I was looking for reason why CGA and CMA are doing heavy advertisements on TTCs, sending rebates email, etc.

Google d it and found this article hence i am posting here.

This article seems to be useful for anyone who wants to pursue Accounting Designation

http://www.businessgrad.ca/jobs/accounting/ca-vs-cma-vs-cga-%E2%80%93-accounting-designations/


Article Text:
CA vs CMA vs CGA – Accounting Designations
February 20, 2011 By BusinessGrad 4 Comments

CA vs. CMA vs. CGA, which designation is best?

As a recent business student, I can distinctly recall the advertisements produced by associations to lure prospective students. The first step to deciding on whether being a chartered accountant, certified management accountant or certified general accountant is even appropriate is to understand what the differences are. An older blog post I found while searching the net, provides a great summary on what the process and capabilities are for these designations. Before committing the hours involved to obtain these designations, I would highly recommend reading the following. For reference, I have also posted the original post below.

The three musketeers.

I won’t turn this into a bashing contest. Most CA’s I talk to seem to have a superiority complex.

This is what any CA will tell you…CA>CMA>CGA

I will just give you a very, very brief breakdown about how to get each designation. You can easily do a google search if you want something more detailed.

To get a CA, you need to do your undergraduate in accounting in one of the CA approved institutions. Then, unless you come from Waterloo, you have the CKE and SOA. Everyone is required to write the challenging 3 day UFE and pass which marks the end of the formal education. You’ll also be required to complete 3 years of training at a designated firm. Of those 3 years, you must have a certain number of hours in each field such as audit, tax, etc.

To get a CMA, you need to do your undergraduate consisting of the CMA required topics (this is a Bcomm for most people). Then you have to pass the CMA entrance examination and go through the strategic leadership program. In the strategic leadership program you will need to pass the case and group project. You will also need to have the work experience.

For a CGA, you will need an undergraduate in any field. There are about 2 years worth of CGA courses that you must take through correspondence. There is an extrance exam and usually 2-3 years of work experience.

Note there are exceptions to the exact requirements of each designation. But again, I won’t waste your time with that. This information is easily found on google.

Today, I want to talk a little bit about the pros and cons of each designation.

Now the first thing, any CA seems to tell you is that CA> all. Is this necessarily true?

CA

Pros:
Out of the three designations, the CA is the most internationally recognized. The CFA which I will talk about in future posts is actually an even better international designation. But compared to the CMA or CGA, the CA is more internationally recognized and respected. There is no arguing here.

So if you are planing to work internationally, the CA will bring you more benefits than the other two. +1 point for the CA designation.

The CA designation also won’t close down any doors for you in the corporate ladder. You can basically do everything the other two designations can do, and things like “signing off” which they cannot do. People at top heavy positions in companies also tend to be CA’s which is why they want to continue to hire CA’s.

Employers also like hiring CA’s so much because they understand the training process. CGA’s and CMA’s can get their designation in a variety of ways. For CA’s, 90% of the time, they did their articling experience in public accounting and prospective employers know that they can handle the pain of long hours when crunch time comes.

Think about it like this. CA’s or CGA’s may be better or worse trained than CA’s. With a CA, you know what to expect especially Big 4 CA’s. Sometimes prospective employers just need someone who can get the job done, and avoid gambling looking for a “diamond in the rough.”

On average, CA’s also tend to be paid more than CMA’s and CGA’s.

Cons:

The major con of the CA designation is the time investment and torture you must go through to get it.

Also the fact that the CA designation is very narrow and focused in terms of what you do to acquire it. You do have a competitive edge over CMA’s and CGA’s in “some” areas, but not ALL. We are only talking about the top top level positions.

You get paid more than the CGA or CMA but you will pay your dues with much longer hours.

CGA

Pro:
For a CGA designation, it is the easiest to get out of the three designations. On a cost benefit analysis, the additional boost in money you get compared to the time investment is very nice. If you have no interest in climbing the corporate public ladder, I highly recommend the CGA. It is a nice credibility booster. For example, if you start your own business, and you’re attracting clients, the CGA is very nice. The work experience is also very broad. There are many different ways to fulfill this requirement as opposed to something like the CA for example

You are also allowed to audit in some provinces.

Cons:

It is not as well respected as the other designations. Among the accounting world, CA’s and CMA’s tend to look down at CGA’s. If you planning on climbing the corporate ladder, the CGA will put you in a less favourable light compared to a CA or CMA.

It is also the lowest compensated of the three designations.

CMA

Pros:

A nice balance of two other designations. Not quite as hard as the CA designation. Much more respected than the CGA designation. You don’t have to go through the CA articling “hell”. Many people in top positions hold the CMA Designations. I like to think of the CMA’s as the jack of all trades.

You get to work directly in industry and get much more interesting work. You are not specialized in accounting and auditing, but you understand enough about what needs to be done.

Cons:

You can’t sign off on audits. There are certain jobs that do require a CA, and you may be turned down for some positions in favour of a CA. For example, items like audit or tax, a CA will be more prefered to than a CMA.

Conclusion

If I were able to choose a free designation, I would pick the CA designation.

However, life is about opportunity costs. There is no point having a truck license if you only ever intend to drive a car. It is pointless to have a CA designation if all you need is a CGA designation or CMA Designation, or no designation at all. CA designation is the more respected and higher paid “on an average basis” but they also work longer hours and go through much harder material.

Unquote

Just want to update...all three designations are working on merger and decision will come in next few months on modalities.

In next few years there will be one designation "CPA" in Canada.

This Consultation Report summarizes the feedback,
questions and concerns collected across the country
and sets out the next steps in the process. The report
excludes Quebec where a separate process was
conducted and the CA, CMA and CGA bodies have
agreed to unify. It also excludes subsequent member
feedback relating to decisions recently made by a number
of CGA bodies to join the unification discussions. The CA, CMA and participating CGA organizations are
now beginning to work together to consider how best
to move forward. This will take some time. Regardless
of these new developments, the feedback from this
consultation process is still relevant and all bodies
are now assessing it. As the accounting profession in
Canada is provincially regulated, the boards and councils
governing the respective bodies in each province will
decide whether or not to present a formal proposal to
unify the profession to members and, if proceeding,
what the process will be for ratification. We anticipate
decisions on whether or not to present members with a
unification framework later this year or by early 2012.

www.cpacanada.ca

Thanks for update.

But here is the status

CA - CMA - CGA : only in Quebec

CA - CMA : rest of the Canada

Source - CA Magazine -

http://www.camagazine.com/archives/print-edition/2004/aug/features/camagazine20678.aspx

Thanks Desi#1 for edited post

will merger be successful ?

Yes, this time it looks like to be successful. In some provinces, it is mandated by government.

With introduction of public accountancy act in Ontario, CAs have lost monopoly on signing off on Financial Statements. All three professional accountants have to go thru same process to get a licence to practice. Those who already have licence will not be impacted with this. So this made sense to merger all three accounting bodies. Older CAs are still averse to the merger as they will loose their designation and bragging rights.

I heard that US CPA will be conducting exams in Canada Mexico and few countries in South America. They are trying to make US CPA designation as international designation.