Corporate Finance qualification FAQs

The syllabus is focused on corporate finance practice and theory and as such is internationally applicable. The syllabus also covers UK listing rules which are directly relevant to many members practicing outside the UK, including those advising clients listed on a London Exchange. We have international students from a variety of locations including; South Africa, Bucharest, Singapore, Bahrain, Dubai and Hong Kong SAR.

The Diploma in Corporate Finance is designed to build on the knowledge gained through the Certificate in Corporate Finance. The certificate is therefore the normal prerequisite for the Diploma in Corporate Finance. The certificate consists of two units:

• Unit 1: Corporate Finance Regulation
• Unit 2: Corporate Finance Technical Foundations

 

Special arrangements

There are special arrangements for individuals with the following qualifications:

Holders of SFA Corporate Finance Representative examination or previous SII CF Diploma

Holders of the following qualifications, which provide a specific corporate finance and regulatory underpinning for FSA Activity 8, advising on investments in the course of corporate finance business, are exempt from the level 3 Certificate in Corporate Finance:

• SFA Corporate Finance Representative examination
• Previous SII CF Diploma if a regulatory paper is held
  
  

Candidates outside the UK who do not hold the full level 3 Certificate in Corporate Finance

Candidates outside the UK who do not hold the full level 3 Certificate in Corporate Finance may substitute a local regulatory paper for the Certificate in Corporate Finance unit 1: Corporate

Finance Regulation and will need to complete unit 2 of the Certificate in Corporate Finance - Corporate Finance Technical Foundations.

• View details of the local regulatory papers which are also acceptable

Other local regulatory papers may be considered and are assessed on a case by case basis.

Holders of the ACA

Holders of the ACA are exempt from the level 3 Certificate in Corporate Finance but are advised that the Diploma in Corporate Finance requires a high level of specific technical knowledge and are thus strongly recommended to sit the Certificate in Corporate Finance unit 2: Corporate Finance Technical Foundations to gain an appropriate academic underpinning to the diploma.

Other accountancy institutes may be considered on a case by case basis.

Holders of the diploma paper for the previous ICAEW Corporate Finance qualification

Holders of the diploma paper for the previous ICAEW Corporate Finance qualification are exempt from the level 3 Certificate in Corporate Finance. To gain the new Diploma in Corporate Finance, they are required to pass the Corporate Finance Strategy and Advice paper of the new Diploma in Corporate Finance.

From July 2024 things will change with the withdrawal of Paper 1 and its replacement by three on-demand exams.

Summer exams - 19 April 2023

Either through distance learning (self-study from anywhere in the world with the support of online materials) or classroom learning (with a tutor, surrounded by peers).

Online content includes interactive webinars, presentations, recordings of prior knowledge elements from the Certificate in Corporate Finance, regular communication with tutor and fellow candidates, etc.

Note that classroom learning is only available in the UK.

In the UK, Diploma in Corporate Finance exams will take place in London.

Exam	Dates
Paper 1: Corporate Finance Techniques and Theory	6 June 2023 10:00 BST
Paper 2: Corporate Finance Strategy and Advice	5 June 2023 13:00 BST

Exam costs can be found on the CISI Corporate Finance Diploma page. Click on the Book your exam PDF link for more information. 

The estimated study time is between 200-300 hours per paper.

The pass mark varies but is never less than 50%.

Each exam will take about 3-4 hours to complete:

• Paper 1: Three hour open book examination (short scenario style questions)
• Paper 2: Four hour open book examination based on a case study

There is no requirement for you to hold a professional accounting qualification. To be eligible to apply you must have specialised in the field of corporate finance for at least five years. You must currently be working in corporate finance, or another relevant role, and corporate finance should form a substantial part of that role. You should be working at a senior management and/or leadership position (eg, partner, principal, director, managing director).

All senior professionals who have at least five years’ experience in corporate finance are eligible to apply. You will need sufficient work experience to meet each of the requirements in the Examination of Experience, as set out in the application form through a description of six transactions and/or deals in which you have played a lead role, three of these must have been completed in the last three years.

One of the requirements of this qualification is to demonstrate knowledge of the current business environment which is why we insist that applicants must have experience in the last three years.

As long as your experience is current and you meet the eligibility criteria, living outside the UK does not disqualify you from applying. The CF qualification is a global qualification and as such is open to applicants from all over the world.

As long as the three deals on which you have worked have been concluded and as long as at least one of these deals was successfully transacted from your client’s perspective you are still able to apply.

Your referees must have known you for at least three of the last five years and must have knowledge of the quality and scope of your work. At least one must be someone independent of your current or previous employers. All referees must be in a senior management and/or leadership position in corporate finance (eg, partner, principal, director, managing director). Their role is to recommend you for the qualification.

In addition to the three referees, each of the six transactions and/or deals you submit must be certified by a transaction or deal certifier. The deals may be certified by the same or different certifiers, who may also act as a referee. They must be a senior manager or equivalent (eg, partner, principal, director or managing director) and be a member of a professional body with an ethical code and/or hold the Corporate Finance qualification.

You are eligible to attempt the Examination of Experience up to four times. If you fail, you should review the marks and comments made by the assessors in your results and feedback letters.

The cost of the Examination of Experience is:

• ICAEW member £796.00 + VAT
• Non ICAEW member £995.00 + VAT

The experience route application submission deadline is 3 October 2024.

The application form contains detailed guidance notes to help you with your submission, including an example of a deal/transaction summary. You can download a copy of the guidance notes (PDF 95KB/2 pages) from our website. In addition, there is a webinar available to talk you through the application process.

You may re-apply until you reach the maximum of four attempts. Details of resubmission requirements are set out in the feedback to unsuccessful applicants.

When you resubmit your Examination of Experience, you should submit all six of the original copies of your transactions together with any reworked and/or new transactions as recommended in the examiners’ feedback. You should read this feedback carefully in order to satisfy all requirements. All transactions should be marked appropriately in accordance with the instructions within your results and feedback letter. You must ensure that all transactions submitted were completed or terminated within the last five years.

The Examination of Experience refers to the use of examples of experience that are recent. This means examples of experience from within the last five years. As it may have been some time since you last applied, you will need to make sure that when resubmitting the transactions previously failed, you include examples from within the last five years. This enables you to include and reflect upon the most up-to-date and relevant examples in your answers.

All transactions and deals must be verified by a transaction or deal certifier. Where they have been reworked for resubmission, they must be reverified by a transaction or deal certifier.

Yes, if it has been some time since you applied, an up-to-date copy of your CV is requested. This enables you to include any new positions you have held or currently hold since your last application.

Yes, the assessors will expect your certifier(s) to have read the deals and/or transactions in your resubmission and reverify each one as authentic and a true record. Your referees must also reconfirm the accuracy of the total resubmission and recommend you for this qualification. The certifier(s) and referees may be those from your previous application.

The cost of each resubmission is £788.00 + VAT

If you require further information or advise, our CF qualification team is available to answer your questions, please call +44 (0)1908 248 250 or email cfqualification@icaew.com.

Suitably qualified and respected members of the corporate finance community have been invited by ICAEW to mark and assess your application. They combine the necessary technical skills and practical experience with a thorough knowledge and understanding of the assessment. ICAEW is a highly regarded awarding body and, in order to ensure that the CF qualification standards are consistent and results are reliable, employs similar assessment procedures for all its qualifications which include double marking.