POP Saves Members Money

By Tom Hall

To lower the costs of CPE, consider subscribing to the Foundation for Accounting Education's Pay One Price (POP) program. POP continues to attract more members--in its first season, which ended on August 31, nearly 1,300 people purchased POP passes and registered for more than 8,000 courses at reduced fees.

"It's one of the best things FAE has ever done. Education is the mission, and POP is bringing us all together," said Leonard H. Ginsburg, a sole practitioner from the Bronx.

With the POP program, members purchase a pass for $795 and can attend unlimited FAE CPE programs for one year, either at no additional cost or at a significantly reduced rate. While the program is helpful to all members, sole practitioners can particularly benefit from the savings.

"The cost per course is so low, I can take programs on more specific topics, enabling me to provide better services to my more specialized clients," Ginsberg said.

FAE developed the POP program not only as a cost-saving benefit for members, but also to encourage them to view CPE as a re-emphasis on the profession's commitment to lifelong learning as opposed to merely meeting a certain number of credits in a mandated requirement.

"Our slogan 'stop buying credits, start buying education' isn't something we just say off-the-cuff," said James Hardenberg, director of FAE. "We hope members will stop selecting courses based solely on price and will instead look at what skills they need to learn to better serve their clients and employers."

From feedback received from POP pass holders, it seems that the program is working in this regard.

"POP allowed me the freedom to take the programs I wanted to take. I was able to enhance my skills and better serve my clients," said Abdur-Rahim Abdullah (Westchester) of Abdur-Rahim Abdullah & Co. "It also took the stress out of my CPE--August 31 was not a consideration because I took courses year-round, as they came to me, rather than just in the busy season leading up to the mandatory deadline. POP therefore freed me from the constraints of both money and time."

Since many individuals outside of public accounting often find it more difficult to receive educational reimbursement from their employers, the POP cost savings are appreciated by CPAs in industry. These members represented nearly a quarter of the pass holders in the first season.

"Being a member in industry, I have to keep expenses to a minimum. Compared to five full-price courses, POP represents a huge savings," said Amy Lee Harrington (Westchester), of Nations Credit Commercial Corp.