By William Pape, Director, Member Services

Who doesn’t want the chance to make a real positive impact on a colleague’s professional career while earning free continuing professional education (CPE)? That is the essence of the Advance-a-Career program launched in May through the end of August by the New York State Society of CPAs.

The premise of the Advance-a-Career program is simple: if a member of the Society recommends a qualified candidate for membership, he or she will, in turn, be granted a waiver for the registration fees for any Foundation for Accounting Education program of up to eight CPE credits. As there is no limit to the number of candidates who can be sponsored, there is no limit to the number of registration fees that will be waived for each member.

Qualified candidates are limited to our associate (non-CPA) member classes: associate CPA firm employees, associate international members and associate academic members. Certificates granting the registration waiver are mailed after receipt of the sponsored person’s membership dues.

The program is targeting these membership classes because the Society believes that their presence in New York state should be more adequately represented. Additionally, the Society believes everyone benefits from a more robust, diverse organization.

Hardly a week goes by without an individual relaying a story to the NYSSCPA about how membership in the Society has made a positive impact on his or her professional life. Often, these stories are about the professional and personal relationships members make through attending or helping to organize a Society statewide or chapter-sponsored event. This sort of networking and social opportunity is the soul of a professional society—one that can benefit the entire CPA profession.

Enrolling in this program is easy. The candidate can complete an online application available at www.nysscpa.org. The candidate should be sure to indicate on the application that he or she is applying via the Advance-a-Career program. Appropriate space is available for the name and member ID of the sponsoring member.

If you have any questions about the program, please contact Ben Kaplan, NYSSCPA recruitment specialist, at 212-719-8360 or bkaplan@nysscpa.org.