Certified Public Accountant: Skills, Tasks, Eligibility

The Certified Accountant is a skilled professional who has expertise in auditing, tax planning, consulting, and forensic accounting. In this blog, you will learn about the role of a CPA, the responsibilities, skills, differences from general accountants, steps to become a CPA, career opportunities, and more.

What is a Certified Public Accountant (CPA)?

The CPA is an accounting expert who provides services such as auditing, tax planning, and financial consultation for individuals, businesses, and organizations. To get to this job position, you need a defined education and experience, and have to attend an examination to show that you have high levels of skills and competence.

Roles and Responsibilities of a CPA

Let’s explore some important responsibilities:

1. Auditing: CPAs are responsible for ensuring that financial statements are accurate and stay compliant with accounting standards. 
2. Tax planning and filing: CPA’s help clients to reduce their tax liabilities and prepare annual tax returns.
3. Consulting: They provide financial advice for business decisions, investments, and mergers.
4. Compliance: They make sure that businesses and individuals are meeting the financial regulations and reporting standards.
5. Forensic accounting: Check if there is any fraud or misconduct.

What are the Skills Needed to become a Certified Public Accountant?

The CPA’s must be informed about the new updates, changes in any regulation, and the developments that are introduced by the Financial Accounting Standards Board. The important skills required  to be a CPA include:

Technical skills:

1. Knowledge of accounting and finance: strong command of accounting standards, financial reporting, taxation, and auditing practices.
2. Analyze the data: Requires the ability to calculate the financial information, identify patterns, and provide insights on them.
3. Expertise in softwares: Great understanding of the accounting softwares and Excel functions.
4. Understanding of businesses: Knowledge about different operations, processes, and strategic decision-making of businesses.

Soft skills:

1. Communication: Ability to simply define complex problems and actively listen.
2. Attention to detail: accuracy in reviewing various financial documents and finding errors in them.
3. Problem-solving: Requires skills to find issues and provide solutions.
4. Time management: You must be able to handle multiple tasks and responsibilities and meet deadlines.
5. Adaptability: Adapting to the new technology changes, regulations, and business environments.

Differences between an accountant and a CPA

Feature	CPA	Accountant
Licensing	Requires the state-issued license from the Board of Accountancy.	No proficiency license is required.
Education	Must complete 150 hours of education, pass the uniform CPA exam, and fulfill the exam requirements.	Requires a bachelor’s degree in accounting or a related field.
Scope	Capable of handling all of the accounting tasks and specialized services backed by legal authority.	Manages regular accounting functions
Ethics	Must follow the guidelines and code of professional conduct of the AICPA.	No mandatory ethics
Salary	High salaries	Low salaries than CPAs

Advantages of CPA

• CPAs can earn higher salaries than non-CPA accountants.
• Huge demand for the CPA across different industries. 
• CPA credentials can help you get leadership and senior roles.
• A globally respected certification that helps to stand out from the competition.
• Wide range of career opportunities
• CPAs can establish firms on their own and offer different professional services.

How to become a CPA? 

1. Earn a Bachelor’s degree:

You have to complete a bachelor’s degree in accounting or any related field. Most states require bachelor’s degrees that include 150 semester hours of learning to become eligible for the CPA exam. The Bachelor’s degree offers 120 hours of learning, and you need to take some extra classes, pursue a double major, or complete a master’s degree to meet the requirement. Also, the Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees include topics such as financial accounting, taxation, auditing, and some accounting softwares and tools used in the accounting field. You can also learn more by joining accounting courses online.

2. Pass the Uniform CPA Exam

The next step is to pass the CPA exam, and each state has its own rules and requirements. General requirements include completing your education requirements, a minimum age limit (from 18 to 21), and some states require you to be a U.S. citizen or a permanent resident.

3. Gain more practical experience

Some of the states require a minimum of 2 years of experience. Some states require experience in private companies or government roles.

4. Apply for the CPA license

Once you have completed the education, exam, and experience requirements, you can apply for the CPA license with the US State Board of Accountancy. Most states require completing educational qualifications, passing the CPA exam, requiring work experience, and clearing the CPA ethics exams.

Career Opportunities

Jobs in the Big 4 accounting firms, MNCs, IT companies, Indian corporates, and financial education. You can pursue a CPA career if you want to work in multinational firms, are interested in US taxation, IFRS, financial reporting, want higher salaries, and want global job opportunities. 

If you are considering a CPA, start preparing early. Understand the exam format and align your career goals with its benefits. Remember, it is a challenging yet rewarding certification.

Conclusion 

The scope of the CPA career is expanding globally. It can provide a wide range of career opportunities, high earning potential, international accounting, and global recognition, so a Certified Public Accountant can be a good choice. If you are preparing for the CPA exam, you have to start early, understand the format of the exam, and align your goals. It is a difficult and rewarding certification. You can also join an accounting training institute in Ernakulam for learning more in-depth about the CPA.

FAQs 

1. How many years does it take to become a CPA in India?

To get this certification, you must have a bachelor’s degree and complete 150 hours of CPA coursework. Some need to have 1-2 years of experience under a CPA.

2. What is the average salary of a CPA? 

The average salary for a fresh CPA is 6 to 10 LPA, and for those with 2 to 3 years of experience, it is 15 to 20 lakhs. 3 to 6 years of experience can get an average salary of 15 to 30 lakhs.

3. Can a CPA earn a higher salary than a CPA accountant?

Yes, the CPA can earn a higher salary than non-CPAs, as it has more expertise, global recognition, and higher-paying job roles with a wide range of career opportunities.

4. How to become a CPA?

You can be a CPA with 150 hours of credits in college (Bachelor’s and extra courses/ master’s degree), pass the CPA exam, and complete 2 years of work experience while meeting the requirements of the state board of accountancy and ethics.

5. Is CPA tougher than CA?

No, CA is tougher than the CA, as it takes a longer duration, multiple structures, and low pass rates.