[Over50]

Hi Everyone,

I’m 51 years old, I have an MBA, I have been a financial Controller for over 15 years. I’m currently working but for the company from hell (actually even worse than that).

I can’t find a new position because I don’t have a CPA license. I have been doing this work for years, successfully passed numerous Big $ audits for company’s. Managing staff and operations, but without the little CPA designation recruiters and companies file my resume in the shredder.

So…I am thinking about starting to study for the CPA exam. Do I have any advantage because of my experience? What is the success rate for candidates over 50?

[CPA50]

Having certifications can be VITAL when dealing with other professionals. I network with attorneys and doctors and they are probably more sensitive about referring their clients to another professional with a certification. There are many paths, Grasshopper. Choose the one that leads you to your own destination.

AUD - 80
BEC - 77
FAR - 80
REG - 80

3 years

+ 16 tests

+ 2 expired sections

= DONE FOREVER!

AUD 88 (expired), 80 retake
FAR 64,69,67,73,67,73,73,73, August 3
REG 75 (expired) September 7
BEC 72, 77

The adventure continues...

[Tncincy]

The CPA is definitely more respected than certifications. It's like getting achievement awards in high school. I know, I know some of these certifications cost a pretty penny, but if you're gonna be, for example: a certified bookkeeper, certified tax preparer, or certified payroll specialist, you may as well take the cpa exam…..the respect and money is very different. Sure the certifications specialize in different areas with different depths, but the CPA will qualify for all of them and beyond. Even the EA.

It begins with a 75
Been here too long as a cheerleader.....time to pass

It begins with a 75
Been here too long as a cheerleader....ready to pass

[Anonymous]

Do it, do it, do it (did I say do it!!). And being a late career professional means you'll be able to leverage the technical knowledge in a way you could never do just out of college. Just be prepared to be floored (not in a good way) by how much things have changed since we graduated.

[monikernc]

57 years young. try and stop me.

AUD - 93
BEC - 82
FAR - 76
REG - 88

How have you been?
Ninja book and MCQs and the forum, all first try! 2016
Licensed State of Montana April Fool’s Day 2020
State of Colorado June 2020 - AICPA Ethics 93
Experience was the worst part of the journey for me. You?
If you want things to change you have to do something different.

FAR 7/25/15 76!
AUD 10/30/15 93
BEC 2/27/16 82
REG 5/23/16 88!
Ninja Book and MCQ and the forum - all the way!!!
and a little thing i like to call, time and effort!
if you want things to change, you have to do something different

[Tncincy]

Hey I can go with that…..I feel so much energy….Why not over 50 🙂

It begins with a 75
Been here too long as a cheerleader.....time to pass

It begins with a 75
Been here too long as a cheerleader....ready to pass

[Anonymous]

Let's just all pass this thing together before the test changes in 2017.
Ben Affleck is also cramming and crunching to pass his last section before the release of his movie (The Accountant) this coming October:)

[mselaineous]

I'm in a similar situation at 43, with an MBA that has a concentration in Accounting. I've worked in industry for over 18 years. I've worked for some really great CFOs who didn't give a care that I didn't have a CPA designation because my skills spoke for me. I've worked in Controller & VP Finance roles for several $150MM + revenue companies. I decided to get my CPA for me and only for me. It's something that I always wanted to do but kept putting it on the back burner, but now is my time. I knocked FAR out in April, and have AUD at the end of May, REG in July and BEC in August.

Your years of experience can only help you! I found it to be true myself as a lot of the situations that are covered in the sections I've seen/done/handled/been part of first hand in my career experience. The hardest thing for me has been to not read into the questions. It took me a bit to take off my work experience hat and put on my test hat. Once I did that, I read the question answered it based on only the info in the question. That helped me a ton. If you study and keep on it, you will pass. And get a good quality review course that fits your needs and your learning style. I use RogerCPAReview because his style synchs with my learning style and it's worked well.

Go for it! If nothing else, getting your CPA is something that no one can take away from you. (unless in the case of a ethics violation!)

FAR - Passed (04/16) ROGER
AUD - Passed (05/16) ROGER & Ninja MCQs
REG - Passed (07/16) ROGER & Ninja MCQs
BEC - 08/16

[Anonymous]

Not QUITE 50 but closing fast! One of my bucket list things was to get my CPA before I turned 50. A serious downturn in my current industry pushed me even more. So, 4… er something, havent worked in accounting in years, and I managed to pass them all in one year while running my own (non related) business, with a 10 year old kid and (thankfully) a very supportive husband.

Thats the good news.

The bad news. It still aint easy to find a job. I live in a small town and cant move. No one wants to talk to me in public although Ive made clear Im willing to start at the bottom. Almost 7 months now since getting my license and not even one interview. 🙁 Sucks. So yeah getting a CPA is not the end all and be all.

[Anonymous]

@Over50: Make the decision to do this, and go all in. This test is about stamina, commitment and never giving up. I had tax experience and my degree is in economics – those both helped in BEC and REG.

You came to the right place to learn more about the exams and meet other folks who are going through this with you. Best of luck to you and please keep us all posted. I passed the exams last December, but Jeff (A71 founder) and everyone here were so helpful as I got through it that I occasionally come back to chime in and help. Having the CPA license is AWESOME!!

[anmore]

I think we need a forum for us 50 year olds! I actually turn 50 in a few months and have decided to take BEC as soon as possible. Hoping to knock this out in a year. Good luck to you Over50!

Your poor planning is not my emergency. My poor planning is!

[Tncincy]

Birthday coming soon, still have not passed this exam, BUT…I printed the article “why are you not a CPA?. I've read it again just to regain momentum. Yes, I am struggling again. But so what, I'll get it one of these days.

It begins with a 75
Been here too long as a cheerleader.....time to pass

It begins with a 75
Been here too long as a cheerleader....ready to pass

[SeattleCPA]

Maybe someone else pointed this out and I missed it, but here's one thing I would say…

If you think you might work in public accounting, you want to get the CPA. You can't become an owner and you can't do some of the work without a CPA. E.g., you can't do comps, reviews, audits… and you can't (unless you're an attorney or EA) get power of attorney for IRS representation.

Note: Your odometer mileage in business can be a huge advantage if you do end up public accounting serving businesses. Which is relevant because you want to focus on businesses and not individuals if you're working in a CPA firm.

I don't really remember my CPA exam scores. I've been a CPA for decades... I run a four CPA firm in Redmond WA. I'm the author of a bunch of books about small business accounting including QuickBooks for Dummies and Quicken for Dummies.

[Anonymous]

UPDATE to my post above – I did get a job in 2017 and the owner of the company that hired me as a controller specifically told me that having a CPA license was a large part of his decision – that he had been getting resumes from all kinds of accounting people but very few had a CPA license and he binned those immediately. so….

[Tncincy]

Congrats Allegra, very good news…..so yes, cpa in later years does pay off. Keep striving ninja's

It begins with a 75
Been here too long as a cheerleader.....time to pass

It begins with a 75
Been here too long as a cheerleader....ready to pass

[Jdn9201]

No matter your age, I think the #1 thing to consider when looking at going for the CPA is think about what it can do (or maybe not do) to help you meet your career goals. Think about your end game and how the CPA gets you there. I'm not in my 50s nor 40s, but I waited a while after college to do this, and only until I had the why figured out. My why was I wanted a more challenging job that paid more, or I wanted to work for myself – a CPA would help me with either goal. Your why will be your #1 motivator if you decide to go for it. Looking back, I think being very experienced in your career is a positive for the exams. Don't let other people's experience nor the time since you've been in college scare you. I think most people who are at least average in an accounting job have the intellect to pass. I never felt 100% ready for any of the exams, but I also never felt like I got a question that I had no clue how to answer either. I used Roger, and while he is very good, I was surprised at how often I referred to my work experience – both while studying and taking the actual exams. We all know that learning in a classroom is very different from actually working in the field. I think work experience teaches you to approach studying from a practical standpoint. I know the 22 year old me would have treated every page of the book equally, and probably would have freaked myself out thinking that I had to memorize everything. The 32 year old me tried to think about it as if I was in a plane looking down at it from 25,000 feet – what would be the most important? The AICPA outlines help with this. Some may say go for it no matter what; others may say it's not worth it, but it depends on your personal circumstances and what your goals are. I will say though that don't think you have to aspire to be an executive or ranks above where you are at now for it to help you. I got a new job right after getting my CPA – it was a lateral move title wise, but it had everything I was looking for and I know that my CPA helped open the door. I hope this is helpful.

BEC - 88 8/29/15
REG - 82 11/14/15
AUD - 83 1/8/16
FAR - 80 2/29/16

[Author]

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