Training facilities at ISACA

ISACA, Mumbai Chapter offers CISA Review Course to assist candidates intending to take the CISA Examination, which is conducted twice during the year – second Saturday of June and second Saturday of December.

CISA Review Course consists of class room lectures mostly on Sundays. Each lecture is approximately of 3 hours duration. The lectures are delivered by qualified and experienced CISAs. The course covers all the important aspects of the CISA examination syllabus. A few practice tests are also conducted to make the candidates familiar with the CISA examination.

First day of the CISA Review Course usually starts with a Mock Test, and the candidates are expected to take that test without any prior preparation. The mock test is basically meant for helping the candidates to acquaint themselves with the nature of CISA examination and to assess their level of competence so that it becomes easier for them to decide about joining the Review Course.

The classes for the June examination usually begin in the month of January and the classes for the December examination begin sometime in the month of July/August. You may send a mail to isaca@vsnl.com with details of your name, address and brief details about your qualifications and experience and get the exact details about the classes.

The Mumbai chapter's tradition of conducting CISA Review Course goes back to 1993. Although enrolling for the CISA Review Course and taking the classes is not a mandatory requirement, several candidates, who attended the classes in the past before giving the examination, have found the course extremely useful while preparing for the examination.

The class usually consists of around 100 candidates and there is ample scope for forming study groups among the class participants. This gives an opportunity to the candidates to share thoughts with the likeminded classmates and gain from the complementary skills of participating candidates who come from varied backgrounds.

Books

Suggested books are:

CISA Review Technical Information Manual

CISA Review Questions, Answers & Explanations

CISA Review Q & A Supplement

Candidate's guide to CISA examination

These books are to be ordered directly from ISACA , USA . Visit the ISACA web site http://www.isaca.org to check the current prices and to download the Customer order form. Shipping charges are extra and are mentioned on the Customer order form.

Apart from these books, you may also have to refer to books available locally like ' Computer Networks ' (Third Edition) by Andrew S. Tanenbaum (Price Approx Rs.200/-) and ' EDP Auditing Conceptual Foundation and Practice by Ron Weber ' (Price approx. Rs.400/-) It is also suggested that you read computer magazines and publications to understand the concepts clearly about latest in the field of Information Technology. Do not feel embarrassed even to read the 'Dummies' series of books. They are good for basic understanding. Questions on concepts of Internet security, Java applets, Data warehousing, Fire walls etc. are asked in this examination. It is not necessary to know the technical details in depth but you should know these things conceptually well to answer the multiple choice questions, which test your concepts.

Membership of ISACA International

You need not become a member of ISACA to take the CISA examination. But there are obvious advantages of becoming ISACA member as the fees charged to members are less than those charged to the nonmembers. The ISACA study material is also available at a concessional price to the ISACA members. Moreover, ISACA members receive the ISACA quarterly magazine as well as an access to the ISACA web site's privileged content.

Membership fees
ISACA Membership is comprised of all levels of IT professionals--executives, management and practitioners--all of whom are dedicated to the promotion of advanced IT governance, control and assurance practices. Uniquely positioned and equipped to be the single provider of leading edge products and services, ISACA has assumed a role as the harmonizing source for IT control practices and standards the world over.

Membership in the association requires joining both the International association and a local chapter. Annual dues consist of:

Examination Fee
CISA examination fee for nonmembers is more than that for the members. Moreover, the fee is less if you register for the examination before a certain date and there is always a last date for registration.

For June 2008 examination –

Save US$50.00 when registering online!

The online registration process will enable you to register for an exam, purchase study aids and an ISACA membership, which will immediately provide significant exam related discounts. The final step of the process will enable you to pay online using a credit card, or indicate that payment will follow by check or wire. If you prefer to fax or mail your registration, see the CISA BOI or CISM BOI for the appropriate form. Payment in full is required before your registration is considered valid and study aid purchases are shipped.

Local Chapter Membership

You can not opt for local chapter membership alone. ISACA's constitution requires you to become member of ISACA International first before you become a member of the local chapter. Therefore, you have to be a member of the ISACA International to be eligible to become local chapter member. Moreover, after becoming a member of ISACA International, you have to opt for the membership of the nearby local chapter.

Apply for membership

Help for CISA Examination

Mumbai chapter conducts CISA Review Course to help the candidates appearing for the examination. The classes are conducted on Sundays. You do not have to become ISACA member to join the CISA Review Course. More details about CISA Review Course are available elsewhere on this website.

Activities of Mumbai Chapter

Mumbai chapter is a very large and active chapter. Apart from conducting the CISA Review Course for the CISA aspirants, the chapter conducts monthly meetings for the members where prominent speakers are invited to talk on current topics of interest to members. Chapter newsletter, titled ‘isaca@mumbai' , is published periodically for the benefit of members. Apart from chapter news, it contains articles contributed by member and other relevant information. Chapter also organizes seminars in the area of I.S. Audit, Control and Security, which are available to all chapter members at a concessional rate.

Mumbai chapter also organizes an annual conference every year, which is a two-day grand event followed by tutorials. It provides an opportunity to all the attendees to acquire familiarity with latest topics in the domain of Information System Audit, Controls and Security.

Prospects after CISA

Information System (IS) Audit profession has become an important profession with increase in demand for knowledgeable manpower. With increasing dependence on Information Technology (IT), every organization today is realizing the necessity of employing Certified IS Auditors. Major employers of CISAs are, of course, the large audit firms. Apart form these, many large corporations are directly employing CISA's. Some CISA's are setting up their own practice. RBI has already recognized CISA as a competent qualification for conducting information system audit for the banks. Thus, CISA is fast becoming de facto standard qualification for IS auditors.