The Institute of Chartered Accountants of India (ICAI) today announced the CA Final and Intermediate results for the exams in May 2023. With 616 points out of 800, Akshay Ramesh Jain of Ahmedabad won the CA final exam. Prakhar Varshney and Kalpesh Jain of Chennai came in second and third, respectively.

In an interview with IndianExpress.com, the top students talk about their future plans, preparation methods, and the factors that motivated them to pursue Chartered Accountancy. It’s noteworthy that the top three performers aced every CA test on their first attempt.

Results of the ICAI CA exam for 2023: Akshay Jain wins the CA final exam and Y Gokul Sai Sreekar wins the inter exam

AIR 1 Akshay Jain

Achieving such a grade is fantastic, especially if you worked hard for it. Actually, becoming certified as an accountant was never my intention. I intended to apply to the Indian Institute of Management, Indore’s five-year integrated management programme. But I didn’t have enough time to prepare, thus I did horribly on the IPMAT. Then, a CA uncle of mine advised me to research this. I carefully considered his advice before signing up for Gujarat University’s Bachelor of Commerce (B Com) programme and taking the ICAI Common Proficiency Test (CPT).

I have given CA my heart and soul ever moment I chose to pursue it. Even with my CPT, I managed to earn an All  India Rank of 17 and an AIR of 1 in intermediate. Since CA tests make it tough to predict your position, I wasn’t sure if I had a high rank or not, but I made every effort to get one.

I will make a choice when the results are made public in the ensuing 10 to 15 days. For myself, I enjoy consulting. One of the Big 4 consulting firms—Boston Consulting Group (BCG), Deloitte, McKinsey, or Bain and Company—is where I’d like to work. I have no desire to start my own business.

You only get four months of preparation leave from your articleship, and you must sit for both sets of the CA tests at the same time in order to receive a rank. I began my articleship with GK Choksi in Ahmedabad in April 2020, where I worked for about one and a half years before transferring to HDFC in Hyderabad. I studied for around 12 to 13 hours a day throughout the week, with plenty of breaks in between, over the four months of preparatory leave. I wouldn’t commit to prolonged study sessions. I would take one course a week, practise exams for it on the weekends, and then unwind with my friends and family. After the tests were over, I started my rewrite.

I used to take a break to watch anything or listen to music whenever I felt overworked. Videos of stand-up comedy are fun to watch. I have a lot of respect for Louis CK and Abhishek Upmanyu.

My mother remains at home to look after the children while my father runs a company. My younger brother is pursuing an engineering degree. Although my father moved here before I was even born for business, we are originally from Rajasthan.

ICAI CA Final AIR 2 Kalpesh Jain

When the ICAI president contacted me today, I initially believed my friends were pulling a practical joke. It wasn’t until I independently verified the outcome that I knew it was accurate. I never placed first and merely wanted to pass the test; I had no aspirations of earning a rating. I feel so strange because the outcome exceeded my expectations.

I chose to pursue a career in accounting because it seemed interesting, but just to be safe, I also enrolled in a BCom degree at Vivekananda College. I only recently started to take my interest in CA seriously and give it my whole attention after intermediate.

My closest support system while I prepared was my family, especially my younger brother. Most prospective CAs spend the four months of articleship—the only time allocated for preparation—to study. In addition, my family made sure that I was exempt from all responsibilities, even the simplest ones.

Since the sector has grown to be so diversified, including chances in consulting, taxation, audits, and even establishing your own business, I believe there is a lot of possibility for CAs. Currently, I’m unsure of what I would do, but I’m leaving my options open.

ICAI CA Final AIR 3 Prakhar Varshney

My father and one of my elder sisters are a CA and they have been my biggest source of inspiration. One of the reasons I worked so hard is because my sister has also been a rank holder during her time and I look up to her.

Passing the test and receiving a reasonable mark on top of it is really fulfilling. Even though I’ve always worked very hard in school, my sister’s constant encouragement has been crucial to my achievement.

I received a BCom (Hons) in Business Administration from Delhi University’s Shri Ram College of Commerce. I began my articleship in April 2020, following my graduation. I started off as an associate intern at BSR and Co LLP, a KPMG affiliate. Later, I transferred to BCG. As I am getting fantastic exposure by working with BCG, I would like to keep doing so. I have worked in tax for the past two years, and while I lack expertise in other specialised industries, I am open to any job prospects.

I don’t currently have any intentions to join my father and sister in their practise, which my father runs independently with help from my sister. In addition to them, my family also includes my mother and one other older sister.

I would rise between five and six in the morning and begin my studies. I didn’t have to study for ten hours a day or stick to a plan, but I do think that students act appropriately on their own when a test is very challenging.