Training: The new Internal Audit Practitioner programme
If you employ or train internal audit apprentices – or if you are an apprentice yourself – you need to know about IIA Global’s new Internal Audit Practitioner programme. The main change is that students will take a new exam comprising 100 multiple choice questions, rather than having to pass the CIA Part 1 exam. They can then progress to the full CIA programme to complete all three parts of the CIA.
The idea is that those who complete the new Internal Audit Practitioner programme will have demonstrated foundational knowledge of the Standards and of the professional practices of internal auditing. Students who embark on the programme do not need any previous internal audit work experience – so, in addition to level 4 apprentices, it is also appropriate for new internal auditors who wish to join the CIA programme but lack a degree or five years’ experience, and for those on rotation from elsewhere in the business.
Like the other IIA Global exams, the two-hour Internal Audit Practitioner exam is sat at one of the many PearsonVue test centres across the UK. Once someone has passed it, the Internal Audit Practitioner designation is valid for three years (note that “IAP” is not a valid designation – the full title must be written in full).
New Chartered IIA tuition programme
The Chartered IIA has designed an eight-week tuition course specifically to support students sitting the new Internal Audit Practitioner exam. Students will be able to access online materials during their tuition and for the following six months. They will also have support and guidance from a dedicated tutor (who is a qualified member of the Chartered IIA) throughout the course.
The tuition programme is structured around the five syllabus areas (also known as domains) that are tested in the new Internal Audit Practitioner exam (see chart opposite).
The Internal Audit Practitioner qualification remains mandatory within the level 4 apprenticeship standard. Apprentices who registered for the qualification before 2 November 2020 will sit the CIA 1 exam, while those who register after that date will sit the new exam. All Internal Audit Practitioner-related tuition is included in the level 4 apprenticeship funding.
How to register
All level 4 apprentices should first speak to their training provider, who will work with the Chartered IIA and the apprentice to identify when they are ready to join a cohort. Those who are not apprentices who wish to register can find details of how to do so here.
This article was first published in November 2020.