Reading the CPA Exam Blueprints: content areas and skill levels for the Core sections

• Explain how a Blueprint is organized from content area down to representative task
• Define the four skill levels the exam uses
• Compare the content and skill allocations of AUD, FAR and REG
• Build a study plan weighted by Blueprint allocations

What the Blueprints are

The Uniform CPA Examination Blueprints are approved by the AICPA Board of Examiners. The current version (approved August 18, 2025) is effective January 2026, and a revised version is effective January 1, 2027. The AICPA publishes a summary of changes with each version, so read the 2027 summary before you study for a 2027 sitting.

The Blueprints state four purposes: document the minimum knowledge and skills for initial licensure, help candidates prepare, inform educators, and guide question development. Each section has a section introduction (scope, content organization, allocations, assumptions, references) and a section blueprint organized by content AREA, content GROUP and content TOPIC. Each topic lists one or more representative TASKS with a skill level.

The Blueprints warn that the tasks are representative and not all-inclusive, and that the number of tasks under a topic does not show how heavily that topic is tested. Read the allocation tables for weight, not the task count.

The four skill levels

The skill framework comes from the revised Bloom's Taxonomy. The Blueprints define four levels:

• Remembering and Understanding: perceiving and comprehending the significance of an area using knowledge gained.
• Application: using or demonstrating knowledge, concepts or techniques.
• Analysis: examining the interrelationships of separate areas to identify causes and find evidence to support inferences.
• Evaluation: examining or assessing problems and using judgment to draw conclusions.

Only AUD tests Evaluation. Every other section stops at Analysis.

Core content allocations

AUD. Area I Ethics, Professional Responsibilities and General Principles 15-25%; Area II Assessing Risk and Developing a Planned Response 25-35%; Area III Performing Further Procedures and Obtaining Evidence 30-40%; Area IV Forming Conclusions and Reporting 10-20%. The section covers audits under AICPA, PCAOB and GAO/OMB requirements, attestation engagements, and preparation, compilation and review engagements. The AICPA Code is tested here, so the Code of Professional Conduct overview doubles as study material.

FAR. Area I Financial Reporting 30-40%; Area II Select Balance Sheet Accounts 30-40%; Area III Select Transactions 25-35%. FAR is the most computational Core section: only 5-15% sits at Remembering and Understanding.

REG. Area I Ethics, Professional Responsibilities and Federal Tax Procedures 10-20%; Area II Business Law 15-25%; Area III Federal Taxation of Property Transactions 5-15%; Area IV Federal Taxation of Individuals 22-32%; Area V Federal Taxation of Entities (including tax preparation) 23-33%.

Using the Blueprints at work

The Blueprints map well to on-the-job training. An AUD task such as determining the appropriate sampling method for a planned procedure is the same judgment a senior reviews on a control test. Firms that tie staff training plans to Blueprint areas get two returns from the same hours. The staff training plan guide shows one way to lay that out.

Common mistakes

• Studying from an outline that predates the current Blueprints. New pronouncements become testable on a schedule the AICPA publishes, and content they replace is removed.
• Ignoring the skill column. A FAR topic at the Analysis level calls for practice with full fact patterns, not flash cards.
• Spending equal time on every area regardless of allocation.

Weighting 200 AUD study hours by the Blueprint