Accounting Department Boosts Transformation

South Africa’s all-too-small pool of qualified chartered accountants is poised for a welcome boost following the release of a set of vital examination results in Johannesburg on 26 June.

The pass statistics are especially encouraging in terms of the quest to increase the population of the relatively small number of African and Coloured CAs (SA).

Results from Part One of the Qualifying Examination (QE1) – a critical milestone on the path to becoming a CA(SA) – released by the South African Institute of Chartered Accountants (SAICA), reflect a rise in the pass rate, which now stands at  58% compared to last year’s 54%.  The University of Cape Town provided 225 candidates of which 214 (95%) were successful which is the highest pass rate achieved by any University in the 2009 examination sitting.

Head of Accounting Professor Mike Wormald said: “A significant highlight of this year’s results is the increase in the successes achieved by African first-time candidates. From 204 passes in 2008, 258 African candidates passed in 2009 – a dramatic 26% increase.  The number of Coloured candidates increased from 64 to 76 in 2009.   The University of Cape Town provided 38 successful African candidates and 35 successful Coloured candidates.”

In addition, in 2009 the University of Cape Town provided the highest absolute number and pass rate of African black and Coloured candidates of all the residential Universities.  The breakdown is as follows;

The national pass rates for African, Coloured and Indian candidates were 45%, 53% and 51% respectively.

In 2007, the Department of Accounting at the University of Cape Town identified increasing the number of black successful candidates in the Part 1 Qualifying Examination as a key objective.  More specifically, the very ambitious target was to try and double the numbers by 2012.  The table below shows what has been achieved to date.

Alexa Leigh Joubert who completed her Postgraduate Diploma in Accounting at the University of Cape Town was placed tenth in the examination which she passed with Honours.  Three other graduates from the University of Cape Town,  Jayson Denis Coomer, Rendani Ronald Muthelo and Ross Stewart Robertson also passed the examination with Honours.

Jayson Coomer and Ross Robertson passed the CA Qualifying Examination with flying colours. They are congratulated here by Accounting Head of Department Professor Mike Wormald.

Posted 02/07/2009 by Carolyn McGibbon