Recent News

The AICPA recently released its proposed changes to the Uniform CPA Examination, with a greater focus on incorporating evaluation of higher-order thinking skills. Such changes, according to the organization, reflect the evolution happening within the CPA profession, and the skills needed by CPAs to be successful in the field. 

Available now on the AICPA’s website, the suggested changes include an increase in the number of questions evaluating higher-order thinking skills on each of the four sections of the exam. 

The changes also include an increase in testing time from 14 to 16 hours.

The AICPA is accepting feedback and comments via email, but all feedback is due by November 30. The responses will be available publicly on the AICPA’s website and will be noted according to who submitted the response, whether state board of accountancy, state CPA society, regulator, firm, or individual.

The final adopted changes will be announced in Spring 2016.

As the ‘Examination’ component of the “Three Es” necessary to receive licensure as a CPA in all 55 jurisdictions, the Uniform CPA exam is integral in the foundational preparation of professional CPAs.  The other components are ‘Education’ and ‘Experience’, with a fourth component (‘Ethics’) included in some jurisdictions. 

To learn more about the proposed changes, you can read a full article published in the Journal of Accountancy here.