The CIA exam syllabus changed a lot recently. It was updated based on a survey done about jobs worldwide. The goal was to make sure the exam tests people on what modern internal auditors need to know. They also organized the topics better so there’s no repeating stuff. The syllabus has been the same since then, which is good for people getting ready for the exam. The new Part 3 syllabus for the CIA exam looks like this:
CIA Exam Part 3 Syllabus: Business Stuff for Auditors
Business Skills (35%)
- How Businesses Work
- How Organizations Act and Do Stuff
- Looking at Data
- Keeping Information Safe (25%)
Info Security
Technology (20%)
- Software and Applications
- How Tech Works and is Controlled
- Being Ready for Disasters
- Money Management (20%)
Financial Stuff
- Money for Making Decisions
The CIA Part 3 exam is meant to check how much people know about these business topics. The syllabus also shows how well people should understand each topic, either just the basics or really well.
Section 1: Business Skills (35%)
This part is all about basic business knowledge for auditors. It looks at how organizations work and behave, plus it talks about using data smartly.
- What Organizations Want to Achieve
- Figuring out if Things are Going Well
- Understanding How Organizations Act
- How Organizations are Set Up
- Making Business Better
- Keeping Things in Check
Section 2: Keeping Information Safe (25%)
This part is important because keeping information safe is a big deal. It talks about protecting information from being taken or messed with.
- Why Information Security is a Big Deal
- Problems that Can Happen
- How to Keep Information Safe
Section 3: Technology (20%)
Tech is a big part of how businesses work nowadays. This section covers the basics of tech and how to make sure it’s used right.
- Different Types of Software
- How Tech is Set Up
- Being Ready for Bad Things
Section 4: Money Management (20%)
Knowing how money works is key for auditors. This part talks about the basics of money management and how businesses decide what to do with their money.
- Reading Financial Statements
- Figuring Out if a Business is Healthy
- Planning Money Stuff
- How Managers Deal with Money
Understanding How Well You Should Know Things
The CIA exam Part 3 checks how well you understand things in two ways: basic and good.
- Basic Level: This is when you remember things and get the main ideas.
- Good Level: This is when you use what you know, think about it, and make decisions.
Pass Rates for the CIA Exam Part 3
Pass rates tell us how tough an exam is. Even though we don’t know the exact pass rates for each part of the CIA exam, we can get a sense of how hard Part 3 is.
CIA Exam Pass Rates
The latest pass rates tell us about how well people did on the CIA exam:
- Part 1: 45% pass rate
- Part 2: 50% pass rate
- Part 3: 54% pass rate
Part 3 seems a bit easier than the other parts, but it still takes a lot of work to succeed.
How Part 3 of the CIA Exam is Set Up and How Hard it Is
CIA Exam Part 3 Questions
Part 3 of the CIA exam has 100 questions that you need to answer in 2 hours. That’s about 1.2 minutes per question. The questions are all multiple-choice, which makes things simpler.
How Hard Part 3 Is
Part 3 is thought to be one of the tougher parts of the CIA exam. It’s harder because it has more conceptual questions. These questions are about ideas, not just facts you can remember. You need to understand these ideas and know how to use them. This part covers a lot of business stuff, so it’s not just about auditing. To do well, you need to study hard and understand business ideas well.
Why People Sometimes Fail Part 3
There are some common reasons people don’t do well on Part 3.
- Not Enough Study Time: Some people don’t realize how much there is to learn and don’t give themselves enough time to study.
- Not Trying Enough: To do well, you need to put in a lot of effort and time. Just a little won’t cut it.
- Bad Study Materials: Using the wrong study materials can make it hard to learn.
