The Institute has established a QP Club for prospective students of local tertiary institutions to foster a closer link between the Institute and the university students. For the registered students, the Institute has been providing various student services entailing student training functions, examination assistance courses and seminars, etc. However, many people often misunderstood that the QP Club, a club for prospective students, refers to registered students. For better clarification on the membership identity between registered and prospective students, the Institute has renamed the two groups as follows:   Original name New name Target participants QP Club QP Affiliate Club University students Student Services QP Club Registered students of HKICPA   Subsequent to the renaming exercise, all QP students will automatically become QP Club members and can enjoy all the existing student services and activities. The QP Affiliate Club, on the other hand, will provide services for prospective students studying at universities. These students will become QP Club members when they register for QP.       QP Case Analysis Competition 2007 - open for enrolment!   The QP Case Analysis Competition is an inter-tertiary event aims at developing your business skills, cultivating your professional judgement and preparing yourself for the business environment. Through participating in the competition, you are able to enhance your analytical skills, presentation skills and team work.   To help you prepare for the Competition, a free seminar on "Corporate re-engineering: strategies and implementation" will be held on 22 September 2007: Time: 9:30 a.m. - 12:30 p.m. Venue: Grand Ballroom I & II, 6/F, Royal Plaza Hotel, 193 Prince Edward Road West, Kowloon.   Speakers   Dr. Stephen X. H. Gong, Assistant Professor in Finance, School of Accounting and Finance, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University   Mr. Joe Ngai, Partner, McKinsey & Company   Mr. Bryan Wong, Director (Operations Services), Hong Kong Disneyland   FOUR great reasons for entering the competition   Opportunity to win internship awards in gaining valuable work experience from renowned organizations, including: • Hang Seng Bank Limited • Jardine Matheson Limited • Li & Fung (Trading) Ltd. • Mitsubishi UFJ Securities (HK) Holdings, Limited   Gain real world experience by applying technical knowledge into practical business context.   Join a free professional development seminar on "Corporate re-engineering: strategies & implementation" on 22 September 2007.   Enjoy a free luncheon and a great opportunity to interact with CPAs and business leaders on oral presentation day on 17 November 2007.   Competition awards Champion team : $12,000 cash prize and trophy and internship opportunities at renowned organizations 1st Runner-up team : $9,000 cash prize and trophy 2nd Runner-up team : $5,000 cash prize and trophy Best Presenter : $2,000 cash prize and plaque Merit teams (5 awards) : $2,000 cash prize and certificate   Competition schedule 10 Sept 2007 Full case background available on Institute's website 22 Sept 2007 Seminar on "Corporate re-engineering: strategies and implementation" 25 Sept 2007 (before 12:00noon) Deadline for registration 5 Oct 2007 (before 5:00 pm) Submission of written report 5 Nov 2007 Announcement of finalist teams 17 Nov 2007 Oral presentation competition and luncheon with CPAs   Don't miss this great opportunity! Come and join our QP case analysis competition and the free seminar. Please click here for more information. You can also contact us on 2287 7070 or by email etd@hkicpa.org.hk       The internationalization of the mainland's economy coupled with the close collaboration between the mainland and Hong Kong has created an unprecedented demand for Chinese accounting professionals with international business experience and knowledge. In view of this, the Institute organised a QP information session on 20 July 2007 for the members of the Shenzhen Institute of Certified Public Accountants to give them the latest information about QP in mainland China. Participants regarded the session as very helpful in furthering their understanding of QP.       A QPNet gathering on 14 August 2007 provided a golden opportunity for red-wine tasting and Wii-game challenge. Organized by the Institute's QP Support Committee, it was a very successful event held at the Institute. During this gathering, Mr. Louis Lee, a qualified tutor and an associate member of Institute of Wines and Spirits U.K. (AIWS), conducted an insightful red-wine tasting session for an audience of QP and university students as well as the Institute's Council and Committee members. After some light refreshments, students made the most of this networking opportunity by mingling with the Institute's members and their peers as well as participating in an exciting Wii-game challenge. Overall, over 80 participants who attended considered it a cheerful and memorable evening.       QP graduate career file Name: Edmond Pang Job Title: Business Analyst Company: Standard Bank Asia Ltd.   Click here to see Edmond's career profile: - career and study history - job involvement - career achievement - career progression       Authorized supervisor: Clement Poon, Dah Sing Bank, Limited Clement Poon is the head of the financial accounting department at Dah Sing Bank, Limited. The bank is a fully licensed subsidiary of the Dah Sing Financial Group. Clement has been working in the group for four years and he is responsible for handling consolidation, financial reporting and compliance functions. Apart from that, he is also an Authorized Supervisor (AS) to his staff undertaking the QP. Dah Sing Bank offers general management training to its staff to develop communication, time management and leadership skills. In addition to such skills development, the bank offers on-the-job training for the staff in the financial accounting department. The staff are assessed and placed on different accounting-related projects depending on their level of ability and the areas where they need more training. Click here for details.       Top QP candidates in the September 2006 session Module A (Financial Reporting) To Wai Kit obtained his Bachelor of Business Administration in Professional Accountancy from the Chinese University of Hong Kong in 2006. He is now an accountant at KPMG. Study tips: Workshop: "Start preparation as early as possible. Be well prepared before each workshop. Try your best to read relevant sections of the candidate learning pack and prepare the questions beforehand. Always participate in the workshops as discussion can deepen your understanding." Examination: "Practice makes perfect. Practice as many past exam questions as possible before the exam. Time management is a key to success. Bring a watch and always keep checking the time during the exam. Make sure you attempt all the questions and don't spend too much time on any single one."     Module C (Auditing and Information Management) Kwan Yuk Kee, Karven obtained her Bachelor of Business Administration in Law from the University of Hong Kong in 2005. She is now a tax associate at Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu. Study tips: "There are no hard and fast rules to achieve good results in examinations, as every student differs in terms of educational background, strengths, weaknesses and their approach to time constraint. However, I heartily believe that forming an achievable and personalized study plan is of vital importance, especially when most of us are facing the transition from school to workplace."   Top final examination candidates in the December 2006 session Our special congratulations go to the top three candidates of the final examination in the December 2006 session. The gold, silver and bronze prize winners are Mr. Chu Wai Ka, Ms. Yip Lee Ying, Natalie and Ms. Fong Siu Shun respectively. Gold award prize winner (Li Fook Shu Memorial Prize winner) Chu Wai Ka obtained his Bachelor of Engineering (Civil and Environmental) from the University of Hong Kong in 2005. He is now an accountant at KPMG. Study tips: "The Institute proclaims that "with a CPA qualification you've already reached the top" and this slogan really sums up the fruitfulness of a successful QP journey. The final exam presents the very last hurdle and the secret of success, in my opinion, is the ability to reinforce the fundamental knowledge and to adopt a macroscopic review on case analysis. In-depth understanding of the fundamentals is the cornerstone for a successful final exam. Candidates should appreciate the individuality and distinction of each of the four modules. Tackling techniques do differ. However, you need to refresh your memory until you are very familiar with the individual topics or standards. The final exam emphasizes practical applications and hence an acute analytical sense is vital in this area. During preparation, be sensitive to the links and correlations between the modules. Integration of fragmented knowledge helps unveil the whole picture of case studies. Develop and adhere to your own study plan and strategy. Believe in yourself and pave your way to the top!"     Silver award prize winner Yip Lee Ying, Natalie obtained her Bachelor of Commerce in Accounting and Finance from the University of New South Wales in 2004. She is now an associate II at Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu. Study tips: "The final examination consolidates all the topics in the four modules and tests your technical knowledge, common business sense, integration and analytical skills. As such, understanding and applying the knowledge practically is crucial for success. Within the limited preparation time, I suggest focusing on the special topics and reading through past examination papers to examine where you can score high marks. Prepare reference notes can save you time from searching through materials during the examination. Time management is crucial. Make good use of the 30-minute reading time to identify the key issues and do not use more than the suggested time to answer each question."     Bronze award prize winner Fong Siu Shun obtained her Bachelor of Science in Quantitative Finance from the Chinese University of Hong Kong in 2005. She is now an accountant at KPMG. Study tips: "Starting exam preparation early is always advisable. I would also emphasize the importance of having a study strategy. I would recommend starting with Auditing and Information Management and Financial Management first, as these subjects require less memorization. With Financial Reporting and Taxation, you need to be very familiar with the theories and standards in order to apply them in examination. So I suggest you put these two modules at a later stage of your study. Another key to a successful examination is time management. Don't waste time mulling over a question if you are stuck; move on to the next question and then go back to the difficult one later. The most important factor, though, is to relax before the exam. Getting plenty of sleep the night before the examination to keep you energized is always better than cramming a heap of information into your head at that time. I hope you find these tips helpful and wish you all every success in your exams."   Top QP students in the February 2007 session Module B (Financial Management) Chan Sheung Chi obtained his Bachelor of Business Administration in Finance and Economics from the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology in 2006. He is now a tax consultant at KPMG.     Module D (Taxation) Che U San obtained his Bachelor of Business Administration in Professional Accountancy from the Chinese University of Hong Kong in 2006. He is now an associate at PricewaterhouseCoopers.       QP scholarships for year 2007 Congratulations to the 17 QP scholarship recipients for year 2007. Click here for the list of scholarship recipients. The Institute received a total of 48 nominations for this year's QP scholarships. The Examinations Board's Scholarships Selection Panel shortlisted 34 outstanding nominees for interviews and subsequently recommended to award the scholarships to outstanding 12 undergraduates and five postgraduates. The QP scholarships awards will be presented at the Institute's annual award and graduation ceremony to be held on 12 September 2007.   Accredited programmes for QP     The assessment team and FTC Kaplan's programme management team at the re-accreditation visit on 30 April 2007 The Institute's Accountancy Accreditation Board has recently completed its accreditation and re-accreditation of the following accountancy programmes for QP admission, with the validity ending month indicated in parenthesis: Newly accredited conversion programme   Postgraduate Diploma in Professional Accounting, Hong Kong Baptist University (May 2009)   Re-accredited conversion programmes   Postgraduate Diploma in Professional Accounting, HKU-SPACE (May 2009)   FTC's Conversion Programme, FTC Kaplan (May 2011)   Postgraduate Diploma in Professional Accounting, The Open University of Hong Kong (March 2012)   Re-accredited accountancy degree programme   Bachelor of Business (major in Accounting) programme, Southern Cross University (SCU) in collaboration with Hong Kong Institute of Technology (31 December 2008), covering students enrolled in the programme on or before the October 2008 session.   The Board approved the extension of the accreditation period of HKU-SPACE's Bachelor of Accounting until 31 December 2007 to cover the student intake of the December 2007 session. For the full list of accountancy programmes accredited by the Institute, please refer to our homepage.         All of us will have times in our lives when we find ourselves working outside our comfort zone. It can be a daunting time, but if handled well it can also be a perfect opportunity to fast track our career development. Click here for the full article. This article is reprinted from South China Morning Post "JOBCOACH" series with permission from DBM (3 February 2007).