Surgent Launches Gamified CPE Courses to Make it More Fun

Surgent Accounting & Financial Education, a division of KnowFully Learning Group, today announced the launch of “Max the Tax”, the first series of a new “Surgent Interactive” line of short, game-based online courses to keep accounting, tax and financial professionals engaged while they develop skills and earn Continuing Education (CE) credit.

“Max the Tax” is the first series from “Surgent Interactive”, a new line of short, game-based online courses to keep accounting, tax and financial professionals engaged while they develop skills and earn CE credits.

“Max the Tax” is a series of courses in which the learner plays the role of an Internal Revenue Service (IRS) agent interviewing various taxpayers and adjusting their tax returns based on their answers. Learners apply their knowledge of tax laws and earn a score based on the quality of the interview and the adjustments they make.

“At Surgent, we have a learner-first philosophy and ‘Max the Tax’ is a perfect example of our commitment to creating innovative, high-impact educational experiences,” said Liz Kolar, Surgent executive vice president. “With most CE courses, the learner passively consumes the material they’re being taught. Surgent Interactive courses engage learners in various tasks and challenges, which stimulates critical thinking and increases knowledge retention.”

All four stages of a “Max the Tax” course engage the learner with a task they must complete before advancing: 1) Investigate and review information about their virtual client; 2) Interview the virtual client to validate claims and uncover pertinent information; 3) Use the information gathered to complete a given task, from completing a tax form to performing an inventory count; and, 4) Submit their completed work for evaluation. After the game is completed, learners are given a final exam on the content addressed in the game to earn their CE credit.

The “Max the Tax” course series covers common 1040 items, schedule C, and common deductions and is accredited by the National Association of the State Boards of Accountancy and the IRS. Each course covers a wide range of timely topics, including taxation of cryptocurrency mining, the CARES Act, ARPA unemployment compensation exclusion, home office deduction, alimony payments and more.

“Max the Tax” is designed for Certified Professional Accountants (CPA), Enrolled Agents (EA), or any tax preparation professional, including Annual Filing Season Program participants. The new series of courses is suitable for professionals at any stage in their career and offers learners a convenient, easily accessible alternative to lecture-style material.

“Accounting and finance professionals are incredibly busy, especially this time of year, and we want to give them options to create their own personal learning journey,” said Kolar.

A one-credit “Max the Tax” course is $29 and learners have one year from the date of purchase to take the course and earn credit. A subscription model will be available as more courses are added to Surgent Interactive in the coming weeks and months, including games related to auditing, ethics, emerging technologies and more.

For more information about the “Max the Tax” course series and Surgent Interactive, visit https://www.surgentcpe.com/surgent-interactive/