CPA PERT – Tips & Another 5 Months Recognized Via EVR For CPA PERT

Back in July 2020, I wrote a post when I got my first 7 months recognized via Experience Verification Route (EVR) for CPA PERT. Since then, I started the extended finance module and a new job as a Corporate Accountant. With a job change, I had to finish reporting whatever duration I had since my last submission. I am happy to report that I just got another 5 months recognized. On the topic, I wrote a separate post detailing what to do when you get a new job for PERT so you can click the link below.

RELATED POST – What To Do When You Change Job Under Experience Verification Route (EVR)

With what I have learned after getting my first report approved, the second report was definitely easier. However, it still took a couple of weekends, revisions and a meeting to finalize my submission. In this post, I wanted to share a few more tips on how to make writing your PERT report easier.

As a reminder, do not forget to check out the PER section of your provincial body as it often contains relevant and most up-to-date information (e.g., CPA BC, CPA Ontario)

Read all CPA PERT posts here.

Fill In Your Report As Soon As The Task Is Done

I made the mistake of waiting for over 2 months before writing my response for the Financial Report Preparation under Financial Reporting (FR). By then, I had already forgotten most of the little detail. I had to trace back my working paper in order to remember what I did for each note. For example, Commitments and Contingencies were one of the note disclosures I helped prepare. For that, I took a number of steps to gather the information and verified the accuracies and completeness of the data. If I had filled in the report the weekend after my working papers were reviewed, it would have taken me a lot less time. Instead, when I finally got around one weekend to do so, I had to basically re-enact what I did in order to recall the steps.

If you want to minimize work, making notes and filling in regularly is the way to go.

RELATED POST – CPA PERT – Technical Competencies Examples

Decide Which Competencies You Want To Reach Level 2 For

If you are already familiar with the Depth and Breadth requirement for CPA PERT, you would know that you need a certain number of Level 2 competencies. The number varies a little depending on how much overlap of technical competencies you choose but you need a minimum of four Level 2 technical competencies. For enabling competencies, every CPA candidate needs to reach Level 2 for all five competencies.

I have also realized that the reviewer will only provide a comment if your response did not meet your self-assessed level. For example, I thought my response for Management Accounting (MA) was a Level 2 response so I self-assessed it as such. Unfortunately, it was assessed by CPA to be a Level 1. However, the reviewer provided valuable advice on how to provide to Level 2 response next time.

My plan for my next report is to be very mindful about the responses I self-assess as Level 2. Since you won’t know which competencies you are aiming Level 2 for, it is crucial for you to figure it out using this guide.

Continue Or Start Writing Your Responses Using The CPA Way

As CPA Candidate on her third module, I have officially been brainwashed (I mean convinced) into thinking The CPA Way is the golden way. Depending on where you are on your journey, you might not believe that yet. However, I guarantee you CPA believes that. Therefore, the earlier you realize the status of The CPA Way in the profession, the easier it will be for you to master CPA PERT.

As per CPA, The CPA Way is “a methodical approach for addressing professional problems.” A strong PERT response is crafted using this methodology. This way, you will show the reviewer how you have gotten into your CPA mindset, assessed the situation, analyzed the major issues, concluded and advised before communicated it to the stakeholders (e.g., your manager or another department).

RELATED POST – CPA PERT – How I Planned For PERT Via EVR For The Year

What Do I Plan On Doing In The 17 Months?

Now that I have gotten 13 months with 4 Level 1 technical competencies recognized and started a new job, I need to start preparing for some Level 2 responses. My new employer has been supportive but it is important for me to take the initiative to let them know what I need. Therefore, my plan is to review my current experiences and come up with areas I can realistically get exposure in at work.