How to Become a Certified Fraud Examiner

The role of certified fraud examiner is in an area of the accounting industry called forensic accounting. It is one in which you will investigate white collar crime such as embezzlement of funds from a company, insider trading or other corrupt activity concerning the financial aspects of a business. You do have to be a Certified Public Accountant in order to meet the eligibility requirements of obtaining the certification you need to work in this type of job. This, in itself, is a prestigious designation for an accountant that requires professional ethics, work experience, at least 150 semester hours of additional study beyond an undergraduate degree and a passing score on each of four parts of a comprehensive exam.

The Association of Certified Fraud Examiners administers the certification exams and requirements you need to become a fraud examiner. The preliminary requirements are that you be a member of the association in good standing, meet the experience and educational requirements, be of high moral character and abide by the code of ethics set down for accountants working in this field. The work experience includes at least two years of working directly in the detection of fraud. This can include working in any of the following areas:

• Cases involving investigation of possible fraudulent activities
• Internal or external auditing
• Criminology
• Loss prevention, which could include environmental accounting
  

Once you meet these requirements, you are eligible to write the examination to become a certified fraud examiner. The exam consists of 500 questions, which are divided into four sections. Each section contains 125 questions. The sections of the exam deal with topics such as Fraud Investigation and Examination, Criminology and Ethics, Financial Transactions, and the Legal Elements of Fraud. It takes quite a bit of time to obtain the qualifications needed for this type of work. You can undertake a degree program in forensic accounting that will help you prepare for this exam. You can also study for the exam while working as a CPA by studying independently, attending seminar courses or taking online courses. Even when you do achieve certification, you still have to engage in continuing education to renew your certificate every two years.



With a designation as a certified fraud examiner, you will not only advance in your career, but you have many more employment possibilities open to you. You can obtain a position with the IRS, for example. Some of the job openings that require CFE certification include that of audit specialist, technical specialist, management consultant, bankruptcy analyst and many others. You do need to have to have an ability to pay attention to details in order to pick up on finances that may be hidden in other areas. Excellent researching skills are a must. Spending time at the courthouse researching documents is a part of this job as is testifying in court based on your findings in an investigation. You will need to have excellent interpersonal skills for dealing with all types of professionals. A background or courses in law enforcement would be a definite asset in this position.