Which CPA Exam to take first?

Which CPA exam to take first? Which CPA Section should I take first?   What order should I take the cpa exam? What is best order to take cpa exam? These are common and fair questions for CPA aspirants as a CPA coach on almost daily basis.  I will speak about my own experience that give you my best advice based on 10 years of experience helping CPA candidate pass the exam.

I completed my Auditing And Attestation (AUD) section first  because Bloomsburg University  had a rigorous Auditing course taught by Dr. Michael Shapeero.  I felt I was well prepared to pass the AUD  section.  I did successfully pass at my first sitting and I had no doubt about performance when I was done.  Obviously my strategy was to start with a topic that I am most comfortable with. This strategy will boost your confidence.

What if you are equally comfortable with all four sections or equally NOT comfortable with any of the four section.  By the way, if you are not comfortable with any section then you need to question the rigor of your university accounting/business program.  Also, you could be in a situation where you completed your accounting courses a while ago.

What should you do then?

My recommendation is to start with Financial Accounting and Report (FAR).  I will state my reasons.  FAR is the largest section.  FAR covers the following courses: All of Intermediate Accounting (I, II, III), Government and not for Profit and Advanced Accounting.  That’s equivalent of four or five courses during your undergraduate studies. The goal is to start the clock running after you knock out the largest section.  The clock starts ticking after you  pass the first section.  You will have 18 months to finish the other three sections.  The second reason why you should start with FAR is because  of comprehensiveness of the material.  FAR gives you all necessary accounting background knowledge to succeed in the other three parts of the exam.  The third reason is that courses you take during the last semester of college will help you prepare for the exam.

If you need to brush up on materials for the FAR section, visit my website www.farhatlectures.omdevops.com

What do you think?