CS Course Eligibility: Foundation, Executive, Professional, Requirement

Q: What is the age limit to study CS?

The candidate must be at least 17 years of agewhen applying for the CS course.

CS Course is a 3-year professional course that paves the way to become a Company Secretary. CS course has 3 levels which come one after the other. CS Foundation, CS Executive, and CS Professional are the 3 levels of the CS Course.

CS Eligibility for CS Foundation is passing class 12 boards. Students who have completed CS Foundation are eligible for CS Executive. Apart from that students who have completed graduation can also apply for CS Executive. CS Professional can be done by students who have completed CS Executive.

Check: Company Secretary Course Details

Table of Contents

CS Course Details
CS Foundation Eligibility
CS Executive Eligibility
CS Professional Eligibility
Eligibility Comparison with Similar Courses

5.1 CS vs CA

5.2 CS vs CFA

5.3 CS vs CMA

Company Secretary Requirements
CS Course Eligibility: FAQs

CS Course Details

In the Company Secretary program, there are three stages. The first stage is CS Foundation, the second stage is CS Executive, and the third stage is CS Professional. All three stages need to be passed to qualify as a company secretary.

Parameters	For CS Foundation	For CS Executive	For CS Professional
Course Level	First	Second	Third
Course Duration	8 months	9 months	15 months
Eligibility	Passed 10+2 in any stream (expect Fine Arts)	After graduation or Post-graduation (except Fine Arts) and should have either cleared CS Foundation or CSEET	After qualifying CS Executive Exam
No. of Subjects	4 subjects	8 subjects (in two modules with 4 subjects in each module)	9 subjects (in three modules with 3 subjects in each module)
Exam	Twice a year (June and December)	Twice a year (June and December)	Twice a year (June and December)
Course Fee	INR 4500	INR 10600 to INR 15600	INR 12000
Exam Fee	INR 1200	INR 1200 for each module	INR 1200 for each module
Top Institute for CS course	The Institute of Company Secretaries of India (I.C.S.I)	The Institute of Company Secretaries of India (I.C.S.I)	The Institute of Company Secretaries of India (I.C.S.I)

CS Foundation Eligibility

All candidates applying for admission to the CS Foundation course are eligible if they fall under the following.

Should have passed their 10+2 or similar exam at an accredited board/university with a minimum of 50% aggregate marks.
Students who are appearing in Grades 10+2 are eligible for the ICSI CS Foundation program but they need to show proof of it like their exam roll number.

CS Executive Eligibility

All candidates applying for admission to the CS Executive course are eligible if they fall under the following.

Candidates must have scored more than 40% in each subject of the CS Foundation Exam.
Candidates with an undergraduate degree can directly apply for the CS Executive course.
Candidates must be at least 17 years old.
Candidates who have cleared CSEET can also apply for the CS Executive course.

CS Professional Eligibility

All candidates applying for admission to the CS Professional course are eligible if they fall under the following.

The candidate has to pass in CS Executive exams, both modules, with a minimum passing score determined by ICSI.
Presently, to be eligible for the CS Executive exam, candidates have to score 40% in each subject and a total score of 50%.

Eligibility Comparison with Similar Courses

The other similar courses are Chartered Accountancy (CA) course, the Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) course, and Cost and Management Accountancy (CMA).

In the CA course, students are taught about the evaluation of financial reports, filing of tax returns, auditing financial statements, etc. The CA course has three levels, namely, foundation, intermediate, and final. It can be pursued after 10+2 or after UG/ PG.

In the CFA program, students are taught about the fundamentals of investment tools, wealth management, valuing assets, and portfolio management. This course has three levels, namely, Level 1, Level 2, and Level 3.

In the CMA program, students are taught about Strategic Financial Management, Internal Controls, Financial Planning, Performance, and Analytics, and Decision Analysis. This course has three levels, namely, foundation, inter, and final.

CS vs CA

Levels	CS Eligibility Criteria	CA Eligibility Criteria
Levels	CS Eligibility Criteria	Foundation Course Route	Direct Route
First Level	CS Foundation - Should have passed their 10+2 or similar exam at an accredited board/university with a minimum of 50% aggregate marks.	CA Foundation - Should have passed 10+2 to take the CA Foundation exam.	-
Second Level	CS Executive - Should have qualified for the CS Foundation exam/ CSEET exam. Should be at least 17 years of age.	CA Intermediate - Should have passed CA Foundation exam.	Should be commerce graduate/ PG with minimum 55% or other stream graduate/ PG with minimum 60%.
Third Level	CS Professional - Should have qualified the CS Executive exam.	CA Final - Should have cleared both groups of the intermediate course.	Should have cleared both groups of the intermediate course.

CS vs CFA

Levels	CS Eligibility	CFA Eligibility
First Level	CS Foundation - Should have passed their 10+2 or similar exam at an accredited board/university with a minimum of 50% aggregate marks.	CFA Level 1 - minimum work experience of 4000 hrs/ combination of 4000 hrs of work experience and higher education for a minimum period of 3 years.
Second Level	CS Executive - Should have qualified the CS Foundation exam/ CSEET exam. Should be at least 17 years of age.	CFA Level 2 - Should have qualified the CFA level 1 exam and should have completed UG degree.
Third Level	CS Professional - Should have qualified the CS Executive exam.	CFA Level 3 - Should have qualified the CFA level 2 exam.

CS vs CMA

Levels	CS Eligibility	CMA Eligibility
First Level	CS Foundation - Should have passed their 10+2 or similar exam at an accredited board/university with a minimum of 50% aggregate marks.	CMA Foundation - should have passed 10+2 from a recognized board/ should have passed commerce from Qualified National Diploma by AICTE or State Board of Technical Education/ should have diploma in Rural Service Examination under National Council for Higher Education. Candidates should be 18 years or above.
Second Level	CS Executive - Should have qualified the CS Foundation exam/ CSEET exam. Should be at least 17 years of age.	CMA Intermediate - should have cleared CMA Foundation exam/ passed the CA Foundation of ICSI or the Intermediate level of CA/ Passed Part 1 of the CAT exam of the Institute of Cost Accountants of India, or have a Bachelor’s degree except in fine arts.
Third Level	CS Professional - Should have qualified the CS Executive exam.	CMA Final - Should have passed CMA Intermediate exam.

Company Secretary Requirements

Company Secretary is one of the toughest exams in India. It is conducted for the role of a company secretary. There are some requirements to become a company secretary.

Candidates should have passed their 10+2 from a recognized board with a minimum of 50%.
Candidates should have successfully cleared the CS Foundation Exam.
Candidates should have successfully cleared the CS Executive Exam.
Candidates should have successfully cleared the CS Professional Exam.
After successfully passing these three levels, candidates need to undergo 15 months of practical training.
15 days of training within an agency such as the stock exchange, the office of the Registrar of Companies, banking institution, or a financial institution.
15 days Management Skills Orientation Program (MSOP) — after passing the Professional program.
The candidates will be required to complete 25 hours of the Professional Development Program (PDP).
After passing the CS Professional Program, the student may enroll as a Licentiate ICSI until the completion of training requirements.

CS Course Eligibility: FAQs

Ques. What is the eligibility criteria for CS exam?

Ans. The basic requirement to write the CS exam is to have completed 10+2 from a recognized board (except Fine Arts) with a minimum 50%.

Ques. Can a average student can do CS?

Ans. Yes, anyone can apply for a CS program but you need to be completely focused on your course.

Ques. How many attempts are allowed in CS?

Ans. For the CS Foundation, there are 6 attempts. For the CS Executive and Professional, there are 10 attempts each.

Ques. What happens if you fail in CS?

Ans. You can surely learn from your mistakes and appear again for the exam.

Ques. How many students pass CS?

Ans. In the CS Executive December 2022 exam, 9.05% of the total candidates cleared Module 1 and 12.32% of the total candidates cleared Module 2.

Ques. What is the age limit to study CS?

Ans. The candidate must be at least 17 years of age when applying for the CS course.

Ques. How to prepare for CS?

Ans. Focus on the study material and cover every single chapter. Enrolling into a reputed coaching institute can also help. Practice previous year’s papers.

Ques. How to pass CS in the first attempt?

Ans. A focused preparation can help you pass the CS exam on the first attempt.

Ques. How long do CS students study?

Ans. A CS student studies 6 to 8 hrs daily.

Ques. Can I prepare for CS without coaching?

Ans. Guidance can be helpful, but if you want to prepare without coaching then you must focus on your syllabus and solve previous years papers as much as possible.