Eligibility & Professional Experience
CIA candidates must obtain 24 months of internal auditing experience or its equivalent prior to receiving the CIA certificate. However, a candidate may sit for the exam before meeting the work experience requirements, but (s)he will not be certified until the experience requirement is met. The following guidelines apply to the work experience requirements:
- An advanced academic degree beyond the Bachelor’s (e.g., a Master’s degree) or work experience in related business professions (such as accounting, law, finance) can be substituted for one year of work experience (1-year maximum).
- Equivalent work experience means experience in audit/assessment disciplines, including external auditing, quality assurance, compliance, and internal control.
- Full-time college or university-level teaching in the subject matter of the examination is considered equivalent to work experience. Two years of teaching equals one year of internal auditing work experience.
Work experience must be verified by a CIA or the candidate’s supervisor. An Experience Verification Form is available on The IIA website for use in verifying professional experience. This may accompany the candidate’s application or be submitted later when criteria have been met.
If you have questions about the acceptability of your work experience, contact The IIA Certification Department at certification@theiia.org.
