(a) CPAs' fields of employment do not limit the need
for continuing professional education. CPAs performing professional
services need to have a broad range of knowledge, skills, and abilities.
Continuing Professional Education will be referred to herein as CPE.
(b) The fundamental purpose of CPE is to help ensure
that licensees participate in learning activities that maintain and
improve their professional competence to serve in a competent manner.
Courses the board regards as improving the licensee's professional
competence include:
(1) "Technical Courses" are those courses pertaining
to the profession of accounting. These courses include but are not
limited to accounting, attest, tax, management advisory services,
economics, finance, information technology, regulatory ethics, and
other technical areas of benefit to a licensee and/or a licensee's
employer; and
(2) "Non-Technical Courses" are those courses not meeting
the definition of "technical courses" that increase the licensee's
ability to serve in a competent manner, such as but not limited to
communications, computer software and applications, behavioral ethics,
behavioral science, business management and organization, and advanced
courses in foreign languages, all of which must relate and must benefit
a licensee and/or a licensee's employer. Refer to §523.118 of
this chapter (relating to Limitations of Courses).
(c) Licensees may participate in a variety of sponsored
learning programs, such as live, self-study, nano learning, or blended
learning programs.
(1) "Live programs" are those educational processes
that are designed to permit a participant to learn a given subject
through interaction with an instructor/facilitator and other participants
either in a classroom or conference setting or by using the internet,
which includes the following:
(A) Workshops, seminars, and conferences with substantial
interaction by a qualified instructor/facilitator.
(B) "Group self-study" programs that are based on self-study
materials presented in a group format with substantial interaction
from a qualified instructor/facilitator who is responsible for answering
participants' questions or who leads the discussion of individual
topics presented in the materials.
(C) "Webinars" are live online educational presentations
during which participating viewers can submit questions and comments.
(2) "Self-study programs" are those educational processes
that are designed to permit a participant to learn a given subject
by oneself using books and/or electronic media (internet and DVDs/CDs,
for example) without interaction with an instructor/facilitator. This
type of program clearly defines learning objectives and manages the
participant through the learning processes by requiring frequent response
to questions that test for understanding of the material presented,
providing evaluative feedback to incorrectly answered questions and
correctly answered questions, and requiring the participant to pass
a final exam that tests the participant's comprehension of the course
materials. Refer to §523.140(e) of this chapter (relating to
Program Standards).
(3) "Nano learning programs" are tutorial programs
designed to permit a participant to learn a given subject in a 10-minute
time frame through the use of electronic media (including technology
applications and processes and computer-based or web-based technology)
and without interaction with a real-time instructor. A nano learning
program differs from a self-study program in that it is typically
focused on a single learning objective and is not paper-based.
(4) "Blended programs" are programs incorporating multiple
learning formats.
(d) "CPE credit" is 50 minutes of participation in
a program of learning.
(e) Courses completed at an institution of higher education
using semester credit hours shall earn 15 CPE credits for each passing
semester credit hour and those institutions using quarter credit hours
shall earn 10 CPE credits for each passing quarter credit hour, toward
the requirement.
(f) "Sponsor" means an individual or organization offering
programs to participants. The sponsor may or may not have developed
the program materials. However, the sponsor is responsible for insuring
the presentation of the learning objectives, through the program materials
and maintaining the documentation required by these program standards.
(g) Staff meetings and other settings cannot be claimed
for CPE credit if the programs do not meet program standards.
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Source Note: The provisions of this §523.102 adopted to be effective April 7, 2004, 29 TexReg 3476; amended to be effective February 17, 2008, 33 TexReg 1107; amended to be effective February 6, 2013, 38 TexReg 500; amended to be effective February 12, 2014, 39 TexReg 662; amended to be effective March 29, 2017, 42 TexReg 1442 |