Accountancy Witsies take top honours
- By Deborah Minors
Alumni from the Wits School of Accountancy have clinched top 10 positions countrywide in Part I and Part II of the Qualifying Examinations (QE) set by the national South African Institute of Chartered Accountants (SAICA).
Craig Wallington, 23 (BAccSci 2011) secured the number 1 position in South Africa in the QE1, the results of which were released on 30 March. Witsie Eihorere Wesigye, 23 (BAccSci 2011) also featured in the top 10 in Part I, securing ninth place, with honours. Witsies Dino Zuccollo, 23 (BAccSci 2011) and Rabiya Mayat (BAccSci 2011) passed Part I with honours.
Wallington said in a statement that he was very proud of how Wits had fared as a whole in QEI. The 171 Wits graduates who wrote the exam for the first time achieved a pass rate of 91% - significantly higher than the national pass rate of 78%.
Head of the School of Accountancy, Professor Jackie Arendse (BAcc 1986, HDip Tax Laws 1999) said she was delighted that the School’s graduates again took top honours in the exam. “This follows the consistent performance of Wits graduates in the qualifying examinations over many years. We are very proud of our graduates who performed so well once again,” said Arendse, adding that this examination was set at a very high standard and was a real test of the hard years of university study.
Part II of the Qualifying Examination tests trainee chartered accountants. The QEII represents the culmination of at least seven years of hard work. Candidates who pass the QEII qualify for the sought-after CA (SA) behind their names. Alumni Harry Apostoleris (BAccSci 2009, HDip Acc 2010) and Sabelo Sitebe (BAccSci 2009, HDip Accountancy 2010) secured first and second place respectively in the 2011 QEII: Financial Management stream. They were two of just six students nationwide to achieve honours. Yonit Waisberg (BAccSci 2009, HDip Acc 2010) clinched the eighth place.
“It is an exceptional feeling,” said Apostoleris in a statement. “The Chartered Accountant path is a long and hard one and to end the studying aspect on such a high note certainly makes it feel like it was all worth it.” Apostoleris extended his gratitude to Wits, indicating that the University had prepared him adequately for the world of work from both a technical and a professional perspective.
Professor Arendse indicated that Witsies have consistently outperformed other graduates in the SAICA QEI and QEII: “Over the last eight years, 17 Wits graduates have featured in the lists of Top 10 students. This is higher than any other university in the country, which attests to the high standards being maintained at Wits and the exceptional calibre of students that we attract,” she said.