Anyone here passed the CPFO exam? What topics should I focus on while studying?

Question

Hi everyone,

I’m currently preparing for the GFOA Certified Public Finance Officer (CPFO) exam and was hoping to hear from those of you who’ve already taken it.

What topics or sections did you find most challenging or important to focus on? Were there any areas that were more heavily weighted or commonly overlooked by candidates?

Also, if you used any specific resources (books, courses, practice exams), I’d really appreciate your recommendations.

Thanks in advance, any insights would be a big help!

Answer 1

I passed the GFOA Certified Public Finance Officer (CPFO) certification exam last year and have been working in public finance for more than five years, mostly at the municipal level. Happy to share some thoughts that might help with your CPFO exam preparation.

Focus most on the GAFR section (accounting and financial reporting). It’s definitely the most technical and heavily weighted. Make sure you’re comfortable with fund accounting, GASB standards, and reading ACFRs.

Budgeting and debt management are also important, but a bit more intuitive if you already work in public finance. Investment and treasury is trickier than it looks, don’t skip it.

A lot of people overlook internal controls and ethics, but they do show up in CPFO exam questions.

I mainly used GFOA’s LMS courses and the Blue Book. The CPFO practice exam from CertBoosters was super helpful, It lines up well with the GFOA material and the questions felt pretty similar to the real exam.

Good luck, it’s a tough exam, but manageable with consistent study!

Answer 2

Hi Andrew!

I haven’t taken the CPFO myself, but I’ve heard from a few people who have gone through it.

They mentioned that it's really helpful to focus on the fundamentals of government accounting and financial reporting, those areas seem to come up a lot. Budgeting and treasury management also seem to be key sections. Some people said internal controls and debt management were a bit trickier than expected, just because they’re often overlooked during prep.

As for resources, the GFOA’s own materials are usually a good place to start. A few candidates also found online practice exams useful to get a feel for the question format.

Wishing you all the best.

And props to you for going for it! 🤞🏻

Rita

Answer 3

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Answer 4

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