Uniform CPA Examination ®
Blueprints
Approved by the Board of Examiners
American Institute of CPAs
Oct. 23, 2020
Effective date: July 1, 2021
Uniform CPA Examination Blueprints i
,Uniform CPA Examination Blueprints
Table of contents
2 Introduction: Uniform CPA Examination Blueprints FAR1 Financial Accounting and Reporting (FAR)
FAR2 Section introduction
AUD1 Auditing and Attestation (AUD) FAR6 Summary blueprint
AUD2 Section introduction FAR7 Area I — Conceptual Framework, Standard-Setting
AUD6 Summary blueprint and Financial Reporting
AUD7 Area I — Ethics, Professional Responsibilities FAR13 Area II — Select Financial Statement Accounts
and General Principles FAR19 Area III — Select Transactions
AUD11 Area II — Assessing Risk and Developing FAR24 Area IV — State and Local Governments
a Planned Response
AUD17 Area III — Performing Further Procedures REG1 Regulation (REG)
and Obtaining Evidence REG2 Section introduction
AUD22 Area IV — Forming Conclusions and Reporting REG5 Summary blueprint
REG6 Area I — Ethics, Professional Responsibilities
BEC1 Business Environment and Concepts (BEC) and Federal Tax Procedures
BEC2 Section introduction REG8 Area II — Business Law
BEC6 Summary blueprint REG11 Area III — Federal Taxation of Property Transactions
BEC7 Area I — Enterprise Risk Management, Internal Controls REG14 Area IV — Federal Taxation of Individuals
and Business Processes REG16 Area V — Federal Taxation of Entities
BEC10 Area II — Economics
BEC12 Area III — Financial Management
BEC14 Area IV — Information Technology
BEC17 Area V — Operations Management
Uniform CPA Examination Blueprints 1
,Introduction
Uniform CPA Examination Blueprints
The Uniform CPA Examination (the Exam) is comprised of four sections, each The AICPA has adopted a skill framework for the Exam based on the revised
four hours long: Auditing and Attestation (AUD), Business Environment and Bloom’s Taxonomy of Educational Objectives. Bloom’s Taxonomy classifies a
Concepts (BEC), Financial Accounting and Reporting (FAR) and Regulation (REG). continuum of skills that students can be expected to learn and demonstrate.
The table below presents the design of the Exam by section, section time and Approximately 570 representative tasks that are critical to a newly licensed
question type. CPA’s role in protecting the public interest have been identified. The
representative tasks combine both the applicable content knowledge and skills
Section Multiple-choice Task-based Written required in the context of the work of a newly licensed CPA. Based on the nature
Section time questions (MCQs) simulations (TBSs) communication of a task, one of four skill levels, derived from the revised Bloom’s Taxonomy,
was assigned to each of the tasks, as follows:
AUD 4 hours 72 8 —
BEC 4 hours 62 4 3
Skill levels
FAR 4 hours 66 8 — The examination or assessment of problems, and
Evaluation use of judgment to draw conclusions.
REG 4 hours 76 8 —
The examination and study of the interrelationships
The table below presents the scoring weight of multiple-choice questions Analysis of separate areas in order to identify causes and find
evidence to support inferences.
(MCQs), task-based simulations (TBSs) and written communication for each
Exam section.
The use or demonstration of knowledge, concepts
Application or techniques.
Score weighting
Remembering and The perception and comprehension of the
Multiple-choice Task-based Written Understanding significance of an area utilizing knowledge gained.
Section questions (MCQs) simulations (TBSs) communication
AUD 50% 50% —
BEC 50% 35% 15%
FAR 50% 50% —
REG 50% 50% —
Uniform CPA Examination Blueprints 2
, Introduction
Uniform CPA Examination Blueprints (continued)
The skill levels to be assessed on each section of the Exam are included in the The purpose of the blueprint is to:
table below. • Document the minimum level of knowledge and skills necessary for initial
licensure.
Remembering and • Assist candidates in preparing for the Exam by outlining the knowledge and
Section Understanding Application Analysis Evaluation
skills that may be tested.
AUD 25–35% 30–40% 20–30% 5–15% • Apprise educators about the knowledge and skills candidates will need to
function as newly licensed CPAs.
BEC 15–25% 50–60%* 20–30% —
• Guide the development of Exam questions.
FAR 10–20% 50–60% 25–35% —
The tasks in the blueprints are representative and are not intended to be (nor
REG 25–35% 35–45% 25–35% — should they be viewed as) an all-inclusive list of tasks that may be tested on
the Exam. It also should be noted that the number of tasks associated with a
*Includes written communication particular content group or topic is not indicative of the extent such content
group, topic or related skill level will be assessed on the Exam.
Each section of the Exam has a section introduction and a corresponding
section blueprint.
• The section introduction outlines the scope of the section, the content
organization and tasks, the content allocation, the overview of content areas,
the skill allocation and a listing of the section’s applicable reference literature.
• The section blueprint outlines the content to be tested, the associated skill
level to be tested and the representative tasks a newly licensed CPA would
need to perform to be considered competent. The blueprints are organized by
content AREA, content GROUP, and content TOPIC. Each topic includes one
or more representative TASKS that a newly licensed CPA may be expected to
complete.
Revised taxonomy see Anderson, L.W. (Ed.), Krathwohl, D.R. (Ed.), Airasian, P.W., Cruikshank, K.A., Mayer, R.E., Pintrich, P.R., Raths, J., & Wittrock, M.C. (2001). A taxonomy for learning, teaching, and assessing: A revision of Bloom’s Taxonomy of
Educational Objectives (Complete Edition). New York: Longman. For original taxonomy see Bloom, B.S. (Ed.), Engelhart, M.D., Furst, E.J., Hill, W.H., & Krathwohl, D.R. (1956). Taxonomy of educational objectives: The classification of educational
goals. Handbook 1: Cognitive domain. New York: David McKay.
Uniform CPA Examination Blueprints 3
Blueprints
Approved by the Board of Examiners
American Institute of CPAs
Oct. 23, 2020
Effective date: July 1, 2021
Uniform CPA Examination Blueprints i
,Uniform CPA Examination Blueprints
Table of contents
2 Introduction: Uniform CPA Examination Blueprints FAR1 Financial Accounting and Reporting (FAR)
FAR2 Section introduction
AUD1 Auditing and Attestation (AUD) FAR6 Summary blueprint
AUD2 Section introduction FAR7 Area I — Conceptual Framework, Standard-Setting
AUD6 Summary blueprint and Financial Reporting
AUD7 Area I — Ethics, Professional Responsibilities FAR13 Area II — Select Financial Statement Accounts
and General Principles FAR19 Area III — Select Transactions
AUD11 Area II — Assessing Risk and Developing FAR24 Area IV — State and Local Governments
a Planned Response
AUD17 Area III — Performing Further Procedures REG1 Regulation (REG)
and Obtaining Evidence REG2 Section introduction
AUD22 Area IV — Forming Conclusions and Reporting REG5 Summary blueprint
REG6 Area I — Ethics, Professional Responsibilities
BEC1 Business Environment and Concepts (BEC) and Federal Tax Procedures
BEC2 Section introduction REG8 Area II — Business Law
BEC6 Summary blueprint REG11 Area III — Federal Taxation of Property Transactions
BEC7 Area I — Enterprise Risk Management, Internal Controls REG14 Area IV — Federal Taxation of Individuals
and Business Processes REG16 Area V — Federal Taxation of Entities
BEC10 Area II — Economics
BEC12 Area III — Financial Management
BEC14 Area IV — Information Technology
BEC17 Area V — Operations Management
Uniform CPA Examination Blueprints 1
,Introduction
Uniform CPA Examination Blueprints
The Uniform CPA Examination (the Exam) is comprised of four sections, each The AICPA has adopted a skill framework for the Exam based on the revised
four hours long: Auditing and Attestation (AUD), Business Environment and Bloom’s Taxonomy of Educational Objectives. Bloom’s Taxonomy classifies a
Concepts (BEC), Financial Accounting and Reporting (FAR) and Regulation (REG). continuum of skills that students can be expected to learn and demonstrate.
The table below presents the design of the Exam by section, section time and Approximately 570 representative tasks that are critical to a newly licensed
question type. CPA’s role in protecting the public interest have been identified. The
representative tasks combine both the applicable content knowledge and skills
Section Multiple-choice Task-based Written required in the context of the work of a newly licensed CPA. Based on the nature
Section time questions (MCQs) simulations (TBSs) communication of a task, one of four skill levels, derived from the revised Bloom’s Taxonomy,
was assigned to each of the tasks, as follows:
AUD 4 hours 72 8 —
BEC 4 hours 62 4 3
Skill levels
FAR 4 hours 66 8 — The examination or assessment of problems, and
Evaluation use of judgment to draw conclusions.
REG 4 hours 76 8 —
The examination and study of the interrelationships
The table below presents the scoring weight of multiple-choice questions Analysis of separate areas in order to identify causes and find
evidence to support inferences.
(MCQs), task-based simulations (TBSs) and written communication for each
Exam section.
The use or demonstration of knowledge, concepts
Application or techniques.
Score weighting
Remembering and The perception and comprehension of the
Multiple-choice Task-based Written Understanding significance of an area utilizing knowledge gained.
Section questions (MCQs) simulations (TBSs) communication
AUD 50% 50% —
BEC 50% 35% 15%
FAR 50% 50% —
REG 50% 50% —
Uniform CPA Examination Blueprints 2
, Introduction
Uniform CPA Examination Blueprints (continued)
The skill levels to be assessed on each section of the Exam are included in the The purpose of the blueprint is to:
table below. • Document the minimum level of knowledge and skills necessary for initial
licensure.
Remembering and • Assist candidates in preparing for the Exam by outlining the knowledge and
Section Understanding Application Analysis Evaluation
skills that may be tested.
AUD 25–35% 30–40% 20–30% 5–15% • Apprise educators about the knowledge and skills candidates will need to
function as newly licensed CPAs.
BEC 15–25% 50–60%* 20–30% —
• Guide the development of Exam questions.
FAR 10–20% 50–60% 25–35% —
The tasks in the blueprints are representative and are not intended to be (nor
REG 25–35% 35–45% 25–35% — should they be viewed as) an all-inclusive list of tasks that may be tested on
the Exam. It also should be noted that the number of tasks associated with a
*Includes written communication particular content group or topic is not indicative of the extent such content
group, topic or related skill level will be assessed on the Exam.
Each section of the Exam has a section introduction and a corresponding
section blueprint.
• The section introduction outlines the scope of the section, the content
organization and tasks, the content allocation, the overview of content areas,
the skill allocation and a listing of the section’s applicable reference literature.
• The section blueprint outlines the content to be tested, the associated skill
level to be tested and the representative tasks a newly licensed CPA would
need to perform to be considered competent. The blueprints are organized by
content AREA, content GROUP, and content TOPIC. Each topic includes one
or more representative TASKS that a newly licensed CPA may be expected to
complete.
Revised taxonomy see Anderson, L.W. (Ed.), Krathwohl, D.R. (Ed.), Airasian, P.W., Cruikshank, K.A., Mayer, R.E., Pintrich, P.R., Raths, J., & Wittrock, M.C. (2001). A taxonomy for learning, teaching, and assessing: A revision of Bloom’s Taxonomy of
Educational Objectives (Complete Edition). New York: Longman. For original taxonomy see Bloom, B.S. (Ed.), Engelhart, M.D., Furst, E.J., Hill, W.H., & Krathwohl, D.R. (1956). Taxonomy of educational objectives: The classification of educational
goals. Handbook 1: Cognitive domain. New York: David McKay.
Uniform CPA Examination Blueprints 3
