How To Become A CIA

Most people who hear the term CIA immediately visualize stealthy, wealthy and overworked government agents.

The other version of the CIA is a little less exciting, but just as essential to the accounting community.

CIA stands for Certified Internal Auditor. Basically, a CIA is an accountant who conducts internal audits and is certified.

The CIA certification is the highest designation offered by the Institute of Internal Auditors. This certification is recognized worldwide, which is why there are so many prerequisites that must be completed beforehand.

Achieving the CIA distinction is a way of demonstrating your extensive professional knowledge of the internal audit profession.

As mentioned earlier, becoming a CIA involves many prerequisites. To be sure you are ready to sit for the CIA exam, you should ascertain that you have both the necessary educational and work qualifications.

Most candidates enter with a bachelor’s degree (2 years of internal audit experience to finish) or a master’s (1 year). Proof is a degree, transcripts, a university letter, or an evaluation-services letter. If you do not have a degree, start with The IIA’s Internal Audit Practitioner exam, then apply for the CIA with a Part 1 waiver. Source: IIA CIA eligibility.

Experience depends on education: 1 year after a master’s, 2 years after a bachelor’s. IAP holders moving into the CIA need 5 years of internal audit work, with 2 of those years in the past 3. You can sit the exam before the experience is done, but you are not certified until it is verified inside the 3-year program window.

Although you are able to apply and sit for the exam without completing your work experience, you will not become certified until all aspects of the program have been satisfactorily completed.

The CIA certification process also requires you to submit a character reference. This character reference must be signed by a CIA, CGAP, CCSA, CFSA, CRMA, or your supervisor.

This requirement serves to help establish that you are a professional of high moral integrity.

The final step to becoming a certified internal auditor involves taking the CIA exam. The Certified Internal Auditor exam is a 3-part exam that tests candidates’ knowledge of internal auditing practices and their understanding of related issues, risks, and remedies.

Part 1 is Internal Audit Fundamentals: 125 questions in 150 minutes, covering internal audit basics, governance, risk, and the IIA Standards.

Part 2 is Internal Audit Engagement: 100 questions in 120 minutes, covering how engagements are planned, performed, and communicated.

Part 3 is Internal Audit Function: 100 questions in 120 minutes, covering how the internal audit function is built, led, and overseen. The three parts follow The IIA’s 2025 CIA syllabus. Licensed CPAs and other qualifying designations can use the one-sitting CIA Challenge Exam.

A fourth CIA part on business management skills existed until 2013, when The IIA folded that content into the three-part exam. Do not study a fourth live CIA section. Today’s exam is Parts 1 through 3.

Pro Tip: Invest in one of the most recommended CIA prep courses from Becker, Gleim, or Surgent to study efficiently.

Now that you know what you’re being tested on, you may want to know what it will cost you.

What you pay depends on IIA membership. North America published fees from The IIA:

These are The IIA’s published U.S./Canada fees in USD. Student rates and National Institute pricing can differ, so confirm in CCMS before you pay. Source: IIA certification pricing.

If you interested in earning this designation, be sure to complete all of the requirements. Once these are in order, be sure to enroll in a quality CIA exam review course to increase your odds of passing each section of this challenging exam on the first try.