Accounting

Certified Public Accountant (CPA) Exam

The CPA exam is a challenging test. The exam is like a comprehensive final exam covering the accounting and business classes required to get a bachelor's degree in accounting. The exam is 14 hours long and has four sections. The pass rate for each section is about 30 percent.

The four sections of the CPA exam are:

1. Business Environment and Concepts
2. Regulation
3. Financial Accounting
4. Auditing and Attestation

Before you can take the CPA exam, you must meet the following education requirements:

1. Complete a bachelor's degree. The degree may be in any subject.
2. Complete a minimum of 24 semester units in accounting
3. Complete a minimum of 24 semester units in business
   (Accounting courses beyond the 24 required units apply toward business units)

The best way to prepare for the exam is to review the American Institute of Certified Public Accountant (AICPA) publication CPA Exam Content Specifications, and select the courses and self-study material you need to master those topics. Use the courses in the table below as a guide. After you have completed these courses, you might also consider taking a "CPA Review" class.

The following links will provide helpful information.

• CPA Exam Information from the AICPA
• National Association of State Boards of Accountancy (Provider of CPA Exam)
• California State Board of Accountancy CPA Exam Page

One publisher of CPA Exam study material is Gleim.
You can find many others by going to Google and searching on "CPA Exam."