CIA Certification Requirements

The CIA (Certified Internal Auditor) designation is the only globally accepted designation for internal auditors. Anyone can study to become a CIA, but several prerequisites must be fulfilled. If you are considering becoming a CIA, you first need to make sure you are eligible for that qualification.

You must meet a few CIA certification requirements before taking your career to the next step.

Before you can sit for the CIA exam, you must make sure you have the proper education.

Most CIA candidates enter with a bachelor’s degree (2 years of internal audit experience to finish the program) or a master’s degree (1 year of experience). Proof of education is a degree, official transcripts, a university letter, or an evaluation-services letter. Details: The IIA’s CIA eligibility page.

As proof of completed education, you will be required to show either:

• A copy of your degree or official transcripts
• A letter from your university confirming your degree
• A letter from evaluation services that confirms the level of your degree

If your name has changed since your university graduation, you will also be required to show your legal name change documents.

If you do not have a degree, the current IIA path is the Internal Audit Practitioner (IAP) designation first (no degree required). Active IAP holders can apply for the CIA with a Part 1 waiver, then pass Parts 2 and 3. The IAP-to-CIA experience requirement is 5 years of internal audit work, with 2 of those years in the past 3.

Once you have fulfilled your education requirements, you must complete a certain amount of work experience.

Two options are available to complete your pre-CIA exam requirements.

With a bachelor’s degree you need 2 years of verified internal audit experience (or equivalent). The IIA counts internal audit, quality assurance, risk management, compliance, external audit, and internal control.

With a master’s degree (or equivalent or higher) you need 1 year of verified internal audit experience. You can sit the exam before the experience is finished, but you are not certified until the experience is in and the three-year program window is still open.

You are required to submit a complete Experience Verification Form, which can be found on the official IIA website.

Given that your future career as a CIA rests on displaying a high level of integrity and morality in addition to professionalism, you are required to submit a character reference.

This reference must be signed by a CIA, CGAP, CCSA, CFSA, CRMA, or your supervisor. You can find the Character Reference Form here.

Now that you’ve completed all your CIA exam requirements, it’s time to register for the exam.

The IIA gives you 3 years from program approval to pass all 3 exam parts and finish the experience requirement. A one-time 12-month extension is available in CCMS before the window expires ($275). If the program expires, passed parts do not carry.

Each part of the CIA exam has its own fee, so you will want to pass the first time if you can. Prepare one part at a time with a current CIA review course.

Several great CIA review courses are available for purchase that will help you study and prepare for the big day.

Taking the CIA exam and passing all three parts is the final step of the certified internal auditor requirements.

This computer-based exam makes it possible for candidates to test in more than 500 different locations.

Once you’ve taken each section and passed, you will have completed all CIA certification requirements and will be able to order your certificate.

To get your hands on this hard-earned document, log in to CCMS and complete the order form. Your certificate will be shipped to you directly. Should you need a reprint for any reason, you will have to pay an additional $50.

The road to CIA designation may not be easy, but it is certainly worth it! Now that you know the requirements, the next step is to find the best CIA study materials!