September 2024
Nasheen Wuisman explains the importance of planning how you study, and why you should make allowances for the unexpected.
The summer months are here! You may be getting ready for that long-awaited and much-deserved vacation. Have you planned it meticulously? Or is it going to be more of a spontaneous adventure?
I guess that depends on whether you are a deliberate planner or more of a spontaneous planner, who you are travelling with, and whether your travel is interdependent. Maybe when it comes to holidays you like to roll with it a bit more – knowing that you will have fun regardless.
Whichever of these resonates with you more, you still need to know your destination, you need to know what the visa requirements are, which inoculations you need and when you need them by and so much more – it seems there is always a certain amount of planning needed to make your desires a reality.
When I travel, I travel with kids (yes, it’s hard!). My kids are unpredictable and so I must do some extra planning to build in time for all eventualities.
Studying for CIMA’s CGMA professional qualification is a bit like travelling with kids – in addition to the inherent planning that is needed, contingency planning is just as important.
Whether you are a natural planner or not, the fact remains that CGMA candidates who plan ahead tend to have a smoother journey.
Your plan starts when you register to study with us and ends when you qualify. When you are actively studying towards an exam there will be more to plan, as the elements are interdependent – a bit like your connecting trains or flights.
Plan it your way
We know that planning brings rewards, but we also know that some people struggle with planning. You may feel that your time would be better spent diving straight into learning rather than planning study. It may feel it is a waste of time. So why would you?
The short answer is because it works.
Let’s go back to thinking about your vacation; there are certain things that you must do before you can even check-in, so you take the time to tick them off. Plus, you must allow time for delays and traffic and transport – just in case! In case of what? You miss your flight and don’t make it to your much desired destination?
Your CGMA designation awaits you – it is, your much desired destination.
So, whether you are natural planner and you like deadlines, schedules and structured work time, or you are a spontaneous planner and like flexibility, change and remaining open to options. You still have the ability to plan, and you understand the impact it has when the end goal is so important to you.
What’s in it for me?
Planning your studies doesn’t require you to learn a new skill or way of thinking. All you need to do is apply the way you think about planning a trip to something else. The benefits?
Think increased productivity, improved time management, better outcomes, downtime where you do not need to feel guilty, and reduced stress. So, why not reduce study stress as much as you can? Why not manage the last-minute worry that you do not have enough time to get everything you want to do? Why not reduce the chances of having to postpone the exam because you just don’t feel ready yet?
All these eventualities can happen even if you carefully laid out your plan – because life is unpredictable. However, chances of this happening are lower as having a plan gives more control over your study and life in general.
Plan your learning
- Set out how much time you have each week to study. You will need more time the closer you get to the exam.
- Plan to break your study down into manageable chunks – only you know how long you can study for before you are no longer being productive.
- Know when you are going to gain knowledge, revise knowledge and when you are going to start practising questions.
- Allow enough time to cover the syllabus.
You can add as much detail to this plan as you wish, but even creating this outline plan will allow you to get a better handle on your study time.
The best thing about doing this is that you will be able to see the progress you are making, which is a great boost.
Plan your study breaks
Be mindful not to create an intense study plan where every hour has been allocated to study. Doing this may give you a deep sense of dedication, but it will lead to burnout.
Make sure you allocate time to do the things that you enjoy and boost your mental fitness.
And build in adequate breaks to relax to keep study times productive.
Plan your exam
During the Case Study exam, plan how you will use the time by:
- Using the marks available for each question as a guide, decide how many impactful sentences you are going to write.
- Planning your answers using subheadings derived from the task set, which allows you to address all parts of the requirement. Once you have subheadings, you can add content under each to complete your answer.
Take a little time to plan your CGMA journey, it will also help keep your dream alive – just imagine the huge difference being qualified is going to make to your life.
- Nasheen Wuisman, Senior Manager of Global Academic Progression at AICPA and CIMA, together as the Association of International Certified Professional Accountants
