CA Intermediate is the second level exam, of a course in India, Chartered Accountancy. It has six subjects and over 7000 pages of study material that a student is expected to cover in the nine months study period allotted to them.
The group system is what makes this exam even more difficult, as a group consists of three subjects, and a candidate has to pass all three papers in order to clear the group. Failure to pass in one subject immediately results in the failure of the entire group, which would mean that the student fails in the subjects in which he has passed.
It is to be noted that the average passing percentage up to the year 2020 has been 16.76% only, which means only 4 out of every 25 students appearing for the exam manage to pass it. That being said, the least passing percentage was just 8.88% in the attempt of November 2018Chartered Accountancy Course in India.[1]
Students after clearing the Common Proficiency Test (CPT) or CA Foundation Course become eligible to register for the CA Intermediate. Alternatively, graduates, postgraduates or students having equivalent degrees can directly register for the CA Intermediate exam without appearing for the entry level exams.
It is a combined subjective & objective (70:30) for all 6 subject. Six subjects and two groups consisting 600 marks. Subjects are given as follows:[2]
MODULE 1
MODULE 2
Students are required to obtain 40% marks in each paper and 50% marks in aggregate of all the subjects. A student can appear in either one group or both the groups at a time.
Exam for the CA Intermediate were held twice in a year, generally in the first week of May and November. However, in 2024, ICAI declared that examinations will take place thrice a year i.e. in January, May and September every year starting from 2025.
Result for the CA Intermediate declares in the month of August and February i.e. two and half months after the exam.
The subject in which a student scores 60% or more marks will get exempted for the next three attempts. However, in order to claim the exemption, candidates must have appeared in all the papers of that Group/Unit.[3]
A student after clearing both the groups can commence articleship training for two years under a practising Chartered Accountant.