CA Sri Lanka’s Applied Accounting degree records highest ever intake

From left: SAB Administration Deputy Manager Jennifer Cooray, SAB Registrar Wijerathne Banda, SAB Director Prof. Sanath Dhammika, CA Sri Lanka President Jagath Perera, CA Sri Lanka Vice President Manil Jayasinghe and Prasanna Liyanage

Students who have registered for the 12th intake of the CA Sri Lanka degree program

The BSc. Applied Accounting degree of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Sri Lanka (CA Sri Lanka) recorded the highest ever intake this month at its 12th intake with over 255 students registering for the academic program. 

Speaking at the inauguration ceremony of the 12th intake, CA Sri Lanka President Jagath Perera said that the degree program is continuously being improved and is witnessing a remarkable popularity among the public. 

“To date, all the students who have completed the degree program are enjoying a higher level of employability, which is a testament that the degree program guarantees employability at 100%,” he said. 

Perera said that the main yardstick to measure an institute is the employability it provides to the students following the completion of a professional or academic program. “In this regard, CA Sri Lanka scores very highly,” he said. 

According to Perera, any student at any level exiting CA Sri Lanka are guaranteed to be employed, whether they are graduates of the BSc. Applied Accounting degree, or were part of the Chartered Accounting program. 

Speaking at the event, CA Sri Lanka Vice President Manil Jayesinghe said that accounting plays a critical role in everyone’s life. “People tell me without engineers the world won’t survive, and it will not witness any innovations or new products, but when an engineer comes up with a new product, it is finance professionals who help the engineer secure the necessary funds to develop the product,” he said. 

Therefore, Jayesinghe noted that finances influences an organisation from strategy to executing strategy, including reporting and communicating the respective strategy. “So, basically, finance goes right across any organisation, and therefore I am very happy to see that you have chosen this important profession,” he said. 

He also noted that for 60 years CA Sri Lanka has been producing accounting professionals to the market, and a significant percent of these professionals hold the highest position in companies. “I hope when all of you complete your degree program, you will also reach this level of success,” Jayesinghe added. 

The total student population at the CA Sri Lanka School of Accounting and Business which is conducting the degree program approved by the University Grants Commission currently stands at 1129 students. Over 300 students have graduated since the Institute launched the degree in 2013. 

During the inauguration, a guest lecture was delivered to the new students by Human Potential Development and Physiology Training Consultant Dr. Chandana Gunawardana.  The CA Sri Lanka BSc. Applied Accounting degree is offered under two stages where students can either complete the General Degree in three years (six semesters) or the Special Degree in four years (eight semesters). Undergraduates also have the opportunity to gain industry exposure through internship and work placement at reputed companies after two years of completing the program. 

Students can follow the degree at a fulltime or part-time basis, with transfer options to La Trobe or Deakin University in Australia after completing two years in Sri Lanka. 

The entry requirements for the degree is passes in three subjects (in any subject stream) at the GCE Advanced Level (Sri Lanka) examination with a minimum mark of 30% for the Common General Paper in one attempt; or passes in four subjects (in any subject stream) at the GCE Advanced Level (Sri Lanka) examination (under old syllabus) in one attempt; or any foreign qualification equivalent to the GCE Advanced Level Examination in Sri Lanka such as Edexcel or Cambridge.