Passing four sections while working full time meant deciding where preparation was essential and where my existing accounting knowledge could carry more of the load.
In Brief
I studied from August 2022 and sat my final section on 30 June 2023. Existing accounting knowledge helped, but it did not remove the need to learn US tax, practise questions and make choices about time.
On 11 July 2023, I received the result confirming that I had passed all four sections of the US CPA exam. I had started preparing in August 2022 and taken my final section on 30 June 2023, while continuing to work in audit.
It was a satisfying result. It was also easy to describe too simply. Saying that I passed while working full time leaves out the experience I brought to the exam and the subjects that still caused trouble.
It was a satisfying result. It was also easy to describe too simply. Saying that I passed while working full time leaves out the experience I brought to the exam and the subjects that still caused trouble.
1. What I brought to the exam
I had already passed the Korean CPA exam and was working in accounting. More than five years had passed since that earlier exam, but the foundation remained useful. That background helped with FAR and AUD. Some concepts were familiar from my earlier studies, while others connected with work I had encountered in practice. I could approach parts of the material with an existing framework for understanding them. This made a meaningful difference. Someone learning accounting or auditing for the first time would have to build foundations that I could already draw upon.
Familiarity still required care, however. Knowing an accounting concept and applying the relevant US rules in an examination are different demands. Practical experience gave me a useful starting point, but it could not answer every question on my behalf. For a working professional, this is an important part of planning. Before deciding how much time to spend on a subject, it helps to establish what your experience actually allows you to do with it. Recognising the terminology is only the beginning.
2. Where I had to learn again
REG was especially difficult for me. I had studied tax for the Korean CPA exam, but US tax brought a different legal background, unfamiliar terminology and a broader context that I did not take for granted. At times, understanding the language of the material was part of the work of understanding the tax itself. Having already struggled through tax for the Korean CPA exam, I had apparently decided to put myself through it again. Parts of BEC, particularly the information technology topics, also felt new. My accounting background was useful, but its usefulness varied considerably across the syllabus.
Looking back, the subjects fell into different categories:
| Area | What I brought to it | What still required attention |
|---|---|---|
| FAR & AUD | Previous accounting studies and practical audit experience | The relevant US requirements and their application to exam questions |
| REG | Experience of studying tax in Korea | US tax terminology, rules and the legal context behind them |
| BEC | A broader accounting background | Technical concepts that were unfamiliar to me |
The practical lesson was that four exam sections did not represent four equally familiar bodies of knowledge. A study plan needed to reflect those differences. For another candidate, the pattern could be different. Experience in US tax might make REG more familiar, while financial reporting or auditing might require more foundational work. The useful question is where your own knowledge stops being reliable.
3. Preparing without mastering everything
Unlike some of the more impressive success stories I had read, I did not study every topic perfectly before sitting the exams. I was working full time. My preparation therefore involved choices about how to use the time available. I wanted to study efficiently, but that still required understanding what deserved more attention. The difficult part of that decision is that familiar material can be comfortable to revisit. It is easier to feel productive when you recognise the concepts in front of you. Unfamiliar material can make a study session feel slower and less satisfying, even when it is exactly where further work is needed. My experience with REG made that distinction particularly clear. Confidence in accounting and auditing did not remove the need to work through a subject that felt much less familiar.
For someone planning a similar route, I would begin with a practical question: Which parts of the syllabus can I already apply, and which parts am I only recognising?
Working through representative questions can help make that distinction visible. If you understand why an answer is appropriate and can explain the relevant rule, you have a different starting point from someone who merely remembers seeing the topic before. That is also how I would interpret my own results. Passing did not mean that I had reached the same depth of knowledge in every subject. It meant that the preparation had been sufficient for the examinations I took. There was still more to learn afterwards.
4. What I want this series to offer
This series grew out of a period when I was trying to add another qualification to an already established working life. I want to explain why I chose the USCPA route, how I approached preparation alongside work, and what I found helpful or difficult in the individual subjects. The application process also deserves attention. Choosing a jurisdiction, arranging an educational evaluation and booking an exam are part of the experience, even though they rarely appear in a photograph of the final result.
My background should remain visible throughout that account. Prior qualifications and audit experience helped me, and readers should be able to take that into consideration when deciding which parts of the experience are relevant to them. The dates matter too. I took FAR, AUD, REG and BEC under the examination structure in place in 2023. Candidates preparing now should use the AICPA blueprints applicable to their planned testing date when deciding what to study. AICPA Exam Blueprints
What remains useful about the experience is the question behind the preparation: how can someone with an existing career identify what they already know, confront what they do not, and make steady use of the time available?
Key Takeaways
- Start with your actual knowledge. Previous qualifications and work experience can help, but their value will differ by subject.
- Give unfamiliar material deliberate attention. Confidence in one area does not automatically transfer to another.
- Use a personal success story with its context intact. The author’s background, examination dates and starting point help you judge what may apply to your own preparation.
Before moving into applications and individual subjects, the next article explains the current examination structure. It provides the context needed to read my earlier experience alongside the requirements candidates face today.
Continue to USCPA 02: Understanding the USCPA Exam in 2026
References
- NASBA CPA Examination Services. Personal Pass Letter dated 11 July 2023. An excerpt appears above with personal details redacted.
- AICPA & CIMA. Learn what to study for the CPA Exam. Current and upcoming examination blueprints.
- NASBA. How to Get Licensed. Examination and jurisdictional licensing requirements.