By Vincent Cheong, Lecturer, Faculty of Business & Accounting
A career talk was conducted on 19 February 2022 (Saturday)from 2.30pm to 4.00pm on the Microsoft Team platform. The main objective of the talk was to raise awareness among students on the importance of registering as members of MIA and to educate the students about the route to becoming qualified accountants.
Twenty-eight students participated in the talk (eleven from the BA (Hons) Accounting and Finance programme, fourteen from the Diploma of Accountancy programme, two from the Diploma in Business Administration programme, and one from the A-Level programme. Two members of the academic staff, Mr Rudy Ujang (SEGi Head of Academics) and Mr Vincent Cheong (Faculty of Business, Accountancy and IT) also joined and supported the event. Ms Ng Kia Jee, from the Student Affairs Department (Student Affairs Executive) was our master of ceremony and the MIA representative speaker was Ms Sandra Lim Sze Hui, who has been working at MIA (Sarawak Regional Office) for almost thirty years and holds the position of Senior Executive.
The two main MIA roles are regulation and development. The regulatory role is to safeguard public interest and uphold the profession’s reputation. The developmental role is professional n development for economic growth and nation building. Different sector segments for the national and state membership statistics (up to 31 Jan 2022) were analysed. The majority of MIA members are female and from the commercial sector. Students who have graduated from accounting and finance can work in four main fields, namely in public practice, commerce/industry, academia and public sector.
The speaker explained in detail each of the three routes that can lead them to become qualified chartered accountants in Malaysia. The framework of the MIA qualifying examination assessment and fee structure were also precisely described. The Chartered Accountant’s Relevant Experience (CARE) programme is essential for graduates to ensure that they acquire the appropriate and sufficient degree of professional competencies to qualify as a chartered accountants. The CARE duration is thirty-six months.
Ms Sandra showed the students how to apply for MIA membership. The benefits include career support, knowledge and skills enhancement, lifestyle privileges, technical and advice support, members groups and networking, information service, special coverage and Affiliation with other accounting professional bodies such as ACCA, CIMA, CPA, etc
Before the event adjourned, students were given opportunities to ask questions in the Q&A session. The students were keen to raise their concerns and doubts. Ms Sandra and her team took turns to answer these questions. A group photo was taken at the end of event.
