As you’re working toward your CPA Canada designation, the CPA Canada Practical Experience Requirements (PER) can seem daunting. One common question I get is: “Can I submit experience reports on items not pre-assessed by CPA Canada, and will it impact my ability to get that experience accepted?” Here’s a straightforward answer to help you navigate this part of your CPA journey.
Understanding the Pre-Assessment
The pre-assessment is designed to ensure you have at least one Level 1 technical competency, which allows you to start reporting your experience. However, it’s important to know that this pre-assessment isn’t rigid.
You aren’t restricted to only those tasks or examples that were pre-assessed.
It’s perfectly fine to write about examples and job tasks that differ from what was pre-assessed or even from your initial job description. As you progress in your career, it’s normal—and expected—to take on tasks beyond your original scope of work. Promotions, new tasks, and special projects often come your way, adding valuable experiences that weren’t part of your initial role.
What Really Matters in PER
Here’s what truly counts in your PER submissions:
- Complexity: Ensure your examples demonstrate relevant and complex tasks.
- Exposure: Have at least 3 examples for level 2.
- Supervisor support: Your supervisor must support you by providing extra tasks and special projects.
- Following guidelines: Follow the guidelines provided by CPA Canada and my templates for your PER submissions to ensure you hit all requirements.
The pre-assessment is a starting point, not a limiting factor. Your evolving job responsibilities and the additional experiences you gain are valuable and should be included in your reports. The key is to clearly articulate how these experiences meet the CPA competencies and get them validated by your supervisor.
Conclusion
In summary, don’t worry too much about sticking to the pre-assessed items. The pre-assessment’s primary role is to ensure you’re on the right track. As long as you provide relevant, complex examples and follow the necessary guidelines, your additional tasks and responsibilities will contribute positively to your CPA Canada PER.
Extra resources
Extra resources are available in Gevorg’s CPA PER Review programs.
