2009 - changes to the CAT qualification

2009: changes to the CAT qualification

From June 2009 there will be some minor changes to the Advanced Level papers (Papers 5 to 10) of the Certified Accounting Technician (CAT) qualification.

The changes will involve the following:

• The pass mark will be increased from 40% to 50%
• All exams will include some multiple-choice questions (MCQs)
• 24% of Paper 5 will become MCQs
• 20% of Papers 6 to 10 will become MCQs.

The overall syllabus for the CAT qualification will remain unchanged, although some material from Paper 7 will be moving to Paper 10.

The pass mark for CAT will be in line with the ACCA Qualification, which is 50% for all papers. The change in pass mark for the Advanced Level papers will ensure that CAT students are prepared for the ACCA Qualification if they choose to continue their studies. For those students who decide not to continue with the ACCA Qualification, this change will ensure that CAT students are technically competent by being able to get half of the exam paper correct in order to obtain a pass.

Please note that this does not affect CAT students studying for the December 2008 exams. The changes will not be applied until the exams in June 2009.

Revised Study Guides and Pilot Papers for 2009 for Papers 5 to 10 are now available on the ACCA website.