ICAS rule updates
We’re making some changes to the rules regarding progress in the CA qualification to give you and your students more flexibility and control over their learning journey.
TPE assessment results
TPE students will receive percentage marks whether they pass or fail a TPE assessment. The percentage mark will help to give both you and your student a better understanding of their assessment performance.
Students sitting TPE assessments in November 2024 will be the first to receive this.
Enrolling in TPE
From November 2023, students will no longer need to wait until the final year of their training agreement to enrol in TPE. As long as students are in an active training contract or have completed their RPE requirements, they can progress to TPE as soon as they’re ready to.
Level 7 Accountancy Apprenticeships will still be required to pass through gateway before they can progress to TPE.
TPS assessment attempts
Students sitting TPS from September 2023 will be allowed 4 attempts at each TPS assessment. This is in line with the TPS syllabus pre-2021 and is consistent with the current TC and TPE levels.
Students who sat TPS assessments in June or August 2023 will still be allowed six attempts. Those transitioning to our new 2024 syllabus will be allowed 4 attempts at the new course assessments, regardless of previous attempts at TPS.
If a student doesn’t pass a TPS assessment within 4 attempts, they will need to submit a request for additional attempts to the Qualifications Board.
CA24 assessments
When our new CA syllabus launches in 2024, the pass mark for all Knowledge, Skills and Integration assessments will be 50%.
Ethics will remain as it currently is at 75%.
Ethics
Students registering with ICAS from 5 June onwards will have to complete Ethics as part of the Fundamentals during their student onboarding.
School leaver training contracts
The duration of the training contract for school leavers is changing to give employers more control over the length of their students’ training contracts.
Our approved period and relevant practical experience requirements vary according to the entry route. For school leavers, we’ve previously set a minimum 5-year training contract. From September 2023, this will become a flexible 3 to 7 year window, allowing employers to determine the length of their students’ training contracts and the freedom to adjust these at their discretion.
Simplifying the assessment clock
The current subject-specific assessment clock for students is being replaced by a 7-year qualification clock. This applies to all students from September 2023.
The changes will provide students with a 7-year timeframe to complete educational and relevant practical experience requirements. We’re also removing the rule that classifies a student as 'inactive' if they have been out of a training contract for more than 2 years. These changes aim to simplify the process for both employers and students and make it easier to track progress through the qualification.
Recognising previous work experience
We recognise that careers change over time. We're introducing a new process that will allow students' previous work experience to be recognised and accelerate their progress through the qualification.
An application process will be introduced later this year to acknowledge students’ previous work experience if this has been obtained with an Authorised Training Office (ATO) in the last 12 months. The new process has the potential to accelerate the completion of the qualification to 2 years.
Accredited degree program requirements
Starting with the September 2023 intake, students will no longer need to demonstrate a minimum pass mark of 50% in each accredited degree module. Instead, they will only need to prove that they have passed the module according to the pass criteria set by the awarding university.
If you have any questions on the above, please get in touch.
