CPA US - How difficult for Indian students?

US CPA (Certified Public Accountant) is a globally recognized and highest accounting credential given by the AICPA (American Institute of Certified Public Accountants). CPA ensures international recognition for finance and accounting professionals. The US CPA certification offers an extensive value proposition:

●     Strong Knowledge Base - Finance, Accounting (US GAAP & IFRS), Auditing, Tax.

●     Global Credibility.

●     Professional career progression opportunity with multinational companies and Big 4s.

●     Some other benefits include International perspective, Leadership skills, and an Elite professional network.

Why do Indian students want to pursue the US CPA course?

The US Certified Public Accountant is referred to as a towering profession in the accountancy field. It is considered the US counterpart of CA in India. Many people question whether Indian finance professionals/students opt for the US CPA course or not. If yes, how do they do that? One of the major limiting factors for doing CA is that it's not recognized internationally, whereas the CPA is recognized across the world.

Opting for the US CPA course is the best option for those who intend to have an international accounting career. US CPA provides cutting-edge global recognition for finance and accounting professionals. Even after qualifying for the CA exams, many public accounting professionals from India are willing to pursue the US CPA course to enjoy greater international exposure.

Despite the CPA exam difficulty, there's good news for the Indian students. Now, you can take the US CPA Exam in India. The NASBA and AICPA have decided to conduct CPA exam testing in India. There are 8 CPA Prometric locations in India: Bangalore, Ahmedabad, Chennai, Calcutta, Mumbai, New Delhi, Hyderabad, and Trivandrum.

US CPA Eligibility:

To become a US Certified Public Accountant, the NASBA (National Association of State Boards of Accountancy), AICPA (American Institute of Certified Public Accountants), and jurisdictions expect the CPA aspirants to fulfill the below requirements:

 

●     The candidate needs to have 120 credits to take the US CPA exam and 150 credits to get the US CPA license.

●     Should pass the Ethics exam.

●     Must have 2,000 hours of work experience in accounting, auditing, management consultancy, and taxation.

●     Age Limit: 18+ years.

What makes the US CPA Exam so hard?

The US CPA Exam is very difficult because:

 

●     The exam syllabus covers a wide variety of concepts at various skill levels.

●     It tests the topics using multiple types of questions, including a few that simulate real-time tasks US CPAs are expected to do.

●     The candidate has to pass all four sections in a limited amount of time (18 months from when the candidate clears his first section).

 

Indications of US CPA Exam Difficulty: Exam Structure and Content

The US CPA curriculum is recognized for its wide range of in-depth knowledge. The CPA exam ensures that a candidate must be thorough with all the necessary topics for an accounting professional in real-life complex scenarios to work. There are four CPA exam sections.

1. AUD - Auditing and Attestation
2. BEC - Business Environment Concepts
3. REG - Regulations
4. FAR - Financial Accounting and Reporting

Each CPA exam section is 4-hour long with Multiple-Choice Questions (MCQs), Task-Based Simulations, and Written Communication tasks.

 

Section	Section Time	Multiple-Choice Questions	Task-Based Simulations	Written Communication
AUD	4 Hours	72	8	-
BEC	4 Hours	62	4	3
REG	4 Hours	76	8	-
FAR	4 Hours	66	8	-

 

Topics covered in AUD section:

●     A deeper understanding of the entity and its environment (12% - 16%).

●     Engagement acceptance (12% - 16%).

●     Evaluating audit findings, reporting, and communications (16% - 20%).

●     Evaluating evidence and Performing Audit procedures (16% - 20%).

●     Professional responsibilities (16% - 20%).

●     Review services engagement and Accounting (12% - 16%).

Topics covered in REG section:

●     Ethics, Professional, and Legal Responsibilities (15% - 19%).

●     Federal Tax Process, Accounting, Procedures, and Planning (11% - 15%).

●     Business Law (17% - 21%).

●     Federal Taxation of Property Transactions (12% - 16%).

●     Evaluating Audit findings, reporting, and communications (16-20%).

●     Federal Taxation of Entities (18% - 24%).

●     Federal Taxation of Individuals (13% - 19%).

Topics covered in BEC section:

●     Economic Concepts and Analysis (16% - 20%)

●     Information Systems and Communications (15% - 19%)

●     Operations Management (12% - 16%)

●     Corporate Governance (16% - 20%)

●     Financial Management (19% - 23%)

●     Strategic Planning (10% - 14%)

Topics covered in FAR section:

●     Financial Statement Accounts: Valuation, Measurement, Recognition, Calculation, Presentation and Disclosures (27% - 33%).

●     Conceptual Framework, Presentation of Financial Statements, and Standard Setting (17% - 23%).

●     Reporting and Governmental Accounting (8% - 12%).

●     Events and Disclosures, Specific Transactions, Presentation, Calculation, and Disclosure (27% - 33%).

●     Non-governmental (not-for-profit) Reporting and Accounting (8% - 12%).

US CPA Exam for Indian students:

Most Indian students find difficulty in understanding Audit concepts. It is because the US Audit is different from the Indian Audit. If a Chartered Accountant wants to upgrade his career, US CPA is the best choice because most CPA subjects are covered in the CA syllabus.

People who did MBA (Finance) find difficulty in the US CPA exam preparation, especially in the AUD, FAR, and REG sections, because those concepts are new to them. Also, they might feel hard while studying the GAAP concept.

In the case of CA (inter), students may find difficulty in understanding CPA-AUD concepts. When it comes to M.com graduates, it’s difficult for them to prepare for the AUD and REG sections. The B.com graduates struggle with all four sections because they are new to the CPA syllabus.

 

Conclusion:

Hope you understand how difficult the US CPA exam is for Indian students. If you intend to pursue the US CPA course, join Hi-Educare because Hi-Educare understands the difficulty level of every student (CA, B.com, MBA, M.com, or any other graduate) and customize the training program accordingly.

So, why delay?

Opt for the US CPA course at Hi-Educare.

Want to know more about the US CPA course?

Haresh Ratnagrahi is there to help you.

Mr. Haresh Ratnagrahi is the founder of Hi-Educare. He is an experienced mentor with a history of working in the education industry. He himself is a CPA, CMA, FCA, CFM, ACMA, CISA, CRISC, MCSD, CGMA & CIMA. He is skilled in Management Accounting, Financial Accounting and cost accounting, etc.

He is also a qualified CMA (INDIA), CMA (US), and CIMA (UK)

 Call: +91 6361515064 | +91 9739177769

 Email: info@hi-educare.com

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