BDO and Big Four partner with ACCA / Sunway for audit simulation course
Malaysia’s Sunway TES Centre of Accountancy Excellence together with the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants have held the first international installation of their joint Global Audit Simulation Programme in partnership with BDO and the Big Four.
Established to promote high-level accounting training in Malaysia, the Sunway TES Centre of Accountancy Excellence (CAE) is a collaborative initiative between Sunway College and leading international accounting bodies The Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (ACCA) and The Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales (ICAEW), together with local professional accounting firms, large corporations and higher education institutes.
Having been running in Malaysia since 2015, Sunway TES CAE together with the ACCA have now hosted the first international installation of the Sunway TES-ACCA Global Audit Simulation Programme – described as the first and only real-world case-based audit simulation programme. The programme is exclusively partnered by the world’s five largest global accounting networks – (ascending by global revenues); BDO, KPMG, EY, PwC and Deloitte.
“Representatives from (these) firms will be guiding, facilitating students on audit techniques and reviewing the work at the end of the simulation. The simulation is similar to a one week crash course in audit, which will provide participants a true real working experience,” said Merina Abu Tahir, Chair of ACCA Advisory Committee. “The programme is a shining example of Sunway TES’s innovative approach to focus on building employability and real world skills in students.”
According to Sunway, the institute saw 272 students (those currently pursuing ACCA qualifications who have completed prerequisites in Corporate and Business Law, Performance Management, and Taxation) participate in the week-long programme, with more than 50 joining from seven universities across the Asia Pacific and Middle East regions, including among others the Sultan Qaboos University of Oman, Dubai’s Middlesex University, and Bahrain Polytechnic.
“In its previous installations, the Simulation Programme has been proven to enhance students’ knowledge through practical learning, exposure to real life audit and the opportunity to secure employment offers from the reviewing firms,” said Teo Ee Sing, Executive Director at Sunway College, who added that the programme is designed toward the development of practical audit work skills through effective time management, team work, communication and leadership.
The Sunway executive director was present at the earlier launch together with Abu Tahir and representatives from the partnering accounting networks, including; Gan Ah Tee, regional senior partner with BDO; Sherriza Nor Rashidi, Employer Branding & Talent Acquisition Leader for PwC; Peter Lim Chu Guan, Partner at Deloitte; Zetty Othman, KPMG Talent Acquisition and Branding manger; and EY Malaysia’s Learning and Development Leader Lee Kok Choong.
“Since the inception of Sunway TES in 1994, we have nurtured more than 6,000 ACCA graduates some of which are world prize winners,” concluded Teo Ee Sing. “Through the long established strategic partnership with PwC, EY, Deloitte, KPMG, BDO, and the ACCA, it is our hope that Sunway TES can continue its culture of excellence and continue to create inspirational interventions for students to accomplish their goals.”