Certified Internal Auditor

By applying to become a candidate in the CIA programme, an individual agrees to accept the conditions of the programme. These include eligibility requirements, examination confidentiality, Code of Ethics, continuing professional education, and any other conditions enacted by the Board of Regents or Certification Department. The CIA is the only globally accepted designation for internal auditors and remains the standards by which individuals demonstrate their competence and professionalism in the internal audit field.

Eligibility Requirements  

Educational Requirement
Candidates must hold a bachelor’s degree or its equivalent from an accredited university or college. A copy of the candidate’s highest qualification, transcripts or other written proof of completion of a degree programme must be submitted with the registration form. 

Professional ExperienceCIAs are required to complete 24 months of internal auditing experience or its equivalent. Equivalent experience means experience in audit/assessment disciplines, including external auditing, quality assurance, compliance, and internal control. Candidates may sit for the CIA examination prior to satisfying their experience requirement, but they will not be certified until the experience requirement has been met. A candidate’s work experience in internal or external auditing should:

1. Be printed on the Internal Audit Experience Verification Form or on the organisation’s letterhead.
2. Include the specific dates of employment in an auditing capacity.
3. Specify the position(s) held along with a brief description of duties and responsibilities.
4. Contain the signature and title of the candidate’s supervisor, another appropriate member of the organisation, or a Certified Internal Auditor.

The Internal Audit Experience Verification Form should be sent with the candidate’s application or later when criteria have been met. However, prompt submission of the Experience Verification Form will expedite certification processing once the candidate has passed the examination. 

Character ReferenceCIAs must exhibit the highest moral and professional character and abide by the IIA’s Code of Ethics. Candidates must submit a character reference from a responsible person such as a CIA, supervisor, manager, or educator.  The Character Reference Form must accompany the Application Form. 

Membership of IIA
Candidates must be individual members of The Institute of Internal Auditors Malaysia, and be familiar with The IIA’s Standards for the Professional Practice of Internal Auditing and agree to abide by The IIA’s Code of Ethics which sets forth standards of conduct for all members and CIAs.  



Registration & Application

Initial Registration and Application

Candidates must complete and sign the Application Form, Character Reference Form and Experience Verification Form* and submit them with the following:

• A registration fee in cheque/bank draft payable to The Institute of Internal Auditors Malaysia. Payment by credit card can be made by completing the Payment Form.
• A copy of candidate's highest qualification, transcripts, or other written proof of completion of degree programme.
• The CSA Facilitation Validation Form (only for CCSA candidates)

*may be submitted later when criteria have been met. 

IIA Malaysia cannot guarantee a candidate's right to sit for the examination if the above procedures are not followed. The registration fee will be refunded to candidates who are denied entrance into the programmes.

Examination Fees

Type of Fee	Amount (RM)
Registration Fee*	3000.00
Examination Fee (Per Part)	450.00
*Include processing fee, IIA CIA Learning System & Graduation fee.

• Fees are subject to change.
• All fees must be prepaid before application and registration can be processed.
• Fees paid are not refundable, unless an application is rejected.
• Fees may vary in certain countries where the examination is administered under the direction of an IIA affiliate.
• Grades will be withheld pending payment of any outstanding fees.
• The fees above are for self-study programme. Different fee structure for Sunway-TES CIA Programme.

Examination Content & Format.

The CIA examination tests a candidate’s knowledge and ability regarding the current practice of internal auditing. It enables candidates and prospective managers to adapt to professional changes and challenges by: Addressing nearly all management skills. Focusing on the principles of management control. Measuring a candidate’s understanding of risk management and internal controls. The Certified Internal Auditor examination is offered in four parts. Each part consists of 100 multiple-choice questions.

Part I – The Internal Audit (IA) Activity’s Role in Governance, Risk and Control     A Comply with The IIA’s Attribute Standards 15-25% B Establish a Risk-based Plan to Determine the Priorities of the IA Activity 15-25% C Understand the IA Activity’s Role in Organisational Governance 10-20% D Perform Other Internal Audit Roles and Responsibilities 0-10% E Governance, Risk and Control Knowledge Elements 15-25% F Plan Engagements 15-25% Part II –Conducting the Internal Audit Engagement A Conduct Engagements 25-35% B Conduct Specific Engagements 25-35% C Monitor Engagement Outcomes 5-15% D Fraud Knowledge Elements 5-15% E Engagement Tools 20-30% Part III – Business Analysis and Information Technology A Business Processes 15-25% B Financial Accounting and Finance 15-25% C Managerial Accounting 10-20% D Regulatory, Legal and Economics 5-15% E Information Technology (IT) 30-40% Part IV – Business Management Skills A Strategic Management 20-30% B Global Business Environments 15-25% C Organisational Behavior 15-25% D Management Skills 20-30% E Negotiating 5-15%

Examination Nondisclosure The CIA, similar to many other certifications, is non-disclosed. Candidates must sign a statement asserting that they will not divulge questions and answers after the examination is administered. Unauthorised disclosure of examination questions will be considered a breach of The IIA’s Code of Ethics and could result in disqualification of candidate or other appropriate censure.  The IIA has published a model examination, which will be updated regularly, to reveal the current format of the examination. It has been designed to provide candidates with an understanding of the types of questions that typically appear on the CIA examination and offers expanded solution.

Examination Administration
 
Authorisation to Test

1. Upon approval of application, IIA Malaysia will provide candidate ID number and "Authorisation to Test" notification to candidate, along with the information on how to schedule an examination on the Pearson VUE's (PV) website.
2. A candidate's registration for an examination part will be valid for 180 days from the date the registration is processed at IIA HQ, and the examination part fee is non-refundable.
3. Candidates can sit at Peason VUE testing centres in almost any country, regardless of country of registration.
4. Candidates who do not pass the examination must wait 90 days to retest.

Scheduling

1. Once "Authorisation to Test" notification is received, candidates can begin scheduling their testing appointments with Pearson VUE.
2. Candidates will need to create a login and password to access the Pearson Vue's website to schedule an examination.
3. Visit www.pearsonvue.com and click on "Locate a test centre".
4. Then click "Schedule a Test". Choose the examination that you want to schedule from a list of tests that Pearson VUE conduct. Then choose your test centre.
5. Once the test centre is determined, the candidate will see a calendar with the available testing days and times based on the availability at the chosen location.
6. Once a candidate is scheduled for an examination, he/she will receive a confirmation from Pearson VUE via e-mail with directions to the chose examination centre.
7. Candidates must choose an examination date that is within their 180-day testing period for the examination part.
8. Candidates can postpone the examination and/or change the examination centre, as long as the change is made at least 45 hours prior to the scheduled examination appointment.
9. Candidates cannot schedule or re-schedule the examination beyond the 180 days testing period.

Examination Eligibility Period 

Once a candidate's application to the CIA programme has been approved, the candidate has an eligibility period of four years. The candidate must complete all examinations and fulfil all certification requirements within the four year period. If a candidate fails to complete the certification process within four years, all fees and examination parts passed will be forfeited. If a candidate's programme eligibility expires, the candidate loses credit for any examination parts previously passed. In order to re-enter the CIA programme, the candidate must submit a new CIA application and pay the appropriate fees. 

Examination Experience

1. Candidate arrives at the testing site 30 minutes in advance of the assigned testing time.
2. Candidate is checked in by a Pearson VUE (PV) test administrator.
3. Candidate is assigned a locker and required to leave all unapproved items in the locker.
4. Candidate is escorted into the testing room, assigned a testing station, and logged onto the computer by the PV test administrator.
5. An initial screen displays the name of the examination, and candidate is asked to verify that he/she is receiving the correct examination.
6. Candidate is required to agree that he/she will not disclose examination questions and that he/she may be videotaped or audio-taped in the testing center.
7. Before beginning the examination, candidate is presented with a tutorial (10 minutes maximum).
8. Candidate then begins the exam, with each question presented one at a time on the computer screen.
9. Candidates will be able to indicate/mark questions that they would like to review prior to completing the examination.
10. After viewing all examination questions, the candidate can access a review screen, from which he/she can choose to review all examination questions, review only unanswered examination questions, or review only marked examination questions.
11. From the review screen, the candidate may choose "End Examination" button.
12. Examination also ends if the candidate runs out of time.
13. Candidate cannot return to the examination once it has ended.
14. Candidate will then receive a short survey pertaining to the testing experience.

Results

1. Candidates will receive unofficial results at the examination site when they complete their examination.
2. An official result will be sent by the Institute upon confirmation of result from Pearson VUE.

Passing Score

Statistical information from pre-tested questions is used to maintain comparable difficulty among versions of the examinations. Because the exact number of questions required to pass the examination may be slightly different from one examination to another, all raw scores are converted onto a reporting scale of 250 to 750 points, in order to ensure a common standard. A scaled score of 600 points or higher is required to pass the CIA, CCSA, CFSA or CGAP examination. (A scaled score of 600 would be equivalent of achieving 75 percent correct on an examination of appropriate difficulty).

Examination Dates

With the implementation of computer-based testing in 2008, all certification examinations are available throughout the year. Candidates schedule their examinations online via Pearson Vue website at www.pearsonvue.com

Professional Recognition Credit

Part IV of the CIA examination has been designed so that it can be modified for regional and audit specialisation testing, and The IIA offers a Part IV Professional Recognition Credit (PRC) for qualified professional certifications. The BOR has recognised the professional accomplishments of several certifications worldwide. Only those professional certifications which have been previously approved by the BOR may be submitted for PRC. Candidates applying for Part IV specialisation must provide evidence of certification. The sponsoring organisation may be contacted for verification of all candidate information and verification that the certification is current and in good standing. Registered and new CIA candidates who have successfully met the examination requirements for the following designations are eligible to receive PRC for Part IV.  On passing Parts I, II and III they would have satisfied the examination requirement for the CIA designation. Click here for a list of professional qualifications eligible to receive Professional Recognition Credit for Part IV. 

Source: www.iiam.com.my