How the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (ACCA) is creating truly global solutions for digital assessment

The professional qualifications landscape is undergoing a significant transformation, and digital assessment is at the forefront of this change.

Find out more about the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (ACCA)’s global assessment programme roll out by registering for the webinar.

Research carried out by ACCA identified two expectations from both accountancy learners and employers:

1. They wanted a more flexible assessment structure whereby candidates could be tested on a more frequent basis. There was a need to speed up exam processing time in line with the increased number of exam sessions so that students would receive their results from one examination before entering another.

2. They highlighted their expectations for a computer-based delivery format for their exams, to better reflect the realistic working conditions of professional accountants, who conduct most of their day-to-day work on a computer, without losing the integrity of the exams.

    

    

   

How did ACCA roll out their assessment programme?

ACCA partnered with RM to modernise their exam process and reduce the timeframe for each exam session, enabling them to increase from two to four exam sessions per year.

They were able to support the delivery of a series of new examination formats that placed validity and authenticity of testing experience at the top of the agenda, and offered students and employers the increased flexibility that they require. Speeding up the marking process was key in this transformation.

ACCA and RM have worked together since 2007 to provide RM Assessor to mark the majority of the ACCA accountancy exams on-screen.

Now, they have joined together on another collaboration project - to share their experience of their digital assessment journey in a webinar:

Register for the Webinar

"How the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (ACCA) is creating truly global solutions for digital assessment" 

Thursday May 30, 2024

EMEA 10:00-11:00 (BST)

APAC 10:00-11:00 (AEST)

Join Katie Corrin, Account Director for RM Assessment, as she speaks with Joyce McIntyre, Head of Exam Transformation at ACCA about the challenges and lessons learned leading the digital assessment revolution on a global scale.

In this 40-minute webinar you will learn:

• The current state of digital adoption in the professional qualifications space

• The benefits ACCA has gained from adopting a digital approach to assessment

• Challenges involved in a global roll out

• How digital assessment can be a force for good

• How to create a powerful partnership to stay ahead of the digital assessment curve

Questions will be answered live at the end of the session.

Read the case study: How ACCA doubled their total exam capacity with e-marking

“ACCA offers business-relevant, first choice qualifications to people of application, ability and ambition around the world. In order to do this, we need partners with a similar focus on flexibility and an international approach. The use of RM Assessor within our assessment model has allowed us to modernise our internal processes and meet the needs of our students and employers across the globe. We’re thrilled with the support that RM has given us to increase the frequency of our exam sessions and to enable e-marking of new question types more closely aligned with the daily work of the accountancy profession…”

Sarah Corcoran, Director of e-Transformation, ACCA

Assessment and the ACCA

The ACCA (the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants), a globally recognised professional accountancy body providing qualifications and advancing standards in accountancy worldwide.

Founded in 1904 to widen access to the accountancy profession, it has long championed inclusion and today proudly supports a diverse community of over 247,000 members and 526,000 future members in 181 countries.

ACCA positions itself as the world's most forward-thinking professional accountancy body.

Timeline to ACCA’s truly global assessments

• In 1909, ACCA was the first accountancy body to admit women to membership.

• In 1913, ACCA’s first branch outside the UK is opened in South Africa.

• In 1936, they arrived in Asia, when their Malaysia-Singapore branch is set up.

• In 1950, international expansion saw branches spring up in Hong Kong, Zimbabwe, Trinidad and Tobago, Guyana, Nigeria and Malawi.

• In 1965, a joint examination scheme was established in Jamaica, leading to partnerships with many bodies in the Caribbean.

• In 1980, ACCA began to explore opportunities in Central and Eastern Europe, helping to develop the profession in former Soviet states and in the Russian Federation.

• In 1988, it began market development in mainland China.

• In 2002, ACCA Connect opened, which was the first global contact centre for an accountancy body.

• In 2016, ACCA offered increased flexibility for students and employers by doubling the number of exam sessions they run. Students were able to choose from four exam sessions per year. In the same year, they formed a strategic alliance with the Chartered Accountants Australia and New Zealand (CA ANZ).

• In 2020, ACCA responded to the UN’s call for a decade of action to deliver the global goals by setting out a number of specific commitments. This included SDG 4: Quality Education: Ensure inclusive and equitable quality education and promote lifelong learning opportunities for all, which is also the aim of RM Assessment.

RM™ Assessment provides cutting-edge digital assessment solutions to educational institutions, exam awarding bodies and governments worldwide to enable them to deliver their high-stakes exams on-screen. Part of RM plc established in 1973, RM Assessment is trusted by over 40 organisations in over 160 countries.

Find out more about RM Assessment's digital solutions.