CIMA Computer based assessment (CBA) questions and answers from CIMA

CIMA CBA Facebook Day was held on the 10th December 2014 , below are some interesting questions asked by students and answers from CIMA  in that session, Hope it helpful for those who missed that session and those who don't have access to Facebook 




Q - Please inform us on the pass mark,for both certificate and professional levels. What Is the main purpose of introducing study cases at every level of professional?

A - The case study exams test what you have learnt at each level and reflect real-life work situations. This assessment allows us to test a wider range of knowledge and skills across each level. 

The pass marks for all exams are as follows:

Certificate level - 50%
Professional Objective exams - 70%
Professional Case Study - 60%

The case study exams has been introduced to ensure students are business ready at all levels of the CIMA qualification.

Q -  If am studying CIMA in Zambia, then I more to European countries, for example in Norway,can I continue on my respective level in that country?

A -     You can study CIMA globally on the basis that there is an assessment centre nearby.
As CIMA is a globally recognized qualification you can study and take exams in many different countries. Please click into the link and click locate and centre and type your location to find the nearest test centre. http://www.vue.com/cima/


Q - i m going to sit for C04 in end of Dec ,can you tell me key point to pass C04 as i found it very difficult amoung all cert level papers .i have bought Assessment Test for C04 from CimaStudy.com for practicing,would it help me in CBA ??



A - The key to pass C04 like any other CIMA exams is a lot of practice. Try doing some trial questions and see where the knowledge gap is. The CBA level papers are mainly knowledge based and as such it is key to having an in depth knowledge of the syllabus and Learning outcomes.

Q - I have bought Assessment Test for C04 from CimaStudy.com for practicing,would it help me in CBA ??

A -This will certainly help a great deal with the CBA level exams. Practice is key to ensure you have a good knowledge of the syllabus content 

Q - I am an ACCA afilliate

A - Thank you for your interest in joining CIMA. As you are an ACCA affiliate (all exams completed), you are eligible for advanced entry to CIMA through the CIMA Professional Gateway
assessment (PG). The PG route is an accelerated route into CIMA (5 exams in total). Once you pass the PG exam you will be awarded 12 exemptions and your Advanced CIMA Diploma, leaving 4 further exams to complete. The PG exam is the management case study exam.

For more information on the Professional gateway route please see the link below. 
http://www.cimaglobal.com/.../CIMA.../Professional-gateway/

Q - 70% passing mark is quite high. CIMA, kindly consider to bring it back to 50%. For me the computer objective test is tougher than written exam.

A - The 70% pass mark has been confirmed for the objective based exams. There is no decision to reverse this.

Q - I have heard that cima might take back its decision of 70% passing marks is that true?

A - The 70% pass mark has been confirmed for the objective based exams. There is no decision to reverse this.

Q  - I just want to know if the t4 results are tonight or next week, for computer based, it's changing all the time and I'm lost! Don't want to lose sleep for no reason!

A - Hi Samantha Elliott - All exam results will be released on 18 December 2014. This includes T4 on PC. - Jairo

Q - A question was asked earlier about the availability of practice questions, I didn't see an answer. Will there be a large bank of practice questions available? I can only see that kaplan are releasing a 700 question text book at the min, would it not be more advantageous for students to practice on a dvd/cd? Will anything like this be available?

A - Tuition providers will release their own resources. I am unable to comment on these at this moment in time.

CIMA will be releasing question banks and study resources for the 2015 syllabus. These will be available form CIMAStudy.com.

As the Objective based exams are knowledge based and questions asked at random. The key is to ensure you have an excellent understanding of the syllabus and Learning outcomes. In theory 10 students sitting an exam session could all be assigned a different question bank to the student next to them.

There are no plans to provide a DVD at this moment in time.

Q - Hi CIMA while I see text books for the 2015 syllabus I have not been able to purchase e books for the revision and practice kit. Please to inform me when will these be available as I was preparing for the 2010 syllabus but decided to just wait and sit my exams for the professional level at the earliest possible date.

A  - CIMA does not supply ebooks for revision. We do offer specific learning resources in conjunction with Kaplan via CIMAStudy.com

http://www.cimastudy.com/ 

Please contact CIMA Study directly for information on resources that are already available. Online learning modules will be released in January 2015.

Q  - Hi is BPP books updated for 2015. Are they ok to use?

A -  Any textbooks that have been released for use with the 2015 syllabus from any accredited providers will be sufficient for the revised syllabus.

Q - Does it mean that if am to sit for any CBA in january it will be based on the new syllabus.?

A - CBA exams will not be affected by the change in the 2015 Professional syllabus.

Q - How is this so called computer based is it like CBA even for operations managerial and strategic as well please help me especially in strategic because am likely to be in next year?

A - The Professional level Objective based assessments are based on a similar platform to the Certificate level exams.

You can practice these assessments by using the mock exams available at the following link.

http://www.cimaglobal.com/Students/Exam-resources-and-information/Exam-preparation/2015-practice-exams/

Q - Regarding the structure of the objectivity testing questions (strategic level); will the questions be similar to what's given in the Pearson practice exams or to the ones in the Kaplan practice kit? Because some questions given in the Pearson pilot paper are not doable within 2mins. (takes around 5mins to read through the question itself, which when asked from CIMA representative Mr. Clancy we were told that they were not yet quality assessed.)

Also what is the marks allocation/structure? is it equal marks for all? (which in my opinion is quite unfair as some question can be answered in 2 seconds whereas some require a lot of thinking, therefore inappropriate to award same marks)

A -  The current Pearson Vue text questions are not form a specific question bank and will not form any part of future assessments. These mock questions are to help familiarize students with the new assessment methods.

There are around 16 different types of objective questions you could be asked and many will have different allocation of marks. Due to CIMA testing different Learning outcomes, it would not be possible to assign the same level of marking for each question.

Q - I am studying CIMA in Pakistan is there any idea from when cba in 2015 beginning??

A - You can sit a CBA exam at any Pearson Vue exam centre. The current syllabus has been available since 2011.
Please use the link below to search for exam centres in your area - http://www.pearsonvue.com/cima/

Q -
 1. Besides subscription fees, can I pay CBA exam fees directly to CIMA or its only through PEARSON VUE?
2. What is grace period for subscription fees after due date?

A - 1 - All CBA exam entry fees are paid directly to Pearson Vue when booking an exam.

2 - All subscription fees are due on 1st January annually. We can allow some additional time up until 31st March. After this date unpaid accounts will be Lapsed.

Q - Any practice papers according to new syllabus ?

A - You can find mock questions for the 2015 syllabus via the link below. 

http://www.cimaglobal.com/.../Exam.../2015-practice-exams/ 

Q - when new text books will available ?

A - Revised textbooks for 2015 are available already from Kaplan Publishing. Please see the link below: 
http://kaplan-publishing.kaplan.co.uk/cima/Pages/default.aspx

Q - I don't get CIMA official emails.How can i solve that?

A - You can access your communication preferences in your MYCIMA account. Alternatively, please email me with your Contact ID on the following email address and I can check your account for you.

study.guidance@cimaglobal.com

Q - Are the past papers of 2010 syllabus relevant to practice for the CBA exams for 2015 syllabus?? When we get the practice assessment tests for CBA exams like previous past papers?

A - As the syllabus has been revised for 2015, it would not be recommended to use the textbooks from a previous syllabus. The content will have been revised and will not be sufficient to pass the exams.

Q -  I have a diploma in banking and finance, I have done all the subjects at CBA level and I was not granted exemptions,may you advise

A -  Thank you for your question about exemptions. As the professional body you completed your diploma with is not an accredited professional body with CIMA we was unable to offer you any exemptions.

Q - It's seems that courses (eg p2 and f2) run very close together (one ends 7th feb and the next starts on the 10th). When are we expected to fit in revision and the actual exam?



A - All Management level Case Study assessments held in March 2015 will be held between 3 - 7 March 2015. Strategic level case studies will be held from 10 - 14 March 2015.

If you wish to enter P2 / F2 you can book these on demand as they are Objective based assessments.

Q - Is intermediate english level enough to prepare CIMA?

A - CIMA operate a flexible entry policy, which means that as long as you feel that you have a good knowledge and understanding of Mathematics and English, there is no requirement for formal
qualifications to register with us.

Q - I know it's not related to CBA but I hope you can help as I can not find an answer anywhere and have emailed but had no reply yet. I passed 2 out of 3 operational papers in 2010 and 2011 but have taken a break from studying since. I would like to pick it up again in 2015 but I'm not sure if I would be able to waive the third paper and go straight onto the case study given that the first two were passed 3-4 years ago, can you please advise?

A - Please email me at the following email address.

Please include your Contact ID so that I am able to check your CIMA account.

2015.syllabus@cimaglobal.com

Q - Hi CIMA while I see text books for the 2015 syllabus I have not been able to purchase e books for the revision and practice kit. Please to inform me when will these be available as I was preparing for the 2010 syllabus but decided to just wait and sit my exams for the professional level at the earliest possible date under the 2015 syllabus.

A - Online learning resources will be available in January 2015. You may wish to contact tuition providers such as BPP and Kaplan for further information on study resources they have/will have available.

Courtesy - https://www.facebook.com/CIMAglobal