1,200 Pass the CPA Exam This Year... Pass Rate at 27.9%

The Financial Supervisory Service announced on September 3 that 1,200 candidates passed the 60th Certified Public Accountant Examination for 2025, which is 50 fewer than last year. The pass rate was 27.9%.

The average score among test-takers was 57.5 points, an increase of 1.3 points compared to the previous year. By subject, Financial Management had the highest average score at 62.3 points, while Advanced Financial Accounting II had the lowest at 55.0 points. The top scorer was Ryu Jaeseok, a 24-year-old third-year student at Korea University, with a total score of 461.4 points. The youngest successful candidate was Choi Sunghun, a 20-year-old second-year student at Korea University, and the oldest was Choi Yunseok, aged 37.

By candidate type, those who passed the first round in 2024 and deferred their second round accounted for the largest group, with 896 individuals (74.7%). They were followed by repeat candidates (174 people, 14.5%) and first-time candidates who took both rounds in the same year (130 people, 10.8%).

The average age of successful candidates was 27.2 years, up 0.3 years from the previous year. By age group, those in their late 20s accounted for the largest proportion at 65.8%. The proportion of female successful candidates was 37.4%, a decrease of 0.4 percentage points from last year. By major, candidates from business-related fields accounted for 70.5%, up 0.1 percentage points from the previous year.

The number of partial passers increased by 241 from the previous year to 2,027. The Financial Supervisory Service designates as partial passers those who passed the first round this year and scored at least 60% in individual subjects of the second round (excluding final passers). These candidates will be exempt from taking those subjects in the second round next year.

Final results can be checked on the Financial Supervisory Service Certified Public Accountant Examination website. The announcement for the 61st Certified Public Accountant Examination for 2026 will be posted on the website in November this year. Related examination documents can be submitted through the Financial Supervisory Service Certified Public Accountant Examination website during the second half of the year.