The University of Pretoria (UP) celebrates a 99,4% pass rate in the 2022 SAICA Initial Test of Competence (ITC). The South African Institute of Chartered Accountants (SAICA) administers two professional exams, the ITC being the first of the two. The results of the January 2022 ITC examination were released on Friday 25 March 2022.

The overall national pass rate in the examination was 59% (2021 – 64%). A total of 2 946 (2021 – 3 887) candidates wrote the January 2022 ITC of which 1 739 (2021 – 2 507) passed. UP contributed 172 (2021 – 174) candidates to the January 2022 ITC. Students from 18 accredited institutions in South Africa made up the total number of candidates for the 2022 ITC, with UP contributing nearly 10% of all successful candidates in the country.

UP has had consistent pass rates over the last 15 years, attaining an average first-time pass rate of 94.6% over this period.

Professor Madeleine Stiglingh, Head: Department of Accounting and the Chartered Accountancy Programme Coordinator at UP, said: “UP again celebrates the success of each candidate. We also celebrate having four of our candidates in the top ten in the country.”

Prof Stiglingh thanked the management of the Faculty of Economic and Management Sciences (EMS) and the top management of the University for their continued support, which “enables us to empower our BCom Accounting Sciences and Postgraduate Diploma in Accounting Sciences’ students with the relevant skills and knowledge for them to succeed as students and when they enter the world of work”.

Professor Margaret Chitiga-Mabugu, Dean of the Faculty of EMS, commended Prof Stiglingh, the heads of the academic departments in financial sciences and the lecturing staff on this stellar achievement. She said: “We pride ourselves on the quality of graduates that we produce. These excellent results attest to the quality of our teaching and learning. As the Faculty of EMS, we share in the celebration of the exceptional performance of our students in the latest ITC results. We are immensely proud of our students and we congratulate them for flying the UP flag high. These results clearly demonstrate that UP continues to be one of the leaders in the education of chartered accountants, ranked as the top institution in Africa in the QS World University Rankings by Subject 2021 for Accounting and Finance.”

Professor Tawana Kupe, Vice-Chancellor and Principal of UP, expressed his delight over the results and congratulated the students. “Our students have once again done the University proud. These results embody the excellence that we continuously strive for and the consistent quality of our internationally recognised education. Congratulations to our students on their achievements in the ITC results. Their dedication and hard work during very challenging times is laudable.”