A Certified Public Accountant (CPA) is a professional designation given to qualified accountants in the
United States who have passed the Uniform CPA Examination and met additional state education and
experience requirements for certification.
I can provide a concise summary of the key topics for each of the four sections of the CPA exam:
Auditing and Attestation (AUD), Business Environment and Concepts (BEC), Financial Accounting and
Reporting (FAR), and Regulation (REG). Here's an outline for each section:
Auditing and Attestation (AUD)
1. Engagement Responsibilities and Ethics
o AICPA Code of Professional Conduct
o Sarbanes-Oxley Act (SOX)
o Ethical principles and independence
2. Assessing Risk and Developing a Planned Response
o Audit risk model
o Internal control assessment
o Fraud risk factors
3. Performing Audit Procedures and Evaluating Evidence
o Substantive procedures
o Analytical procedures
o Audit sampling techniques
4. Audit Reports
o Types of audit reports (unqualified, qualified, adverse, disclaimer)
o Components of an audit report
o Reporting on internal controls
5. Other Engagements and Services
o Review engagements
o Compilation engagements
o Agreed-upon procedures
Business Environment and Concepts (BEC)
1. Corporate Governance
o Principles of corporate governance
o Board of directors and audit committee responsibilities
o Risk management
2. Economic Concepts and Analysis
o Macroeconomics vs. microeconomics
o Supply and demand
o Market structures and competition
3. Financial Management
o Capital structure and cost of capital
o Working capital management
o Financial analysis and ratios
, 4. Information Technology
o IT governance and management
o Information systems and data management
o Cybersecurity and data privacy
5. Operations Management
o Process management and improvement
o Cost measurement and allocation
o Budgeting and forecasting
Financial Accounting and Reporting (FAR)
1. Conceptual Framework and Financial Reporting
o FASB conceptual framework
o Financial statements and disclosures
o Revenue recognition principles
2. Standards for Financial Statements
o GAAP vs. IFRS
o Statement of financial position (balance sheet)
o Statement of comprehensive income (income statement)
3. Specific Transactions and Events
o Inventory valuation
o Property, plant, and equipment
o Leases and pensions
4. Governmental Accounting
o Fund accounting principles
o Government-wide financial statements
o Budgetary accounting
5. Not-for-Profit Accounting
o Financial statement presentation
o Contributions and grants
o Net asset classifications
Regulation (REG)
1. Ethics and Professional Responsibilities
o AICPA Code of Professional Conduct
o Treasury Circular 230
o Responsibilities in tax practice
2. Business Law
o Contracts and sales
o Commercial paper and secured transactions
o Business structures (corporations, partnerships, LLCs)
3. Federal Taxation of Individuals
o Gross income and exclusions
o Deductions and credits
United States who have passed the Uniform CPA Examination and met additional state education and
experience requirements for certification.
I can provide a concise summary of the key topics for each of the four sections of the CPA exam:
Auditing and Attestation (AUD), Business Environment and Concepts (BEC), Financial Accounting and
Reporting (FAR), and Regulation (REG). Here's an outline for each section:
Auditing and Attestation (AUD)
1. Engagement Responsibilities and Ethics
o AICPA Code of Professional Conduct
o Sarbanes-Oxley Act (SOX)
o Ethical principles and independence
2. Assessing Risk and Developing a Planned Response
o Audit risk model
o Internal control assessment
o Fraud risk factors
3. Performing Audit Procedures and Evaluating Evidence
o Substantive procedures
o Analytical procedures
o Audit sampling techniques
4. Audit Reports
o Types of audit reports (unqualified, qualified, adverse, disclaimer)
o Components of an audit report
o Reporting on internal controls
5. Other Engagements and Services
o Review engagements
o Compilation engagements
o Agreed-upon procedures
Business Environment and Concepts (BEC)
1. Corporate Governance
o Principles of corporate governance
o Board of directors and audit committee responsibilities
o Risk management
2. Economic Concepts and Analysis
o Macroeconomics vs. microeconomics
o Supply and demand
o Market structures and competition
3. Financial Management
o Capital structure and cost of capital
o Working capital management
o Financial analysis and ratios
, 4. Information Technology
o IT governance and management
o Information systems and data management
o Cybersecurity and data privacy
5. Operations Management
o Process management and improvement
o Cost measurement and allocation
o Budgeting and forecasting
Financial Accounting and Reporting (FAR)
1. Conceptual Framework and Financial Reporting
o FASB conceptual framework
o Financial statements and disclosures
o Revenue recognition principles
2. Standards for Financial Statements
o GAAP vs. IFRS
o Statement of financial position (balance sheet)
o Statement of comprehensive income (income statement)
3. Specific Transactions and Events
o Inventory valuation
o Property, plant, and equipment
o Leases and pensions
4. Governmental Accounting
o Fund accounting principles
o Government-wide financial statements
o Budgetary accounting
5. Not-for-Profit Accounting
o Financial statement presentation
o Contributions and grants
o Net asset classifications
Regulation (REG)
1. Ethics and Professional Responsibilities
o AICPA Code of Professional Conduct
o Treasury Circular 230
o Responsibilities in tax practice
2. Business Law
o Contracts and sales
o Commercial paper and secured transactions
o Business structures (corporations, partnerships, LLCs)
3. Federal Taxation of Individuals
o Gross income and exclusions
o Deductions and credits
