Frequently asked questions

We are very proud of our the success and excellent pass rate of the students that we teach, not only because it means that our students finish their course with a comprehensive understanding of the subject but also because it is a testament to the high quality of our study methods and tutors. We consistently achieve above average pass rates in all of our CIM qualifications. 

For more information about our success, visit the Pass Rates page.

Our head office is based in central Cambridge where you are very welcome to come and see us during our normal office hours. Visit the Contact us page for the address and useful information. We also regularly hold Open days at our study centres across the UK.

To find the dates of our upcoming Open days visit the Events page.

The level of education and amount of experience needed differs between awarding bodies and qualification levels. Much of the information you need is on this website or in our prospectus.Our Entry level assessor will help determine the best level for you. For more detailed information about the qualifications please visit the relevant qualifications page.

• Chartered Institute of Marketing
• CAM Foundation
• Chartered Management Institute
• Institute of Sales & Marketing

If you are still unsure you can contact us directly and we would be happy to discuss your options with you, if you have a CV that you can send to us this is also particularly helpful.

Qualification durations vary and are highly flexible. The duration depends on many variables such as the qualification, level and your own work, family and social commitments. Most will take approximately 12 months to complete depending on how quickly you study but for specific qualifications please visit the relevant qualifications page.

• Chartered Institute of Marketing
• CAM Foundation
• Chartered Management Institute
• Institute of Sales & Marketing

Whichever qualification you study, Cambridge Professional Academy commits to providing support for all our students for up to two years.

You can start studying at any time as we hold workshops regularly throughout the year, meaning that you can begin your studies whenever is convenient for you.

For all of the CIM and CAM qualifications you can choose which module to start with as there is no particular order that you have to study them in. For CMI students you only need to make sure you start with the Personal Development Unit, all the remaining units can be completed in any order. Only ISMM students studying the Level 2 qualification must start with a particular module, 'Selling in a Customer-Focused Organisation'. However, Level 3, 5 and 6 students must finish with the Investigative Project (EMA - Externally Marked Assignment)

No matter which qualification or level you are studying for, we can provide all the materials, resources, guidance and support you need to complete your studies including:

• workshops (where selected)
• tutor support
• personal tutor support
• dedicated team of support staff
• tutor written Study Handbook and Assessment Guide and Module Study Guide
• all the necessary course text books (where selected)
• online members area and resources
• Pass Guarantee
• two years support

For the CIM qualifications, if you have only certain modules that you would like to study, then we are happy to provide only the support, workshops and study material that you need.  For more information about what you will receive and can expect whilst studying with Cambridge Professional Academy, visit the Delegate Experience pages.

We accept payment by cheque, credit or debit card. Your course can either be paid by employer invoice or self-funded, if you are self funding we also have a number of payment terms that you can choose from:

• pay all of the course in a single payment
• spread your payments over 4 consecutive months with the initial payment due with your application (UK students only)
• spread over your payments over 8 consecutive months with an initial payment of £350 + VAT (this includes a £50 + VAT administration fee) due with your application, with each of the 7 subsequent payments being the remaining outstanding qualification fee divided into 7 equal payments and paid through standing order.

When the fee needs to be invoiced to a number separate people, for example when you are paying half and your company is paying half we can do this, however there is an additional charge of £10 per additional payee.

Depending on the experience and qualifications you may be eligible for exemptions from some modules. CAM exemptions are available here but for any other qualifications we recommend that you contact us to discuss your personal circumstances in more detail and we will advise accordingly.

For all of the qualifications we offer you they allow progression onto the awarding body's next qualification level. Completion of the CIM Chartered Postgraduate Diploma in Marketing can also exempt you from the first stage of a Masters in Marketing.

Unfortunately you cannot obtain a UK student visa based on studying our courses because they are classed as part-time qualifications. However, if you have a valid student visa prior to applying for one of our courses then we can fully tutor and support you. Under our Pass Guarantee, we commit to support you for the duration of your visa or through the supported learning study method from your home country.

We have often had students choosing us once they have begun their studies elsewhere. All you need to do is complete an application form in the usual way but specifiying the particular modules that you would like to study and whether you would like to include workshops or course text books.

During the tutor-led workshops you are taught alongside other students enabling a more interactive approach to your learning. We have found that students benefit greatly from attending these workshops which allow the opportunity to learn face to face, discuss and debate topics and experiences with the tutor and other participants. You will also cover the syllabus topics preparing you for the formal assessment and in most cases emerge with a fully prepared assignment plan (where relevant).

For more information visit the Workshop Experience page.

To get the most from the workshops we recommend that as a minimum, you should read through the Study Handbook and Assignment Guide guide so that you can familiarise yourself with the course structure, help and support available and procedures.

If you are studying for a module that is assessed by assignment we recommend that you begin reading the subject material prior to attending although don't worry if you haven't had a chance.  Prior to the workshop you must have downloaded and familiarised yourself with the assignment as this will be covered during your workshop. However, if you are studying for a module that is assessed by exam we advise that you complete more of the subject reading prior to the workshop as they are scheduled closer to the exam date, once the exam assessment material has been released.

You must be enrolled for one of our qualifications before you can attend any of our workshops. If you requested to attend workshops as part of your qualification enrollment then you are automatically reserved a place on the next set of upcoming workshops for the study centre and study method requested. You can check and amend these dates by accessing your online members area.

If you did not request to attend workshops as part of your qualification enrollment then you must send your request to support@professionalacademy.com. In addition to the usual workshop charge you will incur an administrative charge.

You can find out the date of workshops that you are booked onto by logging onto your members area of the Cambridge Professional Academy website. This area provides many details about the modules being studied, workshops attended, dates of upcoming workshops, your support tutors and study resources.

If you do not know your log in details please contact us.

This is not a problem, you can log onto your members area and view alternative dates and change the dates as necessary. If you are unable to attend a workshop please ensure that you advise us at least two weeks prior to the workshop date, otherwise you may be charged unless you have extenuating circumstances such as medical treatment.

Yes you can, all you need to do is send your request to support@professionalacademy.com. In addition to the usual workshop charge you will inacur an administrative charge per workshop.

You will always have a tutor available throughout your studies to support you. This may be the same tutor who taught your workshop but this cannot be guaranteed. Your tutor is available to support and advise you on your studies via various methods including telephone and email. As part of the tutor support you can submit one draft of your assignment and up to three mock exams to your tutor for feedback on how to improve. Information about who your tutors are and their contact details is available on your members area.

Visit the Support Tutor page to find out more about what to expect.

You can contact your tutor through various methods including telephone and email. Details about your tutors including specific methods of contact and contact details are available on your members area. If you would like to talk to them on the telephone, we recommend that you email them in advance to arrange a mutually covenient time to discuss your studies in more detail.

As part of all our Complete Learning Packages we provide you with all of the necessary study material including course text books, study guides and resources. However, if you would prefer to purchase the text books independently then we can provide the relevant details.

We provide everything you need to study your qualification including workshops, study guides, resources and tutor support is provided within your fee to Cambridge Professional Academy. If you are studying a CIM or CAM qualification, you will have to also pay for your membership and assessments.

Yes, you can purchase all the relevant text books for the CIM, CMI and ISMM, either for all or just specific modules by contacting support@professionalacademy.com requesting the specific text books.

Your online members area is accessible via the log in at the top of the Cambridge Professional Academy website. You will have received your username and password after you enrolled on your courses in your confirmation email and welcome on board confirmation letter. If you do not know your log in details please contact us on 0844 800 5256 or support@professionalacademy.com.

The online members area enhances your learning experience and also acts as a communication portal between yourself, your tutors and the support team. Within the members area you can edit your personal details, and access various resources and documents to assist you with your studies. It is used to report results, manage (and remind you of) your study or industry related events. 

Visit the online members page for more detail.

This depends on which awarding body you are studying under:

CIM - You can begin your studies and attend workshops before applying for CIM membership but you will need apply directly with the CIM to become an Affiliate (studying) member to submit an assignment or sit an exam. We reccomend that you become a member shortly after enrolling so that you can access the CIM member benefits such as resources, local branch support and industry publications. CIM membership lasts for one year.

CMI - We will register you for the CMI membership on your behalf when you enrol on the course. Part of the fee payable to Cambridge Professional Academy is to pay for the membership fee which lasts for three years.

ISMM - You don't need to be a member of the ISMM to study their qualifications with us, however you do need ISMM student registration which we will organise with the ISMM on your behalf when you enrol on your course, part of the fee payable to Cambridge Professional Academy is for your student registration. The registration entitles you to study for your qualification but to access the ISMM member benefits you will need to enrol and pay for your membership seperately. ISMM student registration lasts for two years and must be renewed for each qualification you undertake even if the next qualification is started within the two year period.

As a student of CIM you will enjoy a wide range of benefits including the recognition of your commitment to progressing your marketing career, access to a huge range of specialist marketing books and the online knowledge base and subsdcription to various magazines and email bulletins. For more member benefits detail visit the CIM website.

We register CMI student membership on your behalf when you when you enrol on your course. As a member of the CMI you will enjoy many benefits including the recognition of your developing management career, events, CPD and Chartered Manager status, access and subscription to a range of news, research and magazine resources. For the full range of member benefits visit the CMI website.

For ISMM students we will register your student registration on your behalf when you enrol on your course. If you wish to become an ISMM member, then you will need to enrol and pay for this seperately which will allow you access to the member benefits including subscription to the specialist sales magazine Winning Edge, free access to regular training seminars held throughout the UK and professional recognition. For more member benefits detail visit the ISMM website.

This varies between Institutes and qualifications.

CIM and CAM - In order to submit an assignment or sit an exam you must be a CIM Affiliate (studying) member which is valid for 12 months for all qualifications. It is payable directly to the CIM and is not included in the cost payable to Cambridge Professional Academy. Visit the CIM fees or CAM fees page for current membership prices.

For all CMI students, we will register your membership on your behalf, part of the fee payable to Cambridge Professional Academy covers your membership which is valid for 3 years for all the qualifications we offer. Visit the CMI fees page for current membership prices.

ISMM student registration is included as part of the fee payable to Cambridge Professional Academy which we will organise your registration on your behalf. All levels of qualifications have student registration valid for two years, however if you study for more than one qualification during this period you will need to pay for new student registration for each qualification studied. Visit the ISMM fees page for current student registration prices.

If you are an exisiting CIM/CAM member then you do not need to pay an additional fee to study, however you do need to contact the CIM so that they can add Affiliate (studying) member status or amend your membership  the features to your current membership.

If you are an exisiting CMI member you will need to pay for new membership, unfortunately we are unable to affect your membership in any way. For any further queries regarding additional membership if you need to contact the CMI directly.

All ISMM qualifications require new student registration regardless of any existing student registration that you may have which is still valid as it is within the two year period. Unfortunately we are unable to affect this in any way. For any further queries regarding additional membership if you need to contact the ISMM directly.

Whichever qualification or level you are studying, Cambridge Professional Academy provides all the relevant support during your studies for up to two years from the date of your enrolment.

Yes, for all of the awarding bodies you need to be a member or have student registration before you can submit an assignment or sit an exam. For CIM you need to enrol with us before you can buy your membership, but for CMI and ISMM the relevant fee is paid on application and we will organise your membership/registration on your behalf.

All CIM/CAM students must pay an additional fee directly to the CIM to be able to submit an assignment or sit an exam. Visit the CIM fees or CAM fees page for current assessment costs.

CMI and ISMM - There are no additional fees to pay to do an assessment as this is included as part of your membership/student registration.

CIM/CAM students can register for membership at any time prior to the first assessment submission, however it is recommended to become a member shortly after enrolling on your qualification so that you can access the member benefits such as resources, local branch support and industry publications. Visit the CIM Important dates or CAM Important dates page for membership deadlines.

CMI and ISMM students are automatically registered to submit your assessments as part of your membership/student registration when you enrol with Cambridge Professional Academy and so you do not need to do anything else.

You need to have valid membership/student registration for the entire period that you are studying.  CIM and CAM students will need to pay the CIM a renewal fee of £120 (UK & Western Europe) / £85 (International students) CMI and ISMM students will be advised by Cambridge Professional Academy their membership is due for renewal shortly before it expires. You will need to pay a renewal fee (£50 for both CMI and ISMM) directly to Cambridge Professional Academy to be entitled to continue your studies.

There are four CIM assessment sessions per year, March, June, September and December. To be eligible to do the assessment you must be a CIM member and book directly with the CIM for the specific module/s that you would like to submit/sit an assessment for the next upcoming session. The assessment registration deadline is approximately two months prior to the assessment submission deadline, specific dates are avilable on the CIM Important datespage.

There are four CAM assessment sessions per year, March, June, September and December, assignments can be submitted for all four sessions whilst exams can only be sat for the June and December sessions. To be eligible to do the assessment you must be a CIM member and book directly with the CIM for the specific module/s that you would like to submit/sit an assessment for the next upcoming session. The assessment registration deadline is approximately two months prior to the assessment submission deadline, specific dates are avilable on the CAM Important dates page.

Please note that on the days leading up to the final assessment registration deadlines the CIM are very busy and so it may be difficult to get through to them via telephone.

CMI students do not need to advise Cambridge Professional Academy or the CMI that you wish to do an assessment.

For most of the ISMM assessments you do not need to advise Cambridge Professional Academy or the ISMM that you wish to do an assessment. The only modules you need to request the assignment from Cambridge Professional Academy is the final module, called EMA - Externally Marked Assignment. 'The Customer-Focused Organisation (Certificate in Sales & Marketing) and the Investigative Project (All other levels). You can only request the EMA in the Spring or Autumn, specific dates are avilable on the ISMM Important dates page.

All qualification assessment deadlines are available on the relevant Institute's Important dates page, click on the links below for specific dates.

• Chartered Institute of Marketing
• CAM Foundation
• Chartered Management Institute
• Institute of Sales & Marketing

CIM and CAM - It is very important to ensure that you register for your exams/assessments on by the deadline. If you should miss a particular deadline you may be able to pay a late entrance fee and enter or you may have to wait until the next exam / assessment period.

CMI- There are no specific submission dates that you need to advise us of and so you would just need to work towards the next submission dates which is approximately 3 months later.

ISMM You must request the final assignment/EMA by the deadline provided otherwise you will have to wait until the next available request date.

CIM and CAM - The assignments set by the CIM fall into quarterly assessment periods, March, June, September and December. The specific assignment submission dates to Cambridge Professional Academy are available on the CIM Important datesand CAM Important dates pages. (The date clearly marked on the assignment paper is the date for the CIM to receive the work, not the deadline by which Cambridge Professional Academy needs to receive your work). The CIM do not accept assignments from previous examination periods. Therefore, if you are unable to complete the assignment by your booked deadline and subsequently miss a CIM submission deadline you will have to pay for an additional assessment registration fee and request the new assignment for the next assessment period, there will also be an additional payment of £50.00 including VAT payable to Cambridge Professional Academy.

CMI - Your assignment will simply get marked at the next available marking session, the assessment questions do not change.

ISMM - When you have requested the Externally Marked Assignment (EMA), either The Customer-Focused Organisation or Investigative Project, you will be advised when the submission deadline. If you fail or are not able to complete the assignment by this date you will have to complete a different question as it changes for each submission period which is approximately every 6 months. There will also be a resit fee incurred from ISMM of £50.00 including VAT which is payable to Cambridge Professional Academy.

The method of assessment and results distribution varies depending on which awarding body you are studying with.

CIM and CAM results are emailed to you by the CIM and can also be accessed when you log in on the CIM website. They are available around the last Friday of the month, three months after your final submission date, the specific results dates are available on the CIM Important dates and CAM Important dates pages. If you have any queries relating to receiving your results you need to contact the CIM directly as Cambridge Professional Academy does not have immediate access to your results.

All CMI assessments are marked internally by Cambridge Professional Academy and then several times a year they are marked again by a CMI External Invigilator. You will have your result confirmed by us via email after the CMI has marked your assignment, specific results dates are available on the CMI Important dates page.

All ISMM assessments are initially assessed and marked internally by Cambridge Professional Academy, after which we will provide you with a preliminary result. Once you have completed and submitted all of your assessments they are sent to the ISMM twice a year for final confirmation of your results. We will advise you via email of your confirmed result. Specific results dates are available on the ISMM Important dates page.

At Cambridge Professional Academy we are proud to offer our Pass Guarantee. This means that whether you enrol with Cambridge Professional Academy for an entire course or just one module we will support you free of charge until you have sufficient knowledge and skills needed to pass your chosen qualification, subject to certain conditions. For more information visit the Pass Guarantee page.

If you have satisfied the requirements of our Pass Guarantee we will support you until you have completed your chosen modules or qualification. We will offer you all the same options that you selected the first time, however if you did not attend a workshop initially we would strongly recommend that you do so for any subsequent attempts which will be chargeable. However, you may also incur additional fees for renewing membership/registration and submitting/sitting any assessments. For more information visit the Pass Guarantee page.