If you’re an aspiring CPA, finding a mentor can bring you much-needed support on your journey toward licensure. Learn about the benefits of being in a mentorship relationship, how to find the right CPA mentor for you, and how to maintain the relationship for the growth of everyone involved.
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Summary
An established CPA mentor is a professional who supports aspiring CPAs toward licensure and career growth by providing essential advice, insights, skills, and networking opportunities. Finding the right mentor requires actively putting in the work and looking for someone admired or joining a CPA society.
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What is a CPA mentor? A mentor is a professional who is already established in her or his career, with whom you develop a professional relationship and from whom you learn and grow in your career.
Specifically for your path towards CPA licensure, a mentor can be anyone who supports your journey and helps guide you toward reaching your CPA goals. This may be in the form of providing tips on how to prepare for and pass the exam, motivation on the benefits of being a CPA, real-life examples of exam concepts that have you stumped, or career advice as you determine the right direction after licensure.
Why find a CPA mentor?
The benefits of a mentor as you’re working to become a CPA and grow as an accountant are numerous.
- Advice: As they say, knowledge is power. Your CPA mentor has likely been in your shoes and can help you with everything from logistics support to CPA study motivation to career counsel. For example, maybe you ask your CPA mentor for their best tip to effectively prepare for the CPA Exam? Or maybe you ask, which Discipline section is right for me? Whatever your question, a CPA mentor is the perfect source for sound career and CPA advice.
- Insights: If your CPA mentor is in public accounting, he/she can give you experience-based insights about how to succeed in your current role, job pathways for growth, and other opportunities that you may not have even known existed! If she/he is not in the industry, your mentor can still provide insights that are universal to growing as a professional, including soft skills that you can develop and helping you think through your options to discern the best path for your advancement.
- Skills: Especially if your CPA mentor is an accounting professional, you can learn valuable skillsets and tips to improve your job performance. Likewise, your mentor may be able to pass along information about learning opportunities like workshops and events, which help with your training and grow your professional community.
- Opportunities: A CPA mentor can serve as a champion of your success to other people in her or his network, introducing you to professionals from which you can learn and with whom you could potentially work. While mentors certainly are not tasked with the responsibility of finding you any position, they may recommend you for an opportunity that arises and for which they believe you would be a good fit. In that sense, your CPA mentor may also agree to serve as a professional reference when you apply for new job positions.
How do you find a CPA mentor?
Finding the right CPA mentor is important: above all, mentor/mentees form a relationship and professional friendship that requires investment on both sides. You want to choose your mentor carefully, and she or he will need to do the same. These steps can help guide you toward choosing a mentor that will result in a positive relationship on both sides.
Put in the work
Mentors may come into your life organically and unexpectedly, but that’s not always the case. In fact, you may have to actively search for the right CPA mentor—and that’s okay! Don’t be afraid to put in the work and put yourself out there as you look for the right mentor. But also know that asking someone to mentor you requires their time and investment; honor that request by being ready to invest yourself, too, with clear communication, preparation, and action steps based on your conversations.
Find someone you look up to
You want a CPA mentor that you trust, respect, and want to emulate. Look for a someone that you’ve seen in action in a professional capacity—perhaps within your organization who can give you insights about the company and succeeding within your role, or from another business whose work ethic and professional wisdom you admire.
Consider your dream job
Consider looking for a CPA mentor who holds a job similar to one that you aspire to achieve. While not a requirement for a good mentor, a professional who already holds your “dream job” can give you advice on how to prepare for that role, as well as what skills and credentials you need to get there.
Join your state CPA society
CPA state societies provide a fantastic community-building resource for young and seasoned professionals alike. By joining your state’s CPA society, you can meet and learn from other CPAs (or aspiring CPAs) and potentially find your CPA mentor.
Maintaining a relationship with your CPA mentor
Once you’ve established a CPA mentor relationship, it’s important to maintain it and take advantage of all that your mentor can teach you. Here are some tips to help make it happen:
- Establish a recurring meeting. Whether it’s monthly or quarterly, find a rhythm that works for both of you and stick to it.
- Be honest. Getting the most of your CPA mentor relationship means being open and sharing about your current role and your future goals.
- Be humble. You chose your mentor for a reason, so take her or his advice seriously and look for ways to make it actionable for you.
- Ask questions. Use your mentor as a resource! Ask questions and take the advice on board to grow as a professional.
Get free guidance on the CPA Exam
While having a CPA mentor provides helpful support, earning your license also requires dedicate study and exam prep on your part. Get started with this free downloadable guide to the CPA Exam: from format to content to study tips, and more.
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