“Do not be misled by a lecturer who tells you how intelligent they are or one that uses big words to look impressive. Good lecturers are able to take highly complex matters and simplify them.”

CTA is an extremely challenging year so it is not surprising that many students find themselves looking for additional support. Testimonials and recommendations from other students can be a valuable source of information. However, each student is unique and what works for one student may not necessarily be the best for another. The purpose of this blog entry is to help students make informed decisions by highlighting the important questions that should be asked.

1. Are the lecturers qualified chartered accountants?

This is important for the following reasons:

• It ensures that the lecturers are technically competent.
• People who have not completed CTA and the SAICA board exams will never understand what it takes to pass. It is important that lecturers are able to relate to what students are experiencing.

You can follow this link to the SAICA website to verify whether a lecturer is a registered chartered accountant: Click Here

2. What experience do the lecturers have?

Although all chartered accountants have passed the required exams and possess the necessary competencies, this does not guarantee a good lecturer. Students should ask the following questions to ensure that lecturers have the necessary experience:

• How many years have the lecturers been involved in academics?
• Have the lecturers set exams for universities accredited by SAICA? Lecturers that have set exams know what is required from a student in order to pass and they can adequately prepare students.
• Have the lecturers marked CTA tests and exams? Lecturers that have marked are aware of the common mistakes made by students and can address these problems in lectures.

I recommend that all students request access to a free lecture sample before registering with any service provider. Every student requires something different from a lecturer so it’s important to ensure that you are comfortable with the style of teaching. Do not be misled by a lecturer who tells you how intelligent they are or one that uses big words to look impressive. Good lecturers are able to take highly complex matters and simplify them.

3. What is the lecture approach followed?

It is very important to have a combination of theory and tutorials. This means that lecturers should start by covering the theory (rules, principles, legislation, etc.) and then demonstrate how to apply the theory by working through questions.

Understanding the theory is vital. However, focusing on theory alone is pointless. It is important to test the theory and practise exam technique by working through questions. The first question that a student attempts cannot be the test or exam.

Trying to study from questions is equally pointless.  Sadly, too many students make this mistake. All tests and exams are uniquely set so students will never get a replica of a question they have done previously. An understanding of the theory ensures students are able to apply what they know to any scenario.

On a side note, it is in the students’ best interest to attempt questions before watching tutorial feedback. Students often make the mistake of watching lecturers work through questions and think “yes, that’s definitely what I would have done”. This is because a good lecturer will make any question look easy. The only way for students to know for certain what they would have done is to actually do the question on their own first! Students need to struggle through the question so that they know where their weaknesses lie. They will then benefit tremendously from the lecturers’ feedback.

4. How many lecture hours are there per week?

Students should make sure that they have a balance between time spent in class and self-study time. Lectures can be extremely beneficial. Instead of students working through tutorial letters on their own, lectures provide structure and show students where to focus. Difficult concepts which might take a student hours to figure out on their own can be explained in 10 minutes by a good lecturer. However, if students don’t reinforce what was covered in the lecture, and do questions to practise the theory, they will never pass CTA.

Students should ensure that the lecture hours are sufficient to cover the relevant topics per test. However, they should be wary of classes that fill up their free time. Working students should not be sitting in class every night and all weekend because then they are using lectures as a replacement for self-study.

5. Is the programme flexible to the student’s needs?

Some students benefit from studying in the morning while others study best in the afternoon or evening. Students should select a programme that best caters to their needs.

Where students often miss classes due to work commitments they should find out if there is a way that these classes can be caught up.

6. Is the programme aligned with the Unisa syllabus?

Students are writing a Unisa exam. This means that individual lecturer preferences are irrelevant and not in the best interest of students. Teaching methods should be aligned with the approach followed by Unisa. This will ensure that students score maximum marks in tests and exams.

7. Are the various Acts, legislation and IFRS used in lectures?

A limited open book approach is followed by SAICA for the Initial Test of Competence (ITC) Examination and UNISA follows the same approach for tests and examinations. Lecturers should work through the various Acts and Standards with students because of the complexity of the wording and structure of these Acts and Standards.

8. Are the lecturers available to assist in times of need?

A student may struggle with a simple principle which could consume a lot of time. There is no time to waste in CTA and students need to be able to rely on their service provider for support outside of the classroom. 

9. Is the environment conducive to learning?

A positive environment conducive to student learning is extremely important. Lecturers should:

• Foster an environment of mutual respect.
• Cater for different learning preferences, strengths and weaknesses.
• Motivate and encourage students to always achieve their best.
• Empathise with student difficulties.

To wrap up I would like to make it clear that the choice of service provider does not matter if the student is not prepared to put in the hard work necessary to pass CTA. No service provider can guarantee that students will pass by merely registering on their programme. There are amazing lecturers that can provide a considerable amount of help and guidance, but students have to be prepared to make all of the sacrifices (and there are many) in order to pass. When choosing between online and face-to-face classes don’t fool yourself into thinking that you require face-to-face classes because you lack discipline. If you lack discipline you should not be attempting CTA. It’s one of the key characteristics of people who hold this professional qualification.

Sara du Toit CA (SA) is a co-founder and the management accounting lecturer at CA Campus.

CA Campus provides Unisa CTA support classes. We are also able to assist students from other universities on our revision programme.