Introduction

Having a regular forum, or message board, where you can chat with other students and discuss questions can make your life much easier.

You hope to ace your CIMA exams like any aspiring CIMA qualification holder or finance manager. But you may be struggling to make sense of all the case studies and study material.

Well, there are sites out there on the wide web for just about every topical discussion. In this article, we will look at some of the platforms and sites where you can find a space to connect and discuss your points of concern with like-minded CIMA students and tutors.

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1. CIMA-related Facebook groups 

There are a few CIMA discussion groups on Facebook. Some are closely moderated to ensure that the discussion is relevant. All of these groups are, of course, independent of the CIMA institute itself.

You can find a general Facebook study group for (1) the Operational Case Study Exam, (2) the Management Case Study Exam as well as (3) the Strategic Case Study Exam; corresponding to the three levels of the overall CIMA exam structure.

Have a look here for a quick reference on the different CIMA Course Levels.

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1. The Facebook CIMA Operational Case Study Group, administered by the user ‘Learning Life’ and others, was the first of these three Facebook groups to be created in 2017. There are currently 2150 members, making this a relatively well-supported group.

With each of these study groups, the ‘pre-seen’ material will be discussed once released by CIMA. However, no copyright material can be shared at any time, so you must make sure you have purchased your own study material.

Note that according to the group description, the group leaders have some experience helping others pass the exam and “have usually passed themselves,” so it is good to know what to realistically expect.

2. The Facebook CIMA Management Case Study Group, also administered by the user ‘Learning Life’ and others, was created in 2019. There are currently 2300 members. The full group name also includes the term ‘Gateway’ since it is at this level that students may earn exemptions from earlier studies.

These groups are generally not run by individuals or groups who would simply like to add much-needed services to the web.

3. The Facebook CIMA Strategic Case Study Group, administered by users Julie and Mirza, was created as recently as 2020. Any student who is currently preparing to sit the SCS exam can join. As with the other groups, past students are also welcome. Although, as of writing this article, there are over 1800, there is no guarantee of having professional, guided help from a qualified tutor.

With each of these groups, once accepted, you must abide by the non-disclosure agreement and respect copyright laws at all times.

There are, in fact, a few other general Facebook CIMA study groups, with up to about 25K members and some with a single post or even 7 posts a day on average.

If this is the kind of thing you are looking for, we recommend looking into what kind of discussions are held and how the material and discussions are divided into the different levels and exams.

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2. VIVA Financial Tuition

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If you are looking for a space to ask questions and discuss topics related to the CIMA course, consider VIVA Tuition.

One of the advantages of a forum like the VIVA CIMA community is that it is closely moderated and private. You will be able to get feedback and input from certified tutors and mutual support from students taking the same courses and exams as you.

If you want to get to know some of the tutors available to help you, you can look at the information here about the VIVA Financial Tuition tutors.

The Circle platform also allows for sharing of multimedia files and relevant links. You will find information about lessons, webinars as well as mock exam deadlines and other updates. In short, this provides a genuine opportunity to develop your skills and achieve results outside of the classroom.

Unlike other platforms discussed in this article, VIVA Circle CIMA community access is restricted to paying students and is not open to the general public.

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So, if you are not just looking for a great place to discuss points but also a place to purchase a comprehensive, online CIMA course, have a look at the pricing options here for each course.

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3. OpenTuition

Suppose you are interested in study resources and a place to discuss accounting, finance and CIMA-related topics. In that case, OpenTuition is an online learning site that provides training for students in ACCA and CIMA professional accountancy qualifications.

Once on the landing page, you will easily find the ‘Forums’ tab, where you can access several open CIMA-related threads from different users.

However, the page can be challenging to navigate, and since much of the activity is volunteer-based, comments still need to be fact-checked.

This could be a great way to get some general advice rather than opportunities to hone your skills for a bright finance career.

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What are the benefits of a forum?

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Admittedly one of the benefits of a real campus environment is the opportunity to engage and interact in person with other students. You naturally get a feel for which students are really on top of the material and top of the class as well.

You ask questions and share ideas. In short, you help each other! And those who need it most get help from others who are a step ahead of them.

When it comes to online tuition, all of this is simulated, in a sense, through a relevant forum. There you can ask questions, not just to experienced tutors but to fellow students as well, whose minds are deeply focused on the same material as you. You could be anywhere in the world and at any time just throw something out there - some question, some concern - and get an instant response in the best of cases.

This brings us to an interesting question.

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Is there an official messaging board for CIMA students?

You may be wondering, is there an official CIMA Forum? Well, not really. While you will not find a general forum for the Operation, Management and Strategic levels on the official CIMAGlobal website, there is, in fact, a Director's Forum. This is more of a career forum than a student forum. 

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That is, if you are already a senior CIMA member, you can access the official CIMA Directors Forum, together with its own LinkedIn group of 124 members. The forum was created to support its members in developing their network of business connections in different industries. This is something to consider if you are nearing your final graduation.

Where else could you turn to for real discussions around exam topics?

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Reddit

Users often turn to Reddit or even Discord in hopes of finding like-minded individuals. In this case, you can certainly find accounting-related content and communities on Reddit.

On the one hand, there is a reddit/r/CIMA community that has well over two thousand members. Of course, it will probably not provide additional opportunities to get exam practice or work through more questions. However, it could be a great place to connect and discuss your observations and questions with others.

On the other hand, the more general reddit/r/Accounting subreddit has about 340K members. You might be surprised to know that you can find a lot of general information regarding the CIMA Qualification through these discussions. Just have a look at the results here from doing a CIMA word search.

Once again, the best way to get what you need from these forums would be to use social media awareness, some common sense and that handy search bar! However, don’t expect to put in touch with the leading firms in the field.

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Bloggers

As with other topics, casual and serious bloggers write about the CIMA student experience and provide tips and helpful information. An example is The CIMA Student, a WordPress blog created to assist students “on their path to success.”

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This could be a nice addition to your general bank of online resources. The biggest drawback is that, without a doubt, your opportunities for interaction with other past and present students would be limited.

These are just some ideas. The rest is up to you. You can do your own research and find what fits you and your learning style.

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Conclusion

As you have seen by now, several resources are available to help students on their way to becoming CIMA finance managers connect, discuss points related to the exams and generally provide mutual support.

The quality of the discussion and guidance will depend significantly on who is on the other side. In this case, the logical thing to do as a self-study student would be to focus on discussions that directly benefit you, depending on your exact course and concern.

If you have the means, the next logical thing to do is to consider a paid and guided course that includes a CIMA study group forum with student support and tutor presence.

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