AccountingCrossing
log in 

JOB SEEKERS, Try it Now 

EMPLOYERS, POST JOBS | SEARCH RESUMES

Share
ACCOUNTING Jobs, Jobs in ACCOUNTING - AccountingCrossing.com
What Where


Search in Job Title Only

upload your resume

Select Country:


+ Browse Jobs    + Advanced Search    + Search Tips
Home >> Accounting Articles >> Accounting Career Feature >> Best Bets to Prepare for the CPA Exam
  • Accounting Career Feature
Best Bets to Prepare for the CPA Exam

When you're preparing for accountant employment or are looking for accounts jobs, one of the things you are going to have to do is to prepare for the CPA exam. The CPA exam, formally known as the Uniform Certified Public Accountant (CPA) Examination, is just one part of your preparation, of course; you'll also have to make sure you have all the required experience and education.

The CPA exam is not easy, that's true, but those who are on the road to accounting careers already know that, and you probably do, too. Nonetheless, it's something you have to take and pass in order to become a certified public accountant, or CPA.

What are the parts of the exam and required percentages to pass?

The audit section requires a 49.1% score, business environment concepts 47.49%, financial accounting and reporting 49.21%, and regulation 48.74%.

It behooves you to prepare carefully for the CPA exam well in advance of taking it; here are some things you should know.

From where you get your accounting degree counts

When you are going to enroll in an accounting program, make sure you check first to see how many graduates from the program pass the CPA exam. Those institutions with the most rigorous programs have the most graduates from the programs pass the CPA exam.

Use Your Learning Style to Best Advantage When You're Preparing

There are lots of different CPA exam preparation methods out there, so choose the one that will fit your learning strengths best. For example, if you retain information best by reading it, buy DVDs or texts. If you have trouble organizing your time, taking traditional, formal, "in classroom" classes may work out best for you, so that you have to show up and actually put in the time. Or, if you have a mix of different learning styles, you can take an Internet-based course and read the textbook, too, plus do drills and practice online.

Check the Price

The CPA exam has a new four-part structure, so when you check programs, ask about each program's success with the new four-part exam format. The study program you buy should offer a money-back guarantee and let you return materials, too.

Getting Review Materials

You can also check out Amazon or eBay for used review materials, if you want to save yourself some money, but make sure that they are current enough that they match the current version of the test. Some of the most popular companies that offer these review materials include: John Wiley and Sons, Rigos Professional Education Programs, Lambers Review Courses, Kaplan, Gleim Publications, Bisk Education, and Becker.

Only You Have to Study

Finally, remember that because the CPA exam is so rigorous, only you can put in the study time necessary to be prepared for the test. If you've been serious enough to pursue an accounting degree in hopes of an accounting career, you shouldn't slack off now and think that you can simply glide through the test. Experts say that you should put in between 450 and 500 hours of study time for the test before you take it. Over a period of about four months, that's about 30 hours a week of study time. Rigorous! Yes, but worth it if you want to pass your CPA exam in order to be prepared for accounting careers.

Popular tags:

 strengths  CPA  careers  inspections  contracts  methods  exams  accountants  formats  thinking
Rate this article:

       current rating: 10
Printable Version  printable version Email to a Friend  email to a friend Comment  add comments

Comments

article ID: 400303     http://www.accountingcrossing.com/article/400303/Best-Bets-to-Prepare-for-the-CPA-Exam/

article title: Best Bets to Prepare for the CPA Exam
Comment not found for this article.
add comments add comments

Related articles


Facebook comments:


Bring Order and Structure to Your Accounting Job Search

In an orderly and structured fashion, we consolidate all of the accounting jobs from every accounting firm career page, company and organization career page (and every other job site we can find) so you know about all the accounting jobs and can make your important personal career decisions in an objective and rational way.

We are a "good citizen" in the accounting community and have high research standards and know you too have high standards for your career. As an unbiased research company with a profound respect for concrete facts and information about job openings, we are loyal to our members and do not accept any money from advertisers for job postings.

We give you the tools to follow through and pursue your career options in a stable, practical and down-to-earth manner.
Tell us where to send your access instructions:

Your Email:     
total jobs
on AccountingCrossing
144,147
new jobs this week
on AccountingCrossing
30,122
total jobs
on EmploymentCrossing network available to our members
3,498,334
Get your risk FREE trial
jobs near you
International jobs
Work at home jobs
UK jobs
Canada jobs
New search feature using US map. click here

Looking for a new accounting job in your city? click here
most recent articles
Why You Should Never Miss a Company Holiday Party or Invitation to Your Boss’s Home
A few years ago, I spoke with a man (now retired) who had worked in a large corporation for forty years and in his last twenty years, he basically did nothing. He was paid very well and was more or less forgotten—doing very little of anything. He would show up at the office at 9:00 a.m. each day, try to look busy—do a task now and then—and then get in his car at 5:30 p.m. each evening and dr...
accounting industry news:

recent articles:

top 5 job searches
today's featured job
Payroll/Bookkeeper Assistant Needed Immediately
United States-CA-Los Angeles

Prepare Profit And Loss Statements And Monthly Closing And Cost Accounting Reports. Compile And Analyze Financial Information To Prepare Entries...

Click to Apply for - AccountingCrossing.com
Accounting job fairs
post your resume
  • Make your resume viewable to thousands of employers.
  • Employers can look you up in our database.
  • Get job alerts based on your resume.
upload your resume

Free Report

The Five "Big Dirty Secrets" of Job Sites

Just enter your email to get the Report
The Five ''Big Dirty Secrets'' of Job Sites
I Love AccountingCrossing
Your privacy is guaranteed. We will never give out, lease, or sell your personal information.


Employment Research Institute

Privacy Policy by TRUSTe  VeriSign Secure Site
AccountingCrossing - #1 Job Aggregation and Private Job-Opening Research Service — The Most Quality Jobs Anywhere
AccountingCrossing is the first job consolidation service in the employment industry to seek to include every job that exists and not charge employers to post jobs on its site. AccountingCrossing uses sophisticated technology and manual work to comb employer websites and other job boards for jobs and bring them all to its site.

Copyright © 2011 AccountingCrossing - All rights reserved.