Driven by Malaysia’s ambition to ensure the country meets the target of 60,000 accountants by 2020, Taylor’s College is increasing its offerings by introducing 2 new programmes — the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (ACCA) and its foundation course, Certified Accounting Technician (CAT).

The launch of the programmes, which was held on 10 April at the illustrious Taylor’s Lakeside Campus, was officiated by the Minister of Human Resources, YB M. Kulasegaran.

During his speech at the event, he highlighted the importance of positively adopting the Fourth Industrial Revolution (IR 4.0), where breakthroughs in technology such as the emergence of robots and artificial intelligence will shape the future. According to YB M. Kulasegaran, IR 4.0 is inevitable as Malaysia heads towards a more connected, automated and efficient society.

Taylor's College Campus Director, Josephine Tan, heavily emphasised on the important role educational institutions play in equipping learners with quality education.

“In the Malaysia Salary Guide 2019 by Kelly Services which was published recently, it was highlighted that a key challenge for employers will be hiring local talents who possess the right skills for the job,” she said.

Tan also stressed that human-centred characteristics such as critical thinking, people management, emotional intelligence and cognitive flexibility would be the traits to look out for and that Taylor’s College would stress those values to ensure students will be able to better adapt to technological changes when they enter the workforce.

In conjunction with the launch, Taylor’s College also held a forum with the theme ‘Revolutionising the Role of Professional Accountants’, featuring panellists YB M. Kulasegaran, Dato’ Lock Peng Kuan (Baker Tilly Malaysia Partner), Ainol Roznain Yaakob (BP Malaysia Country Head) and Dato’ Vimmy Yap (6Biz Founder and CEO).

The discussion revolved around the advent of IR 4.0 and how automation and technology would affect the field of accounting.

Dato’ Lock Peng Kuan said, “Industry 4.0 is a natural evolvement and is what professionals are embracing today. However, it isn’t threatening existing jobs but rather a tool in enabling the workforce to progress in the digital age, with AI and robots taking care of the work that the new age talents shy away.”

As for how IR 4.0 will affect the field of accounting, Dato’ Vimmy Yap believes that accountants play a very important role in technology adoption as they will be helping corporations and business leaders make crucial decisions.

Piqued by the fascinating points brought up in this forum? A future financial and accounting maestro like you would benefit from pursuing CAT or ACCA at Taylor’s College!

Here’s what you need to know about the programmes.

Certified Accounting Technician (CAT)

Your core focus in this foundation level of ACCA will be financial and management accounting. The 9-paper qualification can be completed within 1.5 years with Taylor's College's well-structured programme. After successful completion of the CAT, you can move on to the ACCA Qualification.

Intakes: January, March and July

Duration: 1.5 years

To learn more, you can visit Taylor's CAT website here.

Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (ACCA)

This professional accounting qualification will equip you with crucial skills in the world of business — think deep knowledge and understanding of businesses and their environments, top-notch financial accounting and superb management planning.

Intakes: January, July

Duration: 3 years

To learn more, you can visit Taylor's ACCA website here.