During our meeting with the AICPA earlier this month, we received a lot of great information regarding the final changes being made to the 2017 CPA Exam. As such, we promised to delve into more detail as to how each of the changes being made will affect current and potential CPA Exam candidates. In this article, we’ll take a look at something that will actually make candidates happy: beginning April 1, 2017, standardized 15 minute breaks have officially been added to the next version of the CPA Exam. And it won’t count against a candidate’s test-taking time.
Breaks added to each section
Because the Exam will test candidates’ abilities to apply and evaluate information more thoroughly than it does on the current version, these breaks were added to give candidates sufficient time to recollect themselves and step away from their exam for a short amount of time. And the best part? These breaks will not count against the candidate’s testing time, whereas in the current Exam, they do.
Current breaks count against time
It's important to note that the current CPA Exam does allow time for a break, but the fact that the clock continues to tick makes candidates feel obligated to sit for the exam for the whole duration. They do not have to—but if they choose to take a break, they will be asked to leave the testing room quietly and since breaks are considered a part of the testing process, the testing clock does not stop.
Why candidates skip breaks
But with the new break time added to the 2017 CPA Exam, candidates will no longer feel obligated to sit in their seats for the entire duration; they will instead have the ability to disengage from their testing environment without having it affect their test-taking time.
New 15-minute break rule
CPA Exam candidates in 2017 can anticipate a little breather from their testing environment without worrying about it cutting into their overall performance. If candidates choose to take more than one break outside of the pre-set 15 minutes, this is where the testing clock will continue ticking. During this break, the rules will remain the same: candidates cannot access prohibited items such as their cell phones or study materials, and they cannot smoke outside or leave the testing facility.
