Whether you’re in the U.S. or not, there’s a lot for CPA candidates to reflect on and be thankful for as we start to wind down the year.

In no particular order …

Easing Of CPA Professional Requirements

Nearly all states and licensing jurisdictions have (thankfully) adopted some form of the Uniform Accountancy Act, which reduces the minimum experience requirement to earn your CPA license to one year instead of two and expands the types of qualifying experience. Here’s some background. 

Caffeine

Energy drinks. Coffee. Tea. Who cares what form it comes in? Caffeine is amazing and it has now been proven to help you live longer. 

https://twitter.com/gibbaayyy/status/669005481331978240

Study Buddies (a.k.a Friends)

Whether they’re helping you prepare for the evil FAR section or just there to talk you down after after a lackluster score, study buddies/friends are just the best. You should totally send them a thank-you note for putting up with you.

My study-buddy for the CPA exam via /r/aww http://t.co/CZjFi07v5L #Cute #Animals #aww #pics #Pets pic.twitter.com/aNQwMyCG0A

— UPBEAT + (@upbeatstories) March 27, 2015

Change Is More Than a Year Away

The AICPA has announced they will launch the next version of the CPA Exam in Q2 2017. A greater emphasis will be placed on testing higher-order cognitive skills and there will be more task-based simulations and an increase in total testing time. Learn more about the changes in our recent webinar. To the profession, these changes are necessary to ensure the readiness of newly licensed CPAs. But change is daunting. The good news is, with well over a year to go, you still have time to pass the CPA Exam before major changes kick in.

https://twitter.com/ariellegt/status/572820914267660288

The New-And-Way-Better Microsoft Excel

Have you not tried it yet? It’s absolutely great. Not only is  Excel 2016 consistent across PC, Mac, Web, and mobile operating systems, it also comes with a slew of new shortcuts, features and chart types that make it a dream for accountants. For once, the $70  Office upgrade looks to be more than worth it.

Excel launched in 1987 & it'll be on the CPA exam in 2018 because it's going to catch on in our industry pretty soon. http://t.co/9W7oqeAqF0

— Greg Kyte, CPA (@gregkyte) June 26, 2015

What are you thankful for this year? Tell us in the comments.