‘Exploding in popularity’ The first round of Certified Public Accountant exams, how was the difficulty experienced by applicants?

2024-02-26 03:24:03

16,914 people voted to run, an increase of 974 from the previous year.
Last year’s “difficult” evaluation resulted in an average passing score of 8.2 points ↓

Law Journal, survey of first-time certified public accountant applicants

[법률저널=안혜성 기자] The 59th Certified Public Accountant Examination for 2024, which is gaining popularity due to a rapid increase in applicants, was held on the 25th, and examinees’ attention is focused on evaluating the perceived difficulty of applicants, which can determine the passing score.

The total number of applicants for this exam was 16,914, an increase of 974 compared to last year. This is also the second largest in history since the 1984 exam for which statistical data is publicly available.

Despite the increase in applicants, the competition rate appears to have eased somewhat. Previously, the first exam for certified public accountants was operated using a relative evaluation method that selected about twice the minimum number of successful candidates (1,100), but this was changed to 2,600 last year and increased to 3,000 this year. As the number of successful applicants increased by about 400, the competition rate dropped from 6.13 to 1 last year to 5.64 to 1.

With the 59th Certified Public Accountant Examination 1st held in 2024 held on the 25th, examinees’ attention is focused on evaluating the perceived difficulty of applicants, which can determine the passing line. /Law Journal File Photo

In addition to the number of applicants, the difficulty of the test, which affects the passing score, is also a concern for test takers. Last year, there were many evaluations that it was difficult overall, which led to a drop in the passing grade. In a survey conducted by the Law Journal immediately after the end of the first exam last year, 59.7% of respondents responded that it was “much more difficult” and 32.8% responded that it was “difficult” than last year’s exam. “It was similar” was only 4.2%, while “it was easy” and “much easier” were only 2.5% and 0.8%, respectively.

This is a result of nine out of ten respondents evaluating that last year’s first test was difficult, and the proportion of respondents who obtained 70 or more points, which can be said to be above the passing line, in the average provisional score decreased from 69.7% to 57.9% in 2022, and the proportion of high scorers decreased. This has decreased by a considerable amount.

Respondents’ evaluations were directly reflected in the actual scoring results. Last year, the average passing score for the first exam for certified public accountants was 63.8 points, down 8.2 points from the previous year. Based on the total score, it recorded 351 points, down 45 points from the previous year. For reference, the recent passing line for the first round of certified public accountant exams was △379 points in 2017, △374.5 points in 2018, △368.5 points in 2019, △383.5 points in 2020, △368.5 points in 2021, and △396 points in 2022.


Attention is being paid to the results of this exam, which was held amid less competition than last year due to an increase in the number of successful applicants. The results will be announced on April 5th. The second exam will then be held from June 29th to 30th, and the final announcement of successful candidates is scheduled for June 6th.

Meanwhile, the Law Journal is conducting a survey to examine test takers’ perceived level of difficulty and to hear their opinions regarding the operation and improvement of the future certified public accountant first exam. Candidates taking this first test can participate in the survey by clicking on the banner. The survey results will be published after March 4th.

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