Why should you become an RA?

ADP GRADUATE
CANDIDATES

Ahmed Gadelkarim

Graduation: 16 January 2026

I completed my BCompt and CTA at UNISA and the APC Board Course through the University of Cape Town (UCT).
I am passionate about auditing, IFRS and systems thinking, particularly understanding how transactions, operations and financial reporting connect. Outside of work, I have a keen interest in science and technology and their potential to improve lives and drive progress.
My motivation for pursuing auditing stems from the strong alignment between my skills and the profession. Auditing allows me to combine financial reporting expertise with analytical thinking while contributing to trust and confidence in financial reporting.
The ADP encouraged meaningful reflection on my growth as a CA(SA) and auditor. It strengthened key competencies such as risk assessment, professional scepticism, ethical decision-making and professional judgement, while reinforcing the importance of lifelong learning and mentorship.
My career aspirations are to become an Engagement Quality Reviewer on public interest entity engagements and to further develop my expertise in IFRS and business systems advisory.

Dylan Serfontein

Graduation: 21 November 2025

I completed my studies through the University of South Africa (UNISA), including a Master of Philosophy in Accounting Sciences.
Outside of auditing, I am passionate about continuous learning, personal development and mentoring aspiring professionals. I also enjoy maintaining a healthy work-life balance through fitness and spending time with family and friends.
Auditing appealed to me because it provides exposure to diverse industries, complex business challenges and continuous opportunities for growth. I remain in the profession because of its role in promoting transparency, governance and stakeholder confidence.
The ADP was a valuable milestone in my professional journey. It strengthened my professional judgement, leadership capabilities, stakeholder management and commitment to audit quality. The guidance and support received from my ORA and firm played a significant role in my development.
My long-term goal is to progress into audit leadership and ultimately become a partner while expanding my expertise in areas such as data analytics and artificial intelligence.

Anna van Staden

Graduation: 21 November 2025

I completed my degree and CTA studies through UNISA before qualifying as a Chartered Accountant.
I am passionate about auditing and the impact it has on clients and businesses. Outside of work, I enjoy reading, spending time in nature, caring for my pets and exploring South Africa's game reserves.
I chose auditing because I was drawn to the profession's dynamic nature and the opportunity to make a meaningful difference in clients' organisations. Seeing advice implemented and contributing to positive outcomes continues to be one of the most rewarding aspects of my career.
The ADP was both challenging and rewarding. It helped me recognise the depth of knowledge and experience I had gained, strengthening my confidence as an auditor and professional. Through the programme, I also discovered my leadership influence within my firm and developed valuable mentorship and communication skills.
My aspiration is to become a partner in an audit firm or a director within a corporate environment, where I can help develop and inspire future professionals to achieve their goals.

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Our focus is around the clarion call of integrity, public interest and audit quality

Learners

Do you want to protect the economic interest of the people of South Africa and that of international investors?

Student

A career as an Auditor might be just want you are looking for?

Trainee

So you are in the exciting world of articles, you are now putting the knowledge you have attained from your degrees into practice.

Registered Candidate Auditor (RCA)

e-Learnings

Do you want to protect the economic interest of the people of South Africa and that of international investors? Then a career as an auditor might be just want you are looking for. Apart from good salaries, job security and international job opportunities, a career as a registered auditor (RA) will grant you many opportunities to serve the economic interest of the people of South Africa and that of international investors.

See our e-Learnings

742

Number of RCAs on the ADP

100

Number of RCAs that have completed the ADP

401

Number of female RCAs on the ADP

341

Number of male RCAs on the ADP

How to become an RA?

The first step in a career as an RA is choosing Pure Maths and English and passing these subjects very well. Remember that different universities have different entry requirements.

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FAQs - IRBA Competency Framework

The IRBA Competency Framework outlines the essential skills, knowledge, and behaviors expected of professionals in the auditing field. It serves as a guide for both aspiring and practicing professionals to ensure they meet industry standards.

 

The IRBA Competency Framework applies to all individuals pursuing a career in auditing, including students, trainees, Registered Candidate Auditors and Registered Auditors. It aims to provide a clear pathway for career development and professional excellence.

 

The IRBA Competency Framework can be found within the IRBA accreditation model from page 77 of this document.

 

Is the IRBA Competency Framework undergoing any revisions?

FAQs - Accreditation and Monitoring

South African Institute of Chartered Accountants (SAICA)

Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (ACCA)

It means the professional body has successfully met the Independent Regulatory Board for Auditors (IRBA)’s accreditation standards.

 

The prospective accounting professional body needs to contact the IRBA Education and Transformation department on – [email protected]

 

Once accredited, the body must continue to meet these standards through ongoing compliance, monitoring, and reporting.

Accreditation granted by IRBA remains valid for five years, during which the accredited body is subject to annual monitoring to ensure ongoing compliance with prescribed standards.

FAQs - ADP

No, you need to contact [email protected] to reinstate your application, no additional payment is due.

Please ensure you update your firm and ORA details, if this has changed.

To apply for RPL you must stipulate this upon application and indicate how many months of RPL you would like remission for, up to a maximum of 12 months. This means you will need to spend a min of 6 months on the ADP program.

Your application form must be accompanied by a motivation letter as to why we should grant you the RPL. There is no template for this, however, should indicate how long you have been a manager/reviewer for, what clients and frameworks you have worked on and any other information to support your request.

Once you receive the welcome and registration email from the IRBA indicated that you have been successfully enrolled on the ADP, you may assume that your RPL HAS been granted.

(If you did not apply for RPL upon application for the ADP due to lack of knowledge on the topic, you can still apply for it after your application was approved, just contact [email protected], submit request and motivation letter, the ADP team will revert with feedback).

It does not. You will still need to submit (via the ADP LMS):

      • Initial Report – Progress Report 1.
      • Final Report – Progress Report 2.
      • RCA’s latest performance appraisal.
      • Professional curriculum vitae of the RCA.
      • A copy of the CPD hours undertaken during the ADP.
      • POE declaration form.

The PoE for RPL candidates will incorporate evidence from both the RPL period and the period spent on the ADP. The total hours must still equate 1500 hours or more.

For RPL candidates, the initial/final reports containing the RPL evidence must be submitted as soon as possible, as the ADP monitoring visit is triggered sooner for RPL candidates firms.

Yes. An ADP Monitoring visit is compulsory for all firms with candidates on the ADP.

This is a prerequisite to approval of the RCAs PoE.

Note: The firm may not be visited each time a new RCA registers on the ADP, depending on any prior firm ADP monitoring inspection outcomes.

It is important to note that the outcomes of the ADP monitoring visit are not a “pass” or “fail”. The outcome of the ADP monitoring visit is a low, medium or high monitoring intensity attributed to the firm based on demonstrated compliance with the relevant standards as assessed by the ADP Inspector.

The ADP Monitoring visit is developmental in nature.

The findings, along with robust recommendations, are reported to the firm. The IRBA expects that the firm will adequately address the findings accordingly. 

FAQs - ADP (Continued)

If you conducted your articles in an elective other than audit,  you are still eligible to register on the ADP if you are a CA, however, the ADP program duration is then 30 months achieving 2500 audit hours while you are at an audit firm. If post your CA qualification you were in an audit environment as an audit manager or similar, it is possible to still apply for RPL for consideration by the IRBA ADP Team. 

 

Yes, you can still apply for RPL for the experience you have had as a prior audit manager if you were also a CA then. However, you do need to be in audit environment to be on the ADP, RPL is allowed for maximum of 12 months of the program. The remaining 6 months still must be completed on the ADP in an audit environment. If you are in a quality department or similar and conduct quality reviews, we do consider and allow for this as well.

 

Depends on the ADP monitoring outcome in 2025. If the firm still has a valid ADP monitoring outcome, i.e., it has not expired, by the time the 2026 RCA submits a PoE to the IRBA, it will not trigger another monitoring inspection. If the ADP monitoring outcome has expired before the submission of the full PoE of the second candidate, then the  monitoring inspection will need to be redone.

Low Monitoring outcome – Valid for 36 months from the date of inspection

Medium Monitoring outcome – Valid for 18 months from the date of inspection

High Monitoring outcome – Valid for 6 months from the date of inspection.

The key is to understand the different objectives and scopes of the two processes. ADP monitoring focuses on whether the required quality standards have been adopted and implemented at a high level. It is a short, two-day review testing quality indicators relevant specifically for ADP purposes.

In contrast, Firm- or Engagement-level inspections conducted by the IRBA are far more extensive and typically span several weeks or even months. These inspections assess design, implementation and test operating effectiveness i.e., full compliance with the standards and regulations, in much greater depth.

Because of this, positive ADP monitoring results cannot be relied upon as an indicator of broader inspection outcomes.

While the ADP monitoring can place some reliance on the results of a comprehensive Firm-level inspection for ADP purposes, the reverse is not true.

Firms may therefore meet the ADP’s requirements (allowing the RCA to progress and complete the ADP successfully), while still receiving additional findings during IRBA inspections due to the more detailed and rigorous nature of those reviews.

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