CA vs CS: Which career has more scope?

by Pritika Ghura
Often mistaken for the same, a chartered accountant is as different from a company
secretary as chalk is from cheese. Chartered Accountants work in all fields of business and
finance. Some are engaged in public practice, others work in the private sector and some
are also employed by government bodies. On the other hand, the main function of a
Company Secretary is to act as the mediator between the company and its Board of
Directors. He also provides guidance to the Chairman and the Directors on how to make the
best use of their responsibilities under various laws.
Let us see the difference between a chartered accountant (CA) and Company
Secretariat (CS) so that it helps you to make a career choice-:
Criteria Chartered Accountant (CA) Company Secretariat (CS)
1) Course
details
Chartered Accountancy Course is a professional course in
the field of Accounting. It is about financial management,
taxation and accounting.
The Company Secretary (CS) is a professional
course which is conducted by The Institute of
Company Secretaries of India (ICSI). To become a
Company Secretary, the candidates need to pass the
Foundation Programme, Executive Programme, and
Professional Programme.
2) Career
Scope
The scope of a CA is very wide. He can either pursue
private practice or join an organisation's financial
accounting department or serve in taxation departments. He
can also work in fields of Finance, Corporate finance,
Management consultancy, Tax Compliance, Change
management. Chartered accountants mostly deal with
studies like market research, budget planning, planning of
policies; management of working capital of an organisation,
etc. Their duty is to ensure that the particular company is
maintaining its financial transactions according to the law of
the country and manage the cost and tax matters of it.
A Company Secretary can find employment in
government accounts or law departments or he can
become a Managing Director or Chairman of a
Company and be a part of the Board of Directors of
a Company. The role of a Company Secretary is that
of an advisor for legal matters. If a company goes
public, then the management of the public issue
falls under the ambit of a Company Secretary. All
legalities involved with inter-corporate investments
and loans are looked after by a Company Secretary.
3) Skills
required
Good aptitude skills with concentration ability, good with
numbers, good analytical skills, can work under pressure, a
systematic way of working.
Proficiency of law and management, good
communication skills to deal with many types of
people, should sound convincing and the capacity to
fit in the corporate environment.
4) Authority
A CA can act as a lawyer and appear before various
appellate authorities of direct and indirect tax departments
like The Commissioner of Income Tax, Income Tax
Appellate Tribunal etc and defend his client
A CS does not have the authority to defend his
client or represent him in a case.
5) Power
In India, it is only a CA who can conduct various statutory
audits and audits under Income Tax Act called Tax Audit
etc.
A CS does not have the power to conduct such
audits
6) Statutory
body
The CA is a member of the Institute of Chartered
Accountants of India. A person can only become a CA after
passing exams conducted by The Institute of Chartered
Accountants of India
A CS is a member of The Institute of Company
Secretaries of India. A person can become a CS
only after passing exams conducted by the Institute
of Company Secretaries of India.
7)
Companies
hiring
PwC, Ernst & Young, HSBC Bank, Neeraj Bhagat &
Co., KPMG, Alok Sinhal, ICICIPrudential, Om Kotak
Mahindra, Birla Sun-Life, Tata AIF Life,
Reliance, HDFCStandard Life-Chartered Accountancy Co.,
Max New York Life, SBI
Banks like SBI, HSBC, Bureau of Public
Enterprises, government financial institutions and
stock exchanges, universities, etc
8) Institutes The Institute of Chartered Accountants of India (ICAI) is The minimum eligibility required for the foundation
offering the
course
both an examining and a licensing body. It is the
responsibility of the institute to conduct the Chartered
accountancy (CA) Courses throughout the country. A CA
programme is of two years apart from the training period. It
has three sections, Competency Professional Test (CPT) that
was earlier known as Professional Education exam PE1,
Professional Competency Examination (PCE) and Final
examination
course for training as a Company Secretary is 10+2.
Graduates or post-graduates in commerce, or any
other discipline are allowed to skip the foundation
course and enroll directly for the intermediate
examination. This exemption is also extended to
those who have passed out of the Institute of Cost
and Works Accountancy or the Institute of
Chartered Accountants of India. For better career
prospects one may opt for the Company Secretary
course after having completed either the Cost and
Works Accountancy course or the Chartered
Accountancy course or both. The Institute of
Company Secretaries of India conducts
examinations for different levels of competencies
throughout the country. Those who clear these
examinations are granted membership to the
Institute.