9 Objective Tests + 3 Case Studies · E / P / F pillars
The CIMA CGMA Professional Qualification is the global management-accounting route from AICPA & CIMA, leading to the Chartered Global Management Accountant designation. It is the credential UK, India, and Gulf employers list for finance business-partner, FP&A, and management-accountant roles — and it is built as a 12-assessment gauntlet of objective tests and case studies that most candidates take three to four years to clear. A single failed objective test resets a sitting fee; a missed Case Study window pushes you back a full quarter. This page breaks down exactly how the qualification is built, how each exam is delivered through Pearson VUE, and how to get the papers behind you.
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How the CIMA CGMA Professional Qualification is built — three levels, two exam types
OPS
E1, P1, and F1 objective tests plus the Operational Case Study. Focuses on short-term decisions: costing, financial reporting fundamentals, and managing operations.
MGT
E2, P2, and F2 objective tests plus the Management Case Study. Steps up to medium-term decisions: project and relationship management, advanced costing, and financial analysis.
STR
E3, P3, and F3 objective tests plus the Strategic Case Study. The capstone: strategic management, enterprise risk, and financial strategy at board level.
Each objective test is a 90-minute, computer-marked paper of 60 questions using multiple-choice, number-entry, drag-and-drop, and hot-spot formats. They are booked on demand year-round and marked on a scaled score of 0–150, with the pass mark fixed at 100 (about 67%). You can resit immediately after a fail by paying another sitting fee.
You must pass all three objective tests at a level before you can sit that level's Case Study. Case Studies run in four fixed windows a year — February, May, August, and November — each over a three-day period. Pre-seen material describing a fictional organisation is released in the CGMA Study Hub roughly six weeks before the window, and you answer a series of role-based tasks marked by examiners.
Every objective test and case study on the route to CGMA, by level and pillar
| Level | Code | Subject / Component | Pillar |
|---|---|---|---|
| Operational | E1 | Managing Finance in a Digital World | Enterprise |
| Operational | P1 | Management Accounting | Performance |
| Operational | F1 | Financial Reporting | Financial |
| Operational | OCS | Operational Case Study | Integrated |
| Management | E2 | Managing Performance | Enterprise |
| Management | P2 | Advanced Management Accounting | Performance |
| Management | F2 | Advanced Financial Reporting | Financial |
| Management | MCS | Management Case Study | Integrated |
| Strategic | E3 | Strategic Management | Enterprise |
| Strategic | P3 | Risk Management | Performance |
| Strategic | F3 | Financial Strategy | Financial |
| Strategic | SCS | Strategic Case Study | Integrated |
Candidates entering with relevant degrees or other accountancy qualifications may be granted exemptions from some objective tests, but the Case Studies cannot be exempted — every CGMA candidate must pass all three. Many enter the Professional Qualification after completing the CIMA Certificate in Business Accounting (BA1–BA4).
Each level carries one test per pillar — bars show the even split of the objective tests across each level
E1, E2, E3 — how organisations are managed and how finance partners the business. Digital finance, performance management, and strategy.
P1, P2, P3 — management accounting and risk. Costing, budgeting, decision-making, advanced cost analysis, and enterprise risk management.
F1, F2, F3 — financial reporting and strategy. Financial statements, group accounts, IFRS, and board-level financial strategy.
The pillars run vertically through all three levels, so you build the same competency from operational depth to strategic breadth. The Case Study at each level then integrates all three pillars into one scenario — which is why candidates who pass the objective tests in isolation often stumble on the case, where the examiner expects you to weave Enterprise, Performance, and Financial thinking together under time pressure.
Two ways to sit CIMA exams — and what to expect on test day
You sit objective tests or case studies at a Pearson VUE centre. Staff verify your government photo ID, store your belongings, and supervise the room. You're given a whiteboard or laminated noteboard for working. Centres are widely available across the UK, India, the Gulf, and most major cities worldwide.
You take the exam from a private room at home through OnVUE remote proctoring. Setup needs a single monitor, a webcam, a microphone, 6 Mbps down / 2 Mbps up, and a Windows 10+ or macOS 14+ machine. Virtual machines, second screens, headphones, smartwatches, and VPNs are blocked. Check-in opens 30 minutes before your appointment.
A valid, unexpired government photo ID — passport, driving licence, national ID, or green card — with the name matching your booking exactly. The proctor photographs you and your ID before the exam unlocks.
A clear, empty desk except for your computer and an unlabelled drink, no second person in the room, and a full 360-degree webcam scan of your environment before you begin.
Stay alone and in frame for the whole session, which is recorded for review. Reach a proctor through the in-exam chat if needed. Leaving the seat, talking aloud, or losing connection can flag your session.
CIMA CGMA gates management-accounting and finance-partner careers
Multiple entry points — but a long, attrition-heavy route
Difficulty: The objective tests demand precise technical recall under a fast 90-minute clock, while the Case Studies punish anyone who treats them as essay papers rather than role-based tasks tied to pre-seen material. Strategic-level F3 and the Strategic Case Study are where many otherwise-strong candidates stall — exactly the pressure points our help is built to remove.
A 12-assessment qualification with gated levels, sitting fees on every resit, and only four Case Study windows a year leaves little room for a stalled paper. Exam Assist pairs you with a vetted CIMA specialist on a pay-after-you-pass model — so the risk sits with us, not you. No upfront fee, guaranteed results: just an honest plan, whether it's a single objective test or a Strategic Case Study, and a verified result before you settle.
Tell us which paper you need — a specific objective test (say F2 or P3) or a Case Study — your delivery method, and your target sitting. A couple of minutes over WhatsApp, Telegram, or Discord.
We review the paper, the window, and your timeline and tell you plainly whether it's realistic — before any money is discussed. If it isn't a fit, we say so.
Exam Assist handles the sitting end to end. You're matched with a CIMA specialist who maps the work around the objective-test blueprint or the Case Study pre-seen and the OnVUE environment — discreetly and confidentially.
You only pay once your passing result is confirmed. No verified result, nothing owed.
Objective tests and case studies on a pay-after-you-pass arrangement.
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Straight answers about the CIMA CGMA Professional Qualification
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