On Thursday 28 April 2005, UTAR signed a landmark Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with the Chartered Institute of Management Accountants (CIMA).

On the platform for the signing ceremony were Tan Sri Datuk Dr Ng Lay Swee, UTAR President/CEO (signatory), Mr Lee Yee Chong, President of CIMA Malaysia (signatory), Professor Roland Kaye, CIMA President (witness), Mr Lai Fatt Sian, Dean of FAM (witness) and Tun Dr Ling Liong Sik, UTAR Council Chairman (Guest of Honour).

Provisions of MOU
Among its provisions, UTAR Bachelor of Commerce in Accounting graduates are exempted from 10 out of the total 15 CIMA papers students have to pass to become a member of the professional body. The MOU also provides for the UTAR Master's degree in Accounting to be exempted from a further 4 papers, leaving only 1 more paper on Case Study to sit for. According to Professor Roland Kaye, CIMA's exemptions for the UTAR Master's degree is the first to be extended to any university world-wide.

Under the MOU, CIMA will also offer scholarships worth RM100,000 to UTAR graduates who will be pursuing, either the UTAR Master's degrees in Accounting offered by the Institute of Postgraduate Studies and Research (IPSR) or the remaining 5 CIMA papers conducted by the Centre for Extension Education (CEE).

UTAR President/CEO, Tan Sri Datuk Dr Ng Lay Swee thanked CIMA, an established international professional body, for the confidence demonstrated in the quality of the UTAR accounting degree.

Versatility of UTAR's curriculum
She added, "UTAR's successful alliances and partnerships with industry, research centres and professional bodies indicate that UTAR's curriculum has been well received and recognized. Today's MOU with CIMA is one good example that a versatile, current and broad-based curriculum provides its graduates with, among other advantages, a broader range of career options."

She was referring to a similar endorsement from other professional bodies like ACCA which has granted the UTAR Honours degree in Accounting an exemption of 9 out of 14 papers.

In addition, as the Accounting degree has been accredited by LAN and is recognized by the JPA, its graduates are eligible to join the government service and statutory bodies which includes Bank Negara, the Treasury Department, EPF and the Inland Revenue Department, etc. They are also eligible to sit for the Qualifying Examinations for MIA to become a chartered accountants in Malaysia. This means that UTAR Accounting graduates have every opportunity to join the world of business, commerce, finance and the various industries in both management and professional accounting capacities, in the public and private sectors.

Multi-facetted co-operation
UTAR's alliance with CIMA is a multi-facetted co-operation that draws on each other's strengths and resources. Apart from curriculum recognition, both are co-operating in various projects ranging from computer-based assessment to CIMA First and joint research.