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Poli Sci Major Needs Help Picking a CPA Exam Starting Point
- Adrienne Gonzalez
- June 1, 2011
We swear we don’t mind answering the same question over and over and over, so if you have a question for us, please don’t hesitate to pound it out and get it to us.
Here’s our latest CPA exam quandary from the mailbag:
Hi Adrienne
I am just beginning to study for the CPA exams. I am in an MBA program and I will graduate in December. I was not an accounting major (poli sci) so I have also been taking the necessary required accounting classes in order to sit for the CPA exams, hopefully in January. I am taking an MBA-level auditing class in the Fall. I just finished a corporate income tax class this Spring, so I am a little confused as to which exam I should focus on now and take first, in January: REG as a lot of tax info is still fresh in my head or Auditing, as it will be most fresh by January?
Let’s all keep in mind that the CPA exam is not a test of your ability to be a good accountant, nor is it at all representative of the depth of your knowledge but the breadth. In other words, it’s a huge inch-tall puddle as opposed to a small, 9-ft deep pool. Your job is to jump across the puddle without getting your ankles wet, ya with me?
If it’s going to help your confidence, you can start with the section that will be easiest for you – in your case, that may be whatever you studied last. Keep in mind, however, that what you study in college and what you see on the CPA exam may not necessarily align. The CPA exam changes twice a year and with CBT-e changes, the AICPA Board of Examiners is now testing material that you are expected to know as a new CPA but may not have covered in school. Professors tend to favor the same material year after year, so unless your school is incredibly progressive and you’ve been learning IFRS (unlikely), it may not matter what you studied most recently.
That being said, I always tell candidates to start with the part that will be hardest for them simply because your 18 month timeframe starts from the time you sit for and pass your first part.
Here’s the deal: any review course will give you what you need to fill in the blanks in your education, even if you go the self-study route and pick up a set of CPA review textbooks from Amazon. In my professional experience, those who don’t have as rigorous an accounting background actually do better on the CPA exam as they come into it fresh instead of relying on what they were just taught in their accounting program that is no longer relevant for CPA exam purposes.
You’ll be fine either way, just pick one, study, and pass. It really is that simple. Or so I hear.
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What Happens When You Mix a Seedy Strip Club, an Unsophisticated Taxpayer and the Tax Court?
- Tony Nitti
- January 29, 2014
In a better world, the daily fraud perpetuated at a strip club wouldn’t go beyond […]
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Baker Tilly Virchow Krause Merges with Beers & Cutler
- Caleb Newquist
- November 21, 2009
Chicago-based Baker Tilly Virchow Krause announced today that they are merging with Beers & Cutler, a firm based Vienna, VA.
This latest acquisition by BTVK — its twelfth this decade — is part of the firm’s “national expansion” and will add to its presence on the East Coast with the Vienna office acting as the hub in addition to its New York City location.
The Washington Business Journal reports that BTVK’s expansion goals include doubling its revenue to $400 million by 2012, which CEO Tim Christen calls ‘conservative.’
From the press release:
“When we look for merger partners, we focus on the quality of the people and the reputation of the firm. There are many synergies between Baker Tilly and Beers + Cutler, and we see Washington, DC as a critical market as we continue to develop the Baker Tilly brand in the U.S.,” said Tim Christen, CEO of Baker Tilly. “As independent members of Baker Tilly International, we have been colleagues for many years, and together, we believe in the power of the network and the value it brings to our clients around the world.”
Beers & Cutler had been expanding their practice rapidly over the past four years, increasing its number of employees from, 202 in 2005 to 319 in 2008. In 2009, B&C cut 55 employees — 17% of their total headcount — however, managing partner Ed Offterdinger insists they were not related to the merger:
“[These layoffs] were not at all a factor in the decision to merge,” said Ed Offterdinger, Beers & Cutlers’ managing partner. “We’re doing this from a position of strength.”
The downturn is easing, and the firm is seeing increased demand for its services, and “the merger will help accelerate that,” he said.
The Washington Business Journal does report that the merger will lead to an additional ten layoffs, but that the firm will be adding staff “in the near future.”
Our understanding is that Mr. Christen and Mr. Offterdinger are meeting with Beers & Cutler staff today and were not available for interviews or additional comment. If you work at either of these firms and have any additional details (especially if you were in the B&C “meeting”) on this story, get in touch with us.
Beers & Cutler to merge into Baker Tilly Virchow Krause [Washington Business Journal]
BTVK_Press Release.pdf