Which is Better, BBA or Bcom for ACCA Exams?

The ACCA is one of the finest accountancy organizations on the globe today. The Association of Chartered Certified Accountants has just 200,000 members and 500,000 around the world. This makes it sort of an exclusive group of accountancy experts and professionals. Professional qualifications like the ACCA and CA will exemplify your career by allowing you to leverage a wide range of opportunities and possibilities. But to get there, you need to complete a graduate program.

Now the question arises, which is better for ACCA, Bcom, or BBA?

Well, speaking from experience and research, it would be better if you go ahead with ACCA plus BBA. This combination will prepare the students for leadership and management roles. Plus, if you wish to start your own business after getting ACCA certification, this combination will prove to be a wonderful choice.

For those whose aim is to become an ACCA, the choice of the right graduate program is crucial. The right graduation path will help in preparing and cracking the ACCA exam. Still, if you have a dilemma, continue to read this article ahead, and we will help you find the right answer. At IMS Proschool, we also provide training and preparation help for the ACCA exam. We help students take the right approach to learning and provide 1000+ hours of ACCA training.

ACCA with Bcom | How does it Stand?

Pursuing Bcom with ACCA is beneficial, especially when you look at it from the perspective of exemptions you will get. Yes, by completing the Bcom degree and then giving the ACCA exam, you do not have to sit for the following subject exams;

• Business and Technology (BT)
• Accountant in Business (AB)
• Management Accounting (MA)
• Financial Accounting (FA)
• Corporate and Business Law (LW)
• Taxation (TX)

 
These exemptions are given because you might have already studied about these in the degree program. With these exemptions, you can start your preparation and pay fees for the right level considering your existing knowledge and skills.

Well, that is not it. A lot of students pursue Bcom with a plan to give the ACCA exams after completing their degree. While others start preparing for the ACCA while they are pursuing their Bcom.

In total, it will take 3 to 4 years for a student to complete the Bcom degree program and prepare for the ACCA simultaneously. It is true that some part of the ACCA syllabus is already covered in the Bcom degree program. So, while preparing for the exam, you will have 4 to 6 fewer subjects to worry about.

This combination is so popular that some universities have started offering integrated degree programs. So, in the same college or university, you will study Bcom and prepare for the ACCA exam. But these courses are costlier than a single Bcom degree.

The students will learn the core accounting systems, methods, and subjects in ACCA. So subjects like taxation, management accounting, IFRS, financial reporting, and auditing are taught to their core in ACCA. Yes, there are similar subjects in Bcom, but they do not provide in-depth knowledge.

There is a difference in the content available in both courses. For instance, Bcom has IFRS as a subject, but it won’t be an in-depth study. But in ACCA, you will learn extensively about IFRS and understand its applications down to its core.

So what happens here is that students take ACCA as their primary course and do Bcom alongside. So, you are not studying ACCA with Bcom, but you are potentially studying Bcom with ACCA.

ACCA and Bcom Exam Structure

In the section above, you got the list of exempted subjects in the ACCA exam if you give the exam with a Bcom degree. However, listed below are the subjects that you have to prepare for and get ACCA certification.

• Financial Reporting (FR)
• Audit and Assurance (AA)
• Financial Management (FM)
• Strategic Business Reporting (SBR)
• Strategic Business Leader (SBL)
• Advanced Financial Management (AFM)
• Advanced Performance Management (APM)

 
However, understand this, the ACCA is a professional certification that can accelerate your career to the next level. At the base of all career growth is your knowledge and skills. We have already mentioned that in Bcom you will get into the details of the subjects. But in ACCA, you will go into the core of the accounting world.

So, getting exemptions here is not fit because you will not have the core knowledge, especially if you wish to do away with these exempted subjects. You might face troubles while on the job because you may not have the right skills to solve a problem.

ACCA with BBA | How Does it Stand?

BBA and ACCA is one of the best combinations you can choose to move ahead in the accounting field. One of the reasons why experts recommend this combination is because BBA gives you complementary skills and knowledge. In ACCA, you will learn a lot about auditing, accounting, financial management, etc., and all this is essential to learn.

Doing BBA with ACCA means you can expand your knowledge base to include business management, understand the business language, and gain business-related acumen.

You will get a support structure consisting of business administration and related aspects. Imagine going for an interview where you can show your technical skills gained with ACCA and your business management plus administrative expertise gained with BBA.

This will instantly bring you to the position of a valuable asset, and getting a job gets easier. Yes, with this combination, you might have to study harder than the Bcom + ACCA combination, but the results will also be equally better with BBA + ACCA.

After working and gaining experience, you can also easily start your own business. This is because you already have the expertise of ACCA, and using your skills gained from BBA will get you promoted to the top positions.

The subjects you will learn in ACCA include;

• Business and Technology (BT)
• Financial Accounting (FA)
• Management Accounting (MA)
• Corporate and Business Law (LW)
• Taxation (TX)
• Financial Reporting (FR)
• Performance Management (PM)
• Financial Management (FM)
• Audit and Assurance (AA)
• Strategic Business Reporting (SBR)
• Strategic Business Leader (SBL)
• Advanced Financial Management (AFM)
• Advanced Audit and Assurance (AAA)
• Advanced Taxation (ATX)
• Advanced Performance Management (APM)

 
Out of these, the AFM, AAA, ATX, and APM subjects are optional. Rest all of them are necessary. In other words, after cracking all the ACCA exams, you will become an expert in taxation, accounting, auditing, business law, and other subjects.

In BBA, you will learn;

• Financial Accounting
• Cost accounting
• Macroeconomics
• Environmental management
• Quantitative techniques
• Principles of Marketing
• Business Analytics
• Human resource management
• Strategic management
• Entrepreneurship and Business plan

 
These are only some of the subjects. Add all these subjects with the ones you will study for the ACCA exam and then measure your skillset. Any company will see great value in you and consider you to be a strong asset to them. So, getting a high-paying job gets easier with ACCA and BBA.

Which Combination is Better, BBA + ACCA or Bcom + ACCA?

The answer to this question is simple, but it depends on your requirements and preferences. Bcom and ACCA is a potent combination. The skills you will gain here are going to help you become an expert in the majority of accounting and related concepts. It is going to broaden your horizon and your thought process in this particular field.

In short, if you are going to stay in a job and work for global companies, Bcom with ACCA is a good option.

However, if in the future you want to establish your business or take up more entrepreneurial roles in the company, then you must go for BBA and ACCA. The combination of subjects and topics you will learn here will bring the much needed expertise but with an additional element of business administration and management.

Conclusion

ACCA is a prestigious certification that has the potential to scale your earnings and growth opportunities. Getting the ACCA qualification means you will go into the depths of accounting, auditing, and finance which are crucial for a company’s growth. However, by adding degree programs like Bcom or BBA to ACCA will give you more learning opportunities, skills, and knowledge.

When you have to choose between the two, understand that Bcom gives you an advantage of exemptions. With BBA, you will get to learn more skills and expand your circle of opportunities. At IMS Proschool, we help students prepare well for the ACCA exams no matter what degree program they choose to opt for their graduation.