Approved SAIPA and Fasset ATC Training Centre
Qualify as a Professional Accountant (SA)
Qualifying as a Professional Accountant (SA) usually takes 6 years (3-year degree and 3-year internship) provided you are able to complete the undergraduate qualification in the minimum time. Qualifying as a Professional Accountant (SA) does not require you to complete a postgraduate qualification. It is possible to qualify as a Professional Accountant (SA) within 3 years by working and studying at the same time.
Your journey to qualifying as a Professional Accountant (SA) works as follows:
There are three requirements that need to be met in order to qualify as a Professional Accountant (SA):
- Academic requirements
- Practical experience, and
- Passing SAIPA’s Professional Evaluation exam.


For the academic pillar, you will need to complete matric with:
- Accounting; and
- Mathematics
You will also need to successfully complete a Bachelor of Commerce degree or equivalent at a SAIPA-accredited tertiary institution with the following required core subjects:
- Financial Accounting 3;
- Taxation;
- Auditing 1 OR Internal Auditing;
- Commercial Law; and
- Finance OR Management Accounting 3.
Your practical requirement is to complete a three-year internship at a SAIPA Accredited Training Centre (ATC) to gain invaluable work experience.
The final pillar is the Professional Evaluation (PE) exam. The SAIPA PE exam is a four-hour written competency exam to determine your ability to integrate your academic knowledge with your practical experience gained in the workplace. This exam can be taken twice a year, either in May or November, in various venues around South Africa and it is part of the admission process for membership of SAIPA.
Visit SAIPA’s website for more information – www.saipa.co.za.
Apply Today!
Complete your details below and one of our consultants will contact you.