CS Professional Programme 2023: Exam Conducted, Eligibility

The CS Professional Programme exam 2023 June session was conducted from 1st June to 10th June by the Institute of Company Secretaries of India (ICSI). The ICSI works under the jurisdiction of the Ministry of Corporate Affairs, Government of India. The institute was set up with the vision to develop and regulate the profession of Company Secretaries. CS Professional Programme is conducted two times annually by the ICSI, in June and December.

The CS examination is conducted across 87 centres in India and one overseas centre in Dubai, UAE. There are three stages of the CS programme, namely the foundation, the executive and the professional. In this blog, we will particularly focus on and discuss in detail the CS Professional programme.

Name of the Exam	Company Secretary Professional Programme Exam
Examination Conducting Body	The Institute of Company Secretaries of India
Headquarters	New Delhi, India
Exam Frequency	2 (June and December)
Exam Dates	1st to 10th June
Mode of Examination	Offline (pen and paper)
Duration of Examination	3 hours
Type of Questions	Descriptive answer questions
Language of the Examination	Bilingual (English and Hindi)
Official Website	www.icsi.edu/home

CS Program 2023 Exam Dates

In order to prepare properly, a candidate must keep in mind the important dates of the CS Professional programme exam. The last date to apply for the June 2023 session was 31st January 2023. The CS Professional June 2023 exam form was released on 26th February and the last date to fill out the form was 25th March 2023. The CS Professional June 2023 was conducted from 1st June to 10th June. For a detailed list of important dates, candidates should refer to the below PDF.

CS Professional Exam Pattern

There are a few details that a candidate needs to keep in mind before proceeding with the application for the CS Professional Programme 2023. An examinee is declared passed in this national-level exam only if the candidate successfully secures a minimum of 40% marks at one sitting in each paper of the module and scores a minimum of 50% marks in the aggregate of all the subjects. Candidates are required to complete their exam within the time duration allotted.

The table below details more about the examination pattern of the CS Professional programme:

Particulars	Details
Frequency of the examination	Twice a year June and December
Language of the examination	Bilingual- English and Hindi
Qualifying marks	40% marks in each paper 50% marks in the aggregate of all subjects
Duration of the course	4-5 months; within the registration period

Also Read: ICSI Exam 2023

CS Professional Exam Syllabus

There are three modules in the Company Secretary Professional programme. The modules are further divided into nine papers. Refer to the table below for a more detailed syllabus for the CS Professional programme.

Module I	Governance, risk management, compliances and ethics Advanced tax laws Drafting, pleadings and appearances
Module II	Secretarial audit, compliance management and due diligence Corporate restructuring, insolvency, liquidation and winding-up Resolution of corporate disputes, non-compliances and remedies
Module III	Corporate funding and listings in stock exchanges Multidisciplinary case studies (open book examination) Electives to be chosen any one out of 8 1. Banking- law and practice 2. Insurance- law and practice 3. Intellectual property rights– law and practices 4. Forensic audit 5. Direct tax law and practice 6. Labour laws and practices 7. Valuations and business modelling 8. Insolvency- law and practice

CS Professional Eligibility Criteria

To be eligible for the CS Professional programme there are certain eligibility criteria that a candidate must meet. The eligibility criteria, according to the brochure of the ICSI, is as follows:

• The candidate will be admitted to this programme only under the condition that the candidate must have registered with the portal of ICSI as a student not less than nine calendar months before the commencement of the examination. 
• Additionally, this Company Secretary Professional programme can only be pursued by the candidates who have completed/qualified for the CS Foundation and Executive Programme. 

CS Professional Application Process

The registration process for the Company Secretary Professional programme is open throughout the year. Interested students have to register at the official website of ICSI on the online services. Once the applicant has successfully registered at the portal of the ICSI, the candidate then must upload scanned copies of the class 12th examination pass certificate and mark sheet, proof of date of birth, passport size photograph and signature. 

CS Professional Exam Fee

To complete the registration procedure for the CS Professional programme, aspiring candidates need to make a fee payment of INR 1200 per module. 

The deadline for the application for the CS Professional programme is different for the two sessions of the examination. 

• Candidates who want to apply for the June session must submit the application form by the 25th of March. In case of late submission, an additional fee of INR 250 will be applicable. Late submission is only allowed till the 9th of April.
• Candidates willing to apply for the September session have to submit the application form by 25th September. However, In case of late submission, the candidate will have to submit the form by the 10th of October with an additional fee of INR 250 for a late submission. 

Course Fee

The admitted candidates have to make a successful course payment of INR 12,000 to the ICSI for the CS Professional programme. The payment can only be made through an online payment gateway using a debit card, credit card, net banking, or UPI.

E-Learning Facility

To help students with the smooth facilitation of the CS Professional programme, there is an E-learning portal. Students from any corner of the world can access the benefits of the facility 24*7. The online portal includes web-based training (WBT), video-based training (VBT) and live virtual classroom sessions (LVC). There is an additional charge as fixed by the ICSI applicable from time to time to access the benefits of the e-learning portal.  

Practical Experience and Training Requirements

The appearing candidates and after completing the CS Professional programme are required to fulfil certain specific requirements that include practical experience and training requirements. 

• The candidates have to complete 15 months of training after qualifying for the CS Professional programme.
• The candidates have to complete 15 days of training with any specialised agency, namely the office of the Registrar of Companies, stock exchange, financial or banking institution or management consultancy firm.
• After passing the CS Professional programme, the candidates have to complete 15 days of the Management Skills Orientation Programme (MSOP).
• The candidates will have to complete 25 hours of the Professional Development Programme (PDP).

Membership

• Only those students passing the CS Professional programme can enrol themselves as ‘Licentiate ICSI’ at their option till the completion of practical experience and training requirements.
• After successful completion and qualifying for the CS Professional programme, pre-membership and management training, the candidate is enrolled as an Associate Member of the Institute and can use ACS as a descriptive title after their names.
• After successful enrollment as a member of the ICSI, candidates can use CS as a prefix with their names.

How to Prepare for CS Professional Programme Exam 2023

In this section of the blog, you will find in detail the list of best books, tips and previous years’ questions to help you perform exceptionally well in the CS Professional programme examination.

Best Books to Prepare for CS Professional Programme Exam 2023

To score well in the CS Professional programme examination, you need to read the module and subject-specific books to score well, qualify and be eligible. Begin with your preparation by referring to the list of books given below.

Modules	Books
Module I	Taxmann’s CRACKER for Governance Risk Management Compliances and Ethics by Adv. Ritika Godhwani Taxmann’s CRACKER for Advanced Tax Law by CA Pratik Neve Taxmann’s CRACKER for Drafting Pleadings and Appearances by Adv. Ritika Godhwani
Module II	Taxmann’s CRACKER for Secretarial Audit Compliance Management and Due Diligence by CS Divya Bajpai Taxmann’s CRACKER for Corporate Restructuring Insolvency Liquidation and Winding-Up by CA Prasad Vijay Bhat and CS Divya Bajpai Taxmann’s CRACKER for Resolution of Corporate Disputes Non-Compliances and Remedies by CA Atul Karampurwala
Module III	Taxmann’s CRACKER for Corporate Funding and Listings in Stock Exchanges by CS Divya Bajpai Taxmann’s Study Material

CS Professional Programme 2023 Preparation Tips

There are many practical tips and tricks that work in favour of the students and help in qualifying for the CS Professional programme examination on the first attempt. Here are some of the best-tested tips to try and apply for the best results:

• While preparing for the CS Professional programme, you are advised to prepare a schedule according to the three modules in such a way that it focuses on each subject of the module, covers the entire syllabus in detail, and enhances your test-taking skills. 
• Do not forget to work on your time management skills as the duration of the examination is fixed. So divide your time judiciously between each module. 
• Remember practice is the key to success. Give each module a minimum of 2 hours a day, add a sample question paper/previous year’s question paper based on the subjects of the particular module of the CS Professional programme and take adequate time to practise. 

CS Professional Programme Previous Year Question Papers

To prepare well for the CS Professional programme, candidates should refer to the previous years’ question papers and answers to score and perform well in the final examination. Since the CS Professional programme has 3 modules, refer to the attached previous years’ question papers along with answers.

CS Professional Programme 2023 Result

The result of the candidate can be checked on the official website of the ICSI once declared. The steps to check the result are as follows:

1. To download the e-mark sheet, the candidates have to visit the official website.
2. Select the result and download tab.
3. Once the tab opens, select the examination, enter the roll number and 17-digit registration number and click on submit.
4. The e-mark sheet will be displayed on the screen.
5. The candidates are advised to download the e-mark sheet for future reference.

CS Professional Programme 2023 Selection Process

There is no selection process per se to qualify for the CS professional programme apart from qualifying for the foundation and executive programmes. Once you have cleared the three stages of the CS course and completed the practical experiences and training programmes successfully, you are eligible to become a CS. 

FAQs

Qualifying for the CS Professional programme is a challenging task but the reward is gratifying. We hope the article proved helpful to you and successfully aids you in establishing a career in the ICSI and serving the nation. Interested candidates are advised to frequently visit the official website for the latest updates.

For more such updates, check out our Indian exams page and do not forget to follow us on Instagram, Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn.