I got a nice little packet in the mail last Saturday containing my four passing scores and their respective dates along with info about getting certified/licensed etc. The packet was from my state board of accountancy, but the scoring letter was from NASBA. NASBA apparently sends your state BOA the letter with your scores and then your state BOA sends it onto you in their “welcome to the club – sort of” packet.
After I got my passing score online for FAR, I bought the ethics course from the AICPA, passed it, and submitted my paperwork to my state BOA before ever receiving any *official* confirmation from my state BOA. My state BOA had my certificate paperwork ($25 check for the certificate + a signed oath that I believe in the US Constitution and witnessed by another CPA who has to write down their certificate # along with their signature) before they had received anything official from NASBA.
It only took a day or so to process and I got a letter on Monday this week congratulating me and recognizing me as a CPA – sort of. I am officially a Certified Public Accountant in my state and have my certificate number (the board needs to convene and sign the actual certificate before they mail it to me). However, for the purposes of putting it on a business card or signing a tax return as Jeff, CPA – I must get licensed. I have the work requirement fulfilled – which is to work as an accountant in some capacity (tax, compilations, audit, etc) for one year and have a CPA sign off that I have done this. I'm not going to use my old boss…I've moved since then. I'll use an internal auditor that I used to work with at a different job.
I took the plunge yesterday and added “, CPA” to my work e-mail signature line. This was a weird moment. First of all – it felt surreal. I stared at it. ‘Can this be right?' I pondered. After deciding that since my state BOA declared me a CPA (with the caveat that I can't use it in public yet) – then I *am* a CPA and could represent myself as such internally at work. My work e-mails rarely leave the building, so no worries there.
In honor of adding CPA to my e-mail signature at work, I thought of a reason to e-mail the VP of my division 🙂 That felt good.
If you're still going through the exam process – you'll be there soon enough.
Thanks for reading.
well they can't use it against you when you come up for review
I remember a boss telling I was great did everything on-time and did excellent work; but my knowledge was lacking.......I was like B.S. CPA using the certification to keep me poor...
well once I get that CPA they won't be able to rip me off another year with that same line again
Jeff let me first congrats you on passing your CPA. You made it man.
On a different note, i was wondering you are aware of any free Yaeger webcast on "How to Pass Regulation" any time soon. Please let me know.
anothershot
Thanks anothershot...I appreciate that
Yaeger had their free "How to Pass Regulation" webcast up last year for at least 4 months or so. I'll ask them if they have any plans to put it back up (it costs them a decent chuck of change to have a video like that on a server each month). Also - I will be writing some info on how to pass (my take on it, anyway) each section. I plan on completing this within a month's time...I'm going to be thorough and do it right, so it will take some time.
In the meantime, e-mail me and I'll help you.
Jeff
Hi Jeff- Many - Many CONGRATULATIONS - Man!!!! :) I am very HAPPY for ya - You deserve it, definitely :) Raza
You know that i became a huge fan of Yaeger recently. I really love them. I used Becker and Gleim before and i can tell the difference now. In my opinion, Yaeger is the course that all serious CPA candidates need to consider.
I do not believe you are allowed to use CPA in your signature in internal communications, at least in public accounting firms. Not sure if this rule applies to private, but I think it might. You should double check on that.
Anonymous above: Really? Why wouldn't you be allowed if it's just an internal email? I work in public and all CPAs have the designation in their signature and do not delete it when sending out an email to the office.
I do not believe you are allowed to use CPA in your signature in internal communications, at least in public accounting firms. Not sure if this rule applies to private, but I think it might. You should double check on that.
Well, you scared me for a minute :)
I called the director of my state BOA and they said that for internal purposes, as long as my e-mail sig said my job title, I was fine and it was ok to use it in this capacity as a credential.
They said that I could not put it on any letterhead or anything like that, but for an e-mail sig (even if it went external), it's fine because I'm not representing myself as one protecting or serving the public.
Jeff, CPA
Senior Analyst
Company XYZ
...is ok (call your state BOA to make sure this is ok in your state as well).
Whew!
Ahhh, I bet it is the same for our state. All my coworkers have their sig listed like you. I still don't completely understand why it would be a problem internally but whatever. Guess i need to learn these things, huh?
what a CPA means to me:
Covers Practically Everything
&
Couldn?t Pass Again
hahaha good job Jeff
maybe you should go public in the future
I got a question
What do you think pays more having it as a credential or using it to serve the public?
Congratulations! I sent in my paperwork on Saturday and can't wait till I can put CPA in my signature line!!!
What do you think pays more having it as a credential or using it to serve the public?
I was tempted to jump back to public (I worked 2 years in public previously) and save the world with my new-found knowledge and I found that public (I'm talking your local firms...not Big 4 or anything) pays 20% less than what I make in the private sector.
The world can wait.
yeah; it sure isn't what it is cracked up to be
I guess that is why every month we see more and more numbers of people giving up the CPA title
congrats! I dream of the day that I can add CPA after my name..... =)
Jeff:
Congratulations on your fine accomplishment. I came across this site by accident and I am quite glad that I did. Your site provides great information and feedback that I have found to be very helpful and meaningful. I checked your page several times a week now. Best of luck and admire your perseverance.
well I dont have any public accounting experience. So why I'm doing this actually? Or is there a way around this little huge inconvenient fact?
well I dont have any public accounting experience. So why I'm doing this actually? Or is there a way around this little huge inconvenient fact?
It depends...what does your state require? It could be a very general requirement that it's accounting related...
Just passing the test serves its purpose if you're planning on working in accounting. Yes, it will be a year before you're officially licensed because of the work requirement, but in terms of getting a job, passing the test helps alone..
Jeff, I'm in New York and actually I do recall an example of a person who got her license here through experience that had nothing to do with public accouunting.
Jeff
What is the correct way to note in one's resume if they have passed the CPA exam but are waiting for their license...it is ok to state smthg like:
Certified Public Accountant (CPA) candidate
- passed all sections; waiting for license from state BOA
Congrats on passing exam...i just cleared my last part too...what a relief...!! :)
What is the correct way to note in one's resume if they have passed the CPA exam but are waiting for their license...it is ok to state smthg like:
If you have passed the exam, but are not certified yet by your state (i.e. no certificate issued) then I don't think you can even use it as a credential...in which case
"Successfully passed all four parts of the Uniform CPA Examination; certificate pending"
would be appropriate at the bottom of your resume.
If you're certified, but not licensed, you can put
"Certified Public Accountant (not yet licensed to practice in the state of ____")
...something like that?
A71, thanks for the above response. The purpose of my resume is to apply to graduate school. I am not intending to serve the public of falsify my my quals to get a new job...also my state considers the certificate and license to be one and the same...you still think "CPA candidate = passed all sections, waiting for license from state BOA" in the education section of the resume is inappropriate ?
Thanks for your help on this...
Congrats on passing!
I've heard of the US CPA restrictions - they sound horribly annoying. I like throwing around CA without a second thought. :)
you still think "CPA candidate = passed all sections, waiting for license from state BOA" in the education section of the resume is inappropriate ?
Thanks for your help on this...
**If it were me**
I would put "I have successfully passed all four parts of the Uniform CPA Examination; license pending"
Does that help?
Doesn't it just take a month or so? Unless you're ultra-eager to jump ship just chill and wait. I took my time waiting for my CA papers to arrive.
Then again, I went on vacation while waiting.
Thanks A71 - I appreciate the input.
Congratulations Another71.I'm so happy for you and i just bought yaeger fare because of you.I have two weeks to go and i don't know how to tackle it.I have the cram course.Please how do i go about it.
Jeff - You talk about "submitting your paperwork to the state BOA" above before you got any official notice. I'm from IL and just recently passed. I wanted to get a head start on the certification process also. Where can I find this on the ILBOA website. I found one form which is a Request for Verification of Illinois CPA Certificate/Verification of CPA Exam scores. Is that the correct form or am I missing something? The fee on this one is $30. Thanks for your help.
Dave, You may read "Certification Process for Candidates who have passed the exam" , a link under "CPA Exam Application and Testing Information." I think all you need to do is wait for ILBOE to mail you your certification letter and number and three weeks thereafter your wall certificate. I was informed that my certication notice will be mailed sometime in June this year. I completed all the exam requirements in May 22. As soon as you get your certification number(not the wall certificate), you may register at the IDFPR.
i'm definitely jealous! can't wait to have my name, "CPA"
Jeff, I've posted this question inappropriately on the score predictions board just a minute ago, but would like to know when I can expect to receive the scoring letter from NASBA that indicates that I have passed all 4 sections. For your information, I just found out this evening that I have passed my one remaining BEC section and I am finally done. I'd like to notify my partner as soon as possible but have no evidence besides the online screen copy of my final score and the letter received previously for the other 3 sections already passed. Thanks.
Pisces, You're actually in for a longer wait. When you pass your final section, NASBA sends the score report to your state BOA. It's up to your state BOA when they send it and they will likely be putting together a pass packet for you - giving you all of the info you need for getting a certificate/license, etc. You your state requires an ethics exam, find out which one it is (many use the AICPA's product) and start on that...there's no reason why you can't do the ethics req in the meantime if applicable. Congrats on passing! -Jeff
Wow, that was a quick reply! I really do appreciate such a prompt but also comprehensive information. I have just submitted our HR the approval form to update my profile in our firm's organization system where people within the firm can look up my name for my personal contact information as well as my professional qualifications. Until now it had been listed as "consultant" and I now want to change this to "CPA". HR people requested that I turn in a proof that I passed. As I just couldn't wait another day to update my status, I gave them my scores for the previously passed 3 sections and the screen capture of my BEC final score which lists my ID number, which they can cross check this with my NTS that I have also attached(This was slightly embarrassing considering the fact that the screen capture showed a big fat 75 on it). It is now pending for the partner's approval. In the meanwhile, I am in the process of preparing for the ethics exam in advance and asking for advice regarding the process of obtaining license for my state. Thanks again for all your help!
Jeff,
Congratulations on passing the exams and for all the work you do to educate would be CPA's. I just wanted to add a few nuggets to getting licensed. Once you pass the examination, your state board may not receive your passing grade until well into the next testing window. For example, I sat for FAR on April 1st and passed in the Wave 1 grading cycle. The Board of Accountancy did not receive their file from NASBA until July 20th for the April/May testing window. I write this only to set expectations for other candidates because I still am not licensed a full five months after sitting for the examination, despite having met all licensing requirements. Passing the examinations is just the beginning.
Jeff,
Congratulations on passing the exams and for all the work you do to educate would be CPA's. I just wanted to add a few nuggets to getting licensed. Once you pass the examination, your state board may not receive your passing grade until well into the next testing window. For example, I sat for FAR on April 1st and passed in the Wave 1 grading cycle. The Board of Accountancy did not receive their file from NASBA until July 20th for the April/May testing window. I write this only to set expectations for other candidates because I still am not licensed a full five months after sitting for the examination, despite having met all licensing requirements. Passing the examinations is just the beginning.
I passed all CPA sections, just got my last score at the end of September. No congratulation letter, or nice package yet from the State of Florida. I look up online there is nothing to apply for the CPA lic. What is next? How long more do I need to wait?
NEED