What is the practical value of taking the AICPA certificate? How to study AICPA

What exactly is the AICPA certificate? Why do more and more domestic accountants choose to take the AICPA exam instead of the CPA exam?

New York State in the United States has been testing the qualifications of accountants through examinations since 1896. It has a history of more than 100 years. Therefore, the AICPA examination can be regarded as the ancestor of the accounting professional examination. Currently, more than 500,000 people in the United States have obtained the AICPA qualification and serve as practicing accountants or serve in the industry. Due to its high international recognition, about 120,000 people apply for the exam every year around the world, of which about 6,000 Asians take the exam in Guam.

As more and more foreign capital enters China’s local market. Chinese companies are also exploring the use of internationally accepted accounting language to "dialogue" with foreign investors. The AICPA aims to cultivate a group of high-level accounting elites who master financial accounting theory knowledge and professional skills, are proficient in corporate financial strategic planning, are familiar with US accounting standards and international accounting standards, and adapt to the international operations of modern enterprises.

In a sense, obtaining the AICPA certificate is more important and practical than some academic qualifications. It is a tool that leads to the high-end class and high-end income. Being able to obtain the AICPA qualification is the most beneficial core competitiveness in obtaining high professional status, generous salary and benefits in career development.

Interpretation of the Four Exam Subjects

The AICPA exam subjects include FAR, BEC, AUD, and REG. Students who apply for the exam must be very familiar with them. The four courses have different characteristics: FAR is the foundation, focusing on calculation; BEC is concept, focusing on memory; AUD is thinking, focusing on understanding; REG is the framework, focusing on application. By grasping the characteristics of different subjects and using different strategies, it will be easy to pass the exam.

AICPA exam subjects - FAR is the foundation

FAR is the foundation and must be understood to understand other subjects. During the learning process, the concepts, measurement methods and accounting of each subject should be understood. Methods, etc. are necessary. When studying this course, I suggest that you first understand the concept, classification, confirmation, measurement, etc. of each unit, establish this framework first, and be clear about what this unit is talking about, how to confirm, and how to measure. There is such a concept, and then you should think about the details clearly, enrich the entire knowledge system, and have an overall concept in your mind. Try to understand what each chapter talks about, the general processing method, and the details that need to be paid attention to after studying FAR. There is such a Do the questions at your level and have a feel for the questions, and then you will have no problem taking the exam. In addition, it is an improvement in calculation proficiency. The exam is actually a question bank. The questions are endless. Quality is important. If you have an impression of the questions you have done, it is enough. There is also a little trick. Some of the question options are actually related. The difference between the options and the questions that appear at the same time may be something you have not considered. If you think about it carefully, you may avoid blind spots in your thinking.

AICPA exam subject - BEC is a concept

BEC is a concept, mainly economics content. If you remember the key knowledge points, you will be fine. BEC, as the name suggests, is about business environment and concepts. The purpose is to expand the knowledge of financial personnel - macroeconomics, information systems, company performance evaluation, etc. Although some financial personnel may use this aspect less, but as career development goes up, the basic concepts are not Probably don't know. You can study BEC with a different mindset. Don’t just do it for the exam. During the learning process, first classify and organize the knowledge, and deal with it with a relaxed attitude. In fact, as long as you understand everything and read the book several times, many problems can be solved. Secondly, It means targeted training. The calculation modes in BEC are very fixed, such as inventory (BASE), ratio, etc. Don't be intimidated by questions with a lot of words. Sometimes these are the simplest. If you are careful, you can pass.

Now there are three more memos to write for BEC. I didn't practice much on this. Before the exam, I read the examples and tips in the book and memorized the general statements at the beginning and end: "The purpose of this memois..." and "I would bedelighted to discuss...", and then In the middle three paragraphs, first introduce the concept in the question, then analyze the differences, and finally write down what the differences are and what the impact is. I did this based on this strategy: if the accuracy of the previous multiple-choice questions is improved, even if the memo makes a big mistake, it will not affect the overall situation. If some students want to use this method, they should practice more multiple-choice questions. Of course, they also need to know what can score memo and not write off-topic questions. The rest will be very simple.

AICPA exam subject - AUD is thinking

AUD is thinking, focusing on the understanding of risk-oriented auditing. If you are responsible for statements in a company, then think in the opposite direction , what would you do if you wanted to increase your income? If you were asked to investigate this matter, where would you most likely find it out? In my opinion, AUD has three parts: introduction to the auditing standards system, auditing operation methods, and government auditing. The audit system is actually a framework. Since it is a framework, we need to stand at a high point when learning. First, we know what standards govern what business. Second, we know the key points in the standards. Finally, the things under the key points are combined into the system. It's no problem to put it up. The audit operation method is relatively difficult to understand. I have never done an audit, but when I took the CICPA exam before, I had a concept of auditing and understood the way of thinking of auditing. Although I have no practical experience, I basically understand the content in the exam. This part mainly requires an understanding of the audit objects, audit methods, and audit risks to be dealt with. The purpose of auditing is to understand whether the company has made any adjustments beyond the reasonable range, which will cause the company's financial statements to be unreliable. Learning requires reverse thinking to understand what means are used to check what, to what extent the audit objectives can be ensured, and what risks are controlled. The last part is government auditing. In fact, it is similar to commercial auditing. It is still a mental understanding. I won’t go into details. Establish an understanding of auditing and then memorize it a little, and you will be fine. In addition, a reminder, because the AUD questions of the AICPA exam can be searched in the literature. For some questions, it is possible to find similar examples in the literature. Therefore, students must not give up on the questions during the exam. If there is really no way, search Checking the literature can be helpful. After writing, you can also check the literature and compare it to make yourself more confident about your answers.

AICPA exam subject - REG is a framework

REG is a framework, which is a tax framework that has been formed. It is the only subject in which candidates from the United States and the United States have an advantage over us. Places require us to spend time understanding and remembering them. The only good way is to read the book several times to deepen your understanding and establish the framework of tax law. The U.S. tax law is actually established to ensure that taxpayers pay taxes reasonably and ensure that tax revenue is received normally. This is why Alternative Minimum Tax appeared. When doing tax law questions, you must consider the issue from the perspective of the IRS and taxpayers. What expenditures are reasonable expenditures, can be adjusted, can be deducted, what tax credits can be refunded, and what cannot. There is only one basic principle, just like "In this world, there is only death and taxes that cannot be escaped." The taxes that should be paid cannot be less, and the taxes that can be exempted should be paid by every means. To learn REG, you must understand the basic steps of tax calculation: first, adjust the AGI, then add deductions (standard deduction or itemized deduction, choose one) and exemptions to TI, and calculate the federal tax amount (please note Note: Because federal taxes are basically calculated, they cannot be deducted, deducted or credited during the calculation process, but state taxes can have these changes). After that, because there is already a tax amount, you need to consider how much you should pay, which involves Credit and Payment. Comparing the tax amount and (Credit Payment), refund and due will appear, and more will be refunded and less will be reimbursed.

After having such a framework, it is necessary to specify in detail what adjustments are, what deductions are, and what credits are. Don't be confused. Basically, you won't make big mistakes, and the overall concept is clear. I still emphasize that reading the book several times is definitely the most effective way to pass the exam. REG is different from the other three subjects. Generally speaking, you can't pass just by doing the questions. Don't take chances, you must Be clear about all tax situations and don’t get confused.

Remember to adopt it if it helps, thank you!