This is the 48th season Murray State University (MSU) has participated in the annual Volunteer Income Tax Assistance (VITA) program hosted by the MSU Accounting Department and Beta Alpha Psi. This Internal Revenue Service (IRS) sponsored program offers the Murray community free tax preparation for low to moderate income and elderly taxpayers.  The United Way of Murray-Calloway County partners with MSU expanding our efforts in the community. Each year four tax preparation sessions are offered on the MSU campus.    

The VITA program is organized and ran by MSU student volunteers that graciously give their time to support this amazing program. VITA offers several positions in which student volunteers may be involved. Greeters welcome the client, explain the process, assist in completing required documentation, and then introduce the taxpayer to the Interviewer. Interviewers evaluate client documentation and complete the required intake questionnaire. Working together, two student volunteers prepare every return based on their level of certification. A Reviewer then reviews the return prior to meeting with the client for approval and e-filing on their behalf. Experienced VITA volunteers may be appointed Site Coordinators which are readily available at each session to assist and answer any questions volunteers or taxpayers may have. 

Student Site Coordinators additionally assist with advertising, coordinating volunteer positions and hours, compiling and submitting completed volunteer certification documentation, and ongoing organization of operations. Beta Alpha Psi, the Accounting Society, along with Accounting Faculty all participate in recruiting and encouraging students to volunteer.

To become a volunteer, students must meet IRS certification requirements. MSU offers two onsite training sessions with online training also available for students unable to attend. Regardless of position, all volunteers complete ethics training and must pass the Volunteer Standards of Conduct Exam and Intake/Interview and Quality Review Exam. Students may then choose one or more of the Tax Law exams in which tax returns are prepared to the level of certification. Tax Law certifications include Basic, Advanced, and Foreign. Student volunteers also receive training on TaxSlayer Pro software used to generate returns.

VITA offers students hands-on tax preparation skills with certifications along with public experience through working with actual clients in a professional style setting. Professionalism and ethical behavior is emphasized along with the importance of community service outreach creating invaluable tools for each student’s career. 

Training!

If you choose to volunteer, you will need to attend training on Friday, February 7th. We will host in-person training all day that day, with lunch provided by ATA! Additional training information can be found below based on the level of certification you choose. Certification tests are taken online via Link and Learn Certifications (see the Additional Resources below for more information).

Certifications:

To participate in VITA, you must first certify by taking a series of online tests. The certification level you wish to achieve then dictates which training(s) you need to attend. You can volunteer to be an Administrative Assistant, a Staff Accountant, or a Senior Accountant. 

• Administrative Assistant (no course prerequisites - anyone can volunteer):

      Our administrative assistants are the first faces our clients see. Administrative assistants can play many roles including, door greeter, welcome desk associate, parking associate, waiting room attendant, and document scanner. Administrative assistants must:

• • Attend the universal volunteer training session on Friday, February 7th from 11:30 am to 12:30 pm. This is an in-person training and will prepare you for the two tests you must pass. 

  • Complete Form 13615 - Volunteer Standards of Conduct Agreement

  • Pass Volunteer Standards of Conduct Test (80% or better)

  • Pass Intake/Interview and Quality Review Test (80% or better)

• Staff Accountant (must be enrolled in or have completed ACC 302):

      Our staff accountants are responsible for preparing basic returns. Staff accountants must: 

• • Attend the basic and universal volunteer training session on Friday, February 7th from 10:00 am to 12:30 pm. This is an in-person training and will prepare you for the three tests you must pass. 

  • Complete Form 13615 - Volunteer Standards of Conduct Agreement

  • Pass Volunteer Standards of Conduct Test (80% or better)

  • Pass Intake/Interview and Quality Review Test (80% or better)

  • Pass the Basic Test (80% or better)

• Senior Accountant (must have completed ACC 302):

      Our senior accountants are responsible for preparing advanced returns. Seniors also have the opportunity to certify for Foreign Student tax preparation (however this is optional). Senior accountants must: 

• • Attend the universal and advanced volunteer training session on Friday, February 7th from 11:30 am to 4:00 pm. This is an in-person training and will prepare you for the three tests you must pass. 

  • Complete Form 13615 - Volunteer Standards of Conduct Agreement

  • Pass Volunteer Standards of Conduct Test (80% or better)

  • Pass Intake/Interview and Quality Review Test (80% or better)

  • Pass the Advanced Test (80% or better)

  • If certifying for foreign student tax return preparation, you must also pass the Foreign Student test (80% or better) - training for foreign student certification is held separately from the Friday, February 7th training and will most likely be virtual. 

Once you have certified, you must send copies of all of your certifications to Dr. Hoffman via email (shoffman8@murraystate.edu). 

Additional Resources

Valuable links you may need/want are also:

• Link and Learn Website: https://apps.irs.gov/app/vita/.

• Link and Learn Certifications: https://linklearncertification.com.

  • Note: Users will not be able to use their old username and password to access the site, you must login using the email address you used to access the system last year. To access the new site, users from last year will need to use the forgot password link (as shown below) and follow the prompts. New volunteers will need to click on the Create new account button and follow the prompts.

• TaxSlayerPro Practice Lab: https://vita.taxslayerpro.com/IRSTraining/en/Account/.

             Password: TRAINPROWEB

External training links:

• https://prosperitynow.org/vita-train

• https://www.vitaresources.net/