cima strategic case study material

1. CIMA case study exam basics

“At what stage do I sit these exams?”

In your CIMA journey, there are three case studies you’ll have to conquer (unless you have a relevant CIMA exemption). 

The first case study you’ll take is the Operational Case Study (OCS). We’ll go into more detail about what’s assessed in this case study shortly, but for now, you just need to know that you’ll take this once you’ve passed your P1, E1 and F1 exams (or online assessments if you’re on the FLP route). 

Once this is out of the way, you can then return to the familiar ground of objective tests (or online assessments), as you’ll take P2, E2 and F2. When you’ve passed these, you’ll have to take another case study exam – this time, the Management Case Study (MCS). Note, if you are a Master’s Gateway student, the MCS is known as the CIMA Gateway Exam.

The final case study in your CIMA journey will be the Strategic Case Study (SCS), and you’ll sit this once you’ve passed P3, E3 and F3.

Please note, if you’re a student studying via the FLP route you will complete online assessments instead of sitting your objective tests. To find out more about the CIMA FLP check out our guide . 

“But what exactly are case study exams?”

You’ll have probably gathered by now that case study exams are different to the other CIMA exams. But how so? Here are the key points:

Management Case Study (MCS)

Evaluate opportunities to add value

Implement senior management decisions

Manage performance and costs to aid value creation

Measure performance

Manage internal and external stakeholders

Strategic Case Study (SCS)

Develop business strategy

Evaluate the business ecosystem and business environment

Recommend financing strategies

Evaluate and mitigate risk

Recommend and maintain a sound control environment

“What % do I need to pass?”

There is no official pass mark for the CIMA case study exams. Instead, CIMA marks scripts out of 100, ranks them in order and then looks down the list to a point where it feels the scripts are not strong enough. Everyone below that level fails and everyone above that level passes. 

The first passing script is given a score of 80 and the first failing script a score of 79. The marks given are then scaled according to a formula, with a perfect 100% script scoring 150. This does sound odd, but it’s the way CIMA does it! 

So what percentage is typically a ‘passing’ script? After all, it is useful to have an approximate target to work towards. The suggested figure is roughly 60%. This is slightly lower than the 70% required for the objective test exams, but that doesn’t make it easy!

“Great! Can I now go ahead and pick a date for my exam?”

Hold on! Unlike the objective test exams, which could be taken all year round, case study exams can only be taken at certain times. 

CIMA has 4 exam windows a year (February, May, August and November) where it is possible to sit a case study exam. In each of these months, exams are scheduled over a 3 day period . Each pre-seen will be available for 2 sittings, with new ones released for the May and November sittings.

2. What is the pre-seen material and how should I use it?

You’ll only be given access to the pre-seen material roughly six weeks before your case study exam. So, it’s super important you know how to use that short amount of time to get the most out of the pre-seen material! 

“ What is in the pre-seen material pack?…”

The pre-seen material pack contains around 20 pages of information about a fictional company, its position and the industry it operates in. The pack often includes:

• Examples of the company’s competitors
• Descriptions of the company’s markets
• Mission and vision statements
• Financial statements
• Press releases
• Newspaper or digital articles about the company

How SHOULD I use the pre-seen material?

• Read it thoroughly – this means more than once! We recommend reading it at least 3 times
• Undertake a full strategic analysis of the material.
• Consider what the pre-seen may not be telling you about the performance of the business – i.e. have they left any details out on purpose?

How SHOULDN’T I use the pre-seen material?

• Don’t try to guess what the exam questions or topics will be and learn set answers – focus on making sure you understand the pre-seen.
• Don’t spend lots of time trying to work out which real company the pre-seen company is based on – this won’t help you answer the questions in the exam.

“Do I need to memorise everything in the pre-seen pack?”

No – you will be given an electronic copy of the pre-seen material in your exam. 

But, this doesn’t mean that you shouldn’t become familiar with the material. You will be under great time pressure in your exam, so quickly recalling key information rather than constantly re-reading it can save you vital time.

“Do I need to include quotes from the pre-seen material in my answers?

You should include details such as the company name, key individuals at the company, financial figures found in the financial statements, the country or countries mentioned or the competitor (if there is one), if they are relevant.

But, you are not required to quote full sentences or phrases from the material to support your analysis.

3. 5 things you must do to prepare for your case study

One of the main reasons for students failing the case study exam is poor preparation! So, we’re sharing our top 5 exam prep tips to maximise your chances of passing on the big day!

Find Your Astranti Case Study Course

We have OnDemand courses available for every case study student, whether you need lots of guidance and assistance along the way or you just need to get up to speed with the latest pre-seen. On our courses, you will find study guides, recorded videos, mock exams & practice questions, live online classes, tutor/mentor support and much more.

Prices start at just £495, or £90 a month!

Explore each of our case study courses below…

To qualify for the pass guarantee you need to ensure you complete ALL of the following steps. Failure to complete all of these steps will mean you will not qualify.

View & Print:

1. Click the “View + Print” link to view the study text.

2.  Wait  for all of the pages to load , this can sometimes take a couple of minutes depending on the size of the document (scroll to the last page to ensure that every page loads).

3.  Click  on the print icon within the document viewer (NOT the print icon in the browser menu).

4.  Follow  the steps to print.

Other things to try:

Please try an alternative browser.   Google Chrome and Firefox are recommended, but other  browsers may also work.  Updating your browser to the latest version can help your document load more quickly.

If you are using Windows XP and a version of Internet Explorer older than 9, we cannot guarantee  that printing will be possible. We recommend obtaining access to a computer with at least Windows 7.

Updating to the latest  version of flash can help to resolve some people’s printing issues ( download the latest version of flash .)

If your document fails to load, try clearing your cache and browser history. If your documents still do not load it may be due to the network you are on. We suggest trying to print on a different network.

If you still cannot print your document we suggest using a different computer and/or printer in case you are experiencing a hardware issue.

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Exam timetable

View key dates to help you plan your studies. Plan your CIMA’s CGMA® exams. On-demand tests are available all year. There are four windows a year when you can sit the Case Study Exams (February, May, August, and November).

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