Beginner’s Guide: An Accounting Marketer’s How-To Guide on Administering CPE Events

Hosting client educational events is a crucial aspect of a marketer’s role at an accounting firm. Educational events not only serve as valuable opportunities to build relationships and showcase the firm’s expertise, but they also help clients stay informed about the latest industry trends, regulations and best practices.

One unique feature of the accounting industry is the emphasis on offering CPE credits for many, if not all, educational events. This approach adds significant value to attendees by helping them maintain their professional certifications, while also reinforcing the firm’s reputation as a trusted knowledge leader in the field. By designing and promoting CPE-accredited events, marketers play an integral role in elevating the firm’s visibility and strengthening client loyalty.

What is CPE?

Continuing professional education (CPE) is required for all Certified Public Accountants (CPAs) to maintain their professional competence and provide quality professional services.

There are both federal and state CPE requirements, depending on the state in which an accountant is licensed as a CPA. Different states require different amounts and types of CPE credits each year. CPAs are required to submit documentation pertaining to the CPE courses they attend to their state Board of Accountancy every other year.

The CPAs who work at your firm will need to earn CPE credits, as well as any client contacts who have their CPA credential (such as controllers, CFOs etc.) So, offering CPE credits for your educational events is a win/win for both your colleagues and your clients!

Classifying CPE Events

There are two main types of CPE events that your firm may host:

1. Group Live events (i.e. events where participants physically attend in-person)
2. Group Internet Based events (i.e. events where participants attend virtually)

There are also different formats for CPE events:

• Lecture – instructor(s) present an educational session to a wide audience (similar to a teacher or professor delivering a lecture to a classroom of students)
• Group Discussion – instructor(s) facilitate an open discussion between many attendees on a particular subject or project
• Workshop – instructor(s) facilitate a meeting where a group of attendees collaborate on work exercises related to a particular subject or project
• Other – other types of educational events that do not fall into one of the above categories

CPE Credit Hours and Fields of Study

CPE credits for attendees are calculated at the rate of 1 CPE credit per 50-minute credit hour. Time given for breaks cannot be included in calculating credit hours.

Several different types of CPE credits may be issued, depending on the topic of the course. The National Association of State Boards of Accountancy (NASBA) has identified 20 fields of study that qualify for CPE. To see the full list, visit https://www.nasbaregistry.org/registry-forms–policies/fields-of-study/.

CPE Communications Requirements

There are certain types of information that must be included in your event invites and other communications for your CPE event. Required components include:

• Event date(s) and time(s)
• Event location (Group Live, Group Internet Based or Hybrid)
• Instructor name(s), credential(s) and brief bio(s)
• Program content topic(s)
• Prerequisite knowledge level (beginner, intermediate or advanced), education and/or experience
• The types of professional jobs or roles for which the event content is geared toward
• Learning objectives (i.e. what attendees should learn or what ability they should have upon completion of the event)
• Number and type(s) of CPE credits available

CPE Paperwork Requirements

As part of the CPE administration process, you must complete and keep paperwork on file related to your CPE event. This paperwork should include:

• A notification form that lists the title, date, location, times, format, program level and description, learning objectives, prerequisite knowledge and/or advance preparation needed and total CPE credit hours to be earned.
• A qualifications form for each presenter, including the presenter’s name, experience and qualifications. Each presenter’s qualifications form must also list the name and credentials of a reviewer, or another accounting professional who is a subject matter expert and reviewed the presenter’s work for accuracy.
• An attendance record and course outline.
  • For Group Live events, there is an attendance sheet you can print to have attendees sign in to verify their attendance.
  • For Group Internet Based events, you must have an interactive component to track that your attendees are present and engaged throughout the presentation. The most common way that firms do this is by issuing polling questions (relevant to the content being presented) that appear randomly on the attendee’s screen throughout the presentation. NASBA requires that attendees of virtual events answer at least three polling questions per credit hour. It is recommended to offer more polling questions than the minimum amount required, so if attendees miss one or two, there are enough questions where they could still meet the requirement.
  • You can attach copies of a PowerPoint presentation, handouts or any other relevant course materials to serve as a course outline.

• Participant evaluation forms, offered to all attendees to provide feedback on the event.
  • This evaluation form must include specific questions and allow participants to respond “Agree,” “Neutral,” “Disagree” or “N/A.” Required questions include:
    • “The learning objectives were met.”
    • “The program materials were relevant and contributed to the achievement of the learning objectives.”
    • “The program content was timely and relevant.”
    • “Time allotted for the program was appropriate.”
    • “The stated prerequisite requirements were appropriate and sufficient.”
    • “[INSTRUCTOR’s NAME]’s knowledge and presentation skills were effective.” (Copy and paste a new question for each individual instructor separately.)
    • “The meeting room was suitable for the program.” (You can remove this question for Group Internet Based events.)
    • “Overall, the program was of value to me.”
    • “Please indicate any changes in content, format or presentation that you would suggest if the firm were to present this program again.” (Open-ended question)
  • For Group Live events, you can print participant evaluation forms out and invite attendees to physically fill them out and sign them to provide feedback.
  • For Group Internet Based events, you can issue a virtual survey and attach the survey results to your paperwork.

• An evaluation summary, where you total the number of positive, neutral, negative or N/A responses you received on each question of the participant evaluation and summarize any open-ended comments you might have received.
• Instructor evaluation forms, completed and signed by each presenter.

Click here to view a sample CPE paperwork template.

CPE Certificate Requirements

Upon the conclusion of your CPE event, you must issue physical or digital CPE certificates to all qualifying attendees timely – ideally, within one to two weeks of the event. The CPE certificate must state:

• The course title
• The participant’s first and last name
• The date of the CPE event
• The location of the CPE event
• The amount and type(s) of CPE credits earned
• The category of study
• The names and credentials of all course instructors

The certificate must list your firm as the sponsor and should include your state Board of Accountancy program sponsor number, if applicable.

Click here to view a sample CPE certificate.

CPE Recordkeeping Requirements

Attendance, survey responses and CPE credit records should be retained for a minimum of seven years. Specific documentation that should be retained includes:

• Records of participation
• Date(s) and location(s) of program offerings
• Author/instructor, author/developer and reviewer names and credentials. For the CPA acting as an author/instructor, author/developer and reviewer for accounting, auditing or tax program(s), the state of licensure, license number and status of license should be maintained. For tax program(s), if it is an enrolled agent in any of these roles, then the enrolled agent number should be maintained
• Number of CPE credits earned by participants
• Results of program evaluations
• Program descriptive materials (course announcement information), such as course agendas, PowerPoint slides and printed handouts, as applicable

Sample Templates and More Information

Sample templates of evaluation forms and CPE certificates for both Group Live and Group Internet Based CPE events can be found on the NASBA website at https://www.nasbaregistry.org/registry-forms–policies/sample-templates.

For more information about federal CPE requirements, visit the NASBA website at https://www.nasbaregistry.org/.

Specific CPE requirements by state can also be accessed on the NASBA website by visiting https://www.nasbaregistry.org/cpe-requirements.