Cost Systems · Analysis of Variation from Standard Cost Expectations | |||||||
| 2. Responsibility Centers and Reporting Segments | · Types of Responsibility Centers · Transfer Pricing · Contribution Margin · Reporting of Organizational Segments | |||||||
| 3. Performance Measures | · Product profitability analysis · Business unit profitability analysis · Customer profitability analysis · Return on Investment (ROI) · Residual income · Investment base issues · Key performance indicators (KPIs) · Balanced scorecard | |||||||
| D. Cost Management (15%) | ||||||||
| TOPICS | DETAILS | |||||||
| 1. Measurement Concepts | · Types of Cost and Cost Behaviour · Actual and Normal Costs · Standard Costs · Absorption (Full) Costing · Variable (Direct) Costing · Joint and By-Product Costing | |||||||
| 2. Costing Systems | · Job Order Costing · Activity-Based Costing · Life-Cycle Costing · Other Costing Systems | |||||||
| 3. Overhead Costs | · Fixed and Variable Overhead Expenses · Corporate vs. Departmental Overhead · Determination of Allocation Base · Allocation of Service Department Costs | |||||||
| 4. Supply Chain Management | · Lean Resource Management Techniques · Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) · Capacity Management and Analysis | |||||||
| 5. Business Process Improvement | · Value Chain Analysis · Value-Added Concepts · Process Analysis, Redesign, and Standardization · Continuous Improvement Concepts · Benchmarking and Best Practice Analysis · Cost of Quality Analysis | |||||||
| E. Internal Controls (15%) | ||||||||
| TOPICS | DETAILS | |||||||
| 1. Governance, Risk, and Compliance | · Internal Control Structure and Management Philosophy · Internal Control Policies for Safeguarding and Assurance · Internal Control Risk · Testing Methods for Internal Controls · Control Deficiency Remediation · Corporate Governance · External Audit Requirements | |||||||
| 2. System Controls and Security Measures | · General Accounting System Controls · Application and Transaction Controls · Technology Controls · Backup Controls · Business Continuity Planning | |||||||
| F. Technology and Analytics (15%) | ||||||||
| TOPICS | DETAILS | |||||||
| 1. Information Systems | · Accounting Information Systems · Enterprise Resource Planning Systems · Enterprise Performance Management Systems | |||||||
| 2. Data Governance | · Data Policies and Procedures · Life Cycle of Data · Data Management · Controls Against Security Breaches | |||||||
| 3. Technology-Enabled Finance Transformation | · System Development Life Cycle · Process Automation · Innovative Applications | |||||||
| 4. Data Analytics | · Business Intelligence · Data Mining · Types of Data Analytics · Data Visualization | |||||||
| · Part 2 : Strategic Financial Management | ||||||||
| A. Financial Statement Analysis (20%) | ||||||||
| TOPICS | DETAILS | |||||||
| 1. Comparative Financial Statement Analysis | · Common Size Financial Statements · Common Base Year Financial Statements · Financial Trend Analysis | |||||||
| 2. Financial Ratios | · Liquidity · Leverage · Activity · Profitability · Market | |||||||
| 3. Profitability Analysis | · Income Measurement Analysis · Revenue Analysis · Cost of Sales Analysis · Expense Analysis · Variation Analysis | |||||||
| 4. Special Issues | · Impact of Foreign Exchange Rate Changes on Financial Statements · Effects of Changing Prices and Inflation · Impact of Changes in Accounting Treatment · Accounting and Economic Concepts of Value and Income · Earnings Quality | |||||||
| B. Corporate Finance (20%) | ||||||||
| TOPICS | DETAILS | |||||||
| 1. Financial Risk and Return | · Calculating Return · Types of Financial Risk · Relationship Between Risk and Return | |||||||
| 2. Long-term financial management | · Term structure of interest rates · Types of financial instruments · Cost of capital · Valuation of financial instruments | |||||||
| 3. Raising Capital | · Financial Markets · Financial Institutions · Initial and Secondary Public Offerings · Dividend Policy and Share Repurchases · Lease Financing · Debt Financing | |||||||
| 4. Working Capital Management | · Net Working Capital · Cash Management · Marketable Securities Management · Accounts Receivable Management · Inventory Management · Types of Short-Term Credit · Short-Term Credit Management | |||||||
| 5. Corporate Restructuring | · Mergers and Acquisitions · Other Forms of Restructuring | |||||||
| 6. International Finance | · Fixed, Flexible, and Floating Exchange Rates · Managing Transaction Exposure · Financing International Trade | |||||||
| C. Business Decision Analysis (25%) | ||||||||
| TOPICS | DETAILS | |||||||
| 1. Cost/Volume/Profit Analysis | · Breakeven Analysis · Profit Performance and Alternative Operating Levels · Analysis of Multiple Products | |||||||
| 2.Marginal analysis | · Sunk costs, opportunity costs, and other related concepts · Marginal costs and marginal revenue · Special orders and pricing · Make vs. buy · Sell or process further · Add or drop a segment · Capacity considerations · | |||||||
| 3. Pricing | · Pricing Methodologies · Target Costing · Price Elasticity of Demand · Product Life-Cycle Considerations · Market Structure Considerations | |||||||
| D. Enterprise Risk Management (10%) | ||||||||
| TOPICS | DETAILS | |||||||
| 1. Enterprise Risk | · Types of Risk · Risk Identification and Assessment · Risk Mitigation Strategies · Managing Risk | |||||||
| E. Capital Investment Decisions (10%) | ||||||||
| TOPICS | DETAILS | |||||||
| 1. Capital Budgeting Process | · Stages of Capital Budgeting · Incremental Cash Flows · Income Tax Considerations · Evaluating Uncertainty · Discount Rates | |||||||
| 2. Capital Investment Analysis Methods | · Net Present Value (NPV) · Internal Rate of Return (IRR) · Payback · Comparison of Investment Analysis Methods · Sensitivity Analysis | |||||||
| F. Professional Ethics (15%) | ||||||||
| TOPICS | DETAILS | |||||||
| 1. Business Ethics | · Ethical Decision Making · Types of Business Fraud | |||||||
| 2. Ethical Considerations for Management Accounting and Financial Management Professionals | · The IMA Statement of Ethical Professional Practice · Fraud Triangle · Evaluation and Resolution of Ethical Issues | |||||||
| 3. Ethical Considerations for the Organization | · Organizational Factors and Ethical Culture · Ethical Leadership · Legal Compliance · Responsibility for Ethical Conduct · Sustainability and Social Responsibility · Data Ethics | |||||||
HOW TO BECOME CMA AFTER 12th
To become a CMA USA after 12th a student should :
a. Choose a Bachelor’s Degree in a Relevant Field from an accredited college or university
b. Register for the CMA USA Program offered by the Institute of Management Accountant (IMA).
c. Complete Part 1 and 2 of the CMA USA exams
d. Gain two years of relevant work experience
e. Obtain the CMA Certification from IMA once all the requirements are completed.
CAREERS AFTER CMA USA
Some of the career options available after completing CMA USA are :
· Management Accountant
· Financial Analyst
· Cost Accountant
· Corporate Controller
· Financial Manager
· Risk Manager
· Consultant
· Internal Auditor
FAQs
1. Is CMA USA better than CA?
Both are different professional certifications, the choice is subjective.
2. Is CMA India and CMA USA the same?
No, while CMA India is a Cost and Management Accountant, CMA USA is a Certified Management Accountant.
3. What is the core subject of CMA USA?
It is Finance and Management Accounting
4. What is the duration of CMA USA?
6 – 12 months
5. Can CMA USA work in India?
Yes, CMA USA can work in India.
6. When can I take the CMA USA exams?
Exams are offered according to the following schedule:
- January and February
- May and June
- September and October
7. Does pursuing CMA USA require a degree?
Yes, candidates should have a degree (at least as ongoing) to pursue CMA USA which can be done as regular or correspondence, or they should have any other professional certification.
