[Anonymous]

I’ve looked for this before but could never find it; however, it showed up in my LinkedIn newsfeed because NASBA posted it! It’s final passes by how many total attempts. I can’t figure out how to link to the specific story, so here’s the link to the graphic:
https://image-store.slidesharecdn.com/b03ab25a-5d86-4d64-9fd4-62c11a81032d-large.jpeg
And the link to the main NASBA LinkedIn page (currently this is the 2nd story on the page):
https://www.linkedin.com/company/28178

And the graphic as an image:

I think a couple years ago NASBA had said they didn’t have a way to track this data, so maybe they’ve just recently modified their methods to be able to track it? Whatever the case, I’m excited to see it. 🙂

And…if anyone else knows how to link directly to a LinkedIn story, feel free to post the direct link. I don’t link to LinkedIn enough to know. 😐

[Anonymous]

@chrislo2007 – yes, most people who fail experience a huge blow to their pride. These exams can knock even very competent and intelligent people down off the cloud that they floated on for years. I remember reading on one of the other forums about a guy with an MS in Accounting who took FAR twice. He got 50 the first time and 60 the second time. With an MS in Accounting, and he had some other scholarly distinctions too. He walked away after getting the 60 and attempted none of the other sections, and said goodbye to the people who encouraged him on the forum. Now, he may have come back later and passed – I don't know how the AICPA tracks people who stop and then come back later (well, social security numbers would be the obvious tracking but after X number of years, the person is probably considered a brand new candidate again.) But, I think there are many people like that, who think that the CPA exam is way beyond them or that they just don't have what it takes to get through it – and I don't mean in terms of intellect or “accounting ability.” One of my coworkers at my last job was also an MS in Accounting. Brilliant guy, knew everything there was to know about business world and accounting in big companies. But…not a CPA and no plans to be.

As for me…I won't be stopping unless I reach a point where I really feel that it is becoming absurd. Hopefully I won't ever get to that point! The weirdest thing about taking FAR was that during the exam, I heard a voice inside of me that said “I *CAN* do this. I may have flunked this time, but eventually I will pass all four.” Some people can't tolerate failure though. And, especially these days, too many people quit things just because they're too hard. “Too hard” is not a good reason. If someone met the requirements to sit for the exam, they should have what it takes to pass it eventually. Just my opinion.

[RE2PECT]

41% of candidates passing all four on the first try seems pretty high to me. I remember reading something that stated only around 20% of candidates pass all four on their first attempt. I wish I had a link to the source, but I'll try and find it.

"Luck is what happens when preparation meets opportunity."

Roger & Ninja

FAR: 75
AUD: 73, 81
BEC: 71, 73, 82
REG: 68, 82

FAR: 75 Roger & Ninja (notes/flashcards/audio/MCQ)
AUD: 73, 81
BEC: 71, retake 8/29
REG:

[mtaylo24]

@Sulaiman – Its all about determination. It doesn't come easy for everyone!

CPA (2017)

REG:  75

BEC:  76

FAR:  77

AUD: 78

 

CMA (2019)

P1: 380

P2: 360

AUD - 1st - 60 (12/12), 61 (2/13), 61 (8/13), 78! (11/15)
REG - 55 (2/16) 69 (5/16) Retake(8/16)
BEC - 71(5/16) Retake (9/16)
FAR - (8/16)

[So FAR So Good]

@RE2PECT – again, it's not all candidates. They purposely show the data point as “people who have passed all four parts” because they can't possibly add the other people who are either in progress or have quit as that data point is indeterminable due to not finishing. Even if they were able to add in “people who have quit,” you still could not determine that rate as it is open ended due to other people still being in progress.

AUD - 91
BEC - 85
FAR - 91
REG - 86

.

F - 91 (6/5/2016)
A - 7/30/2016
R - 10/8/2016
B - 12/10/2016

[jeff]

It was from a NASBA report several years ago…the first time pass rate is between 25-30%.

AUD - 79
BEC - 80
FAR - 76
REG - 92

Jeff Elliott, CPA (KS)
NINJA CPA | NINJA CMA | NINJA CPE | Another71

[Accountant183748]

Maybe that is why they are making it harder with the 2017 changes since more people are passing on all 4 on the first try now 😛

[Anonymous]

Yes, my thought exactly. 25,000+ people finishing/passing the exams every year seems like a very high number. Are there jobs for all those new CPAs?? Maybe if 25,000 CPAs retire every year… Still, it is obvious that the AICPA wants to raise the bar on the CPA credential, although they will never publicly state that. I think too many people were getting by on guesswork on the exams. Many people are good at picking the right answer on MCQs, and with 90 MCQs worth 60% of the score, well…there ya go. I don't think the changes they're doing for the new version of the exam
are necessarily going to separate the boys from the men (or girls from the women) but again, all we can do is roll with it.

Thanks for clarifying the 25-30% pass rate on 4 sections, Jeff. That makes more sense than 41. One of my Intermediate Acct professors told our class that it took him two tries to pass FAR and REG, and that “you should plan on taking some of the sections twice.” Mind you, this professor was an absolute pencil-neck accounting geek…during his first lecture when he said he was a licensed California CPA with an MS in Taxation, I was saying to myself “I'm sure he got 99's on all four.”

[Cruzer]

I read somewhere where the average attempts was 7 on the CPA exam (before Q2 2017 changes). This statistic is for people who have taken and passed all 4 parts obviously. I have seen all kinds of stats about % of people who pass all 4 exams on 1st try and completed the CPA exam journey. One study done back in 2010 estimated 20% but I have seen people state as low as 10% and @jeff @ another71.com has mentioned 25-30%. @TurbosandwhichCPA – can I ask where you got 10% from?

“There is no elevator to success. You have to take the stairs.” -Anonymous

• AUD - PASSED (Q1 2017)
• BEC - PASSED (Q3 2016)
• FAR - PASSED (Q2 2017)
• REG - PASSED (Q4 2015)

 

[jeff]

I believe it's much lower now – can't remember where I saw it. Probably not helpful.

AUD - 79
BEC - 80
FAR - 76
REG - 92

Jeff Elliott, CPA (KS)
NINJA CPA | NINJA CMA | NINJA CPE | Another71

[Anonymous]

Does anyone know if a “Did Not Show” counts as an attempt?

I would also like to see a stat for the attrition rate for the CPA.

[shawn in VA]

I find it surprising almost 60 percent pass in less than 6 attempts.

AUD - 84
BEC - 81
FAR - NINJA in Training
REG - 75

AUD - 84

BEC-  81

REG-75

FAR- TBD

[HoldMyBeerCPA]

@Cruzer: My 10% probability comes from an article on going concern (mentioned above) and another on the magoosh website.

Also, I just took the average passing rates for all four exams over the last two testing windows (49.25% approximately across Q1 2017 and Q2 2017) and did a probability calculation (.4925^4) and that got me to a rate of about 6%. Figured I should go with the rates from the websites so that I have a bit more confidence going into each exam 🙂

"FACT": The odds of consecutively passing all four sections of the CPA exam on the first try: 7%.

Me: Hold my beer...

FAR (April 2017): 75+

BEC (May 2017): 75+

AUD (July 2017): 75+

REG (September 2017): 75+

Roger + Ninja Audio/MCQ/Notes (BEC & REG)

[tygolfer]

I would be curious to see what the pass rates would be for first time test takers. I would imagine that the number of people taking 10+ times has to drive the passing rate down a little bit. The 40% seems really high to me, I only personally have talked to probably 10 CPAs about their exams, and 8/10 of them failed at least 1 section. Granted, none of them failed more than 2 exams total.

AUD - 92
BEC - 84
FAR - 77
REG - 89

MDS CPA Review and Ninja MCQ for final review 2 weeks prior to each exam

 

[Anonymous]

In case anyone is still stumbling across this post, the link below states that 19,227 people dropped out of the exam process during 2016 and 27,960 passed their fourth section.

NASBA’s Candidate Performance Publications on the 2016 Uniform CPA Examination Now Available for Purchase

[HoldMyBeerCPA]

So the odds of passing all four on the first try are about 5$-10% or so, but the actual number of candidates that do so is 40%? That's pretty impressive.

"FACT": The odds of consecutively passing all four sections of the CPA exam on the first try: 7%.

Me: Hold my beer...

FAR (April 2017): 75+

BEC (May 2017): 75+

AUD (July 2017): 75+

REG (September 2017): 75+

Roger + Ninja Audio/MCQ/Notes (BEC & REG)

[Author]

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