Getting Your Accounting Degree

Do you have an aptitude for accounting and business? If so, you might want to pursue an accounting degree. Read our perspective on how to choose a U.S. college/university, our advice about taking the CPA exam, and our list of job options that might be available to you.

If your goal is to become a certified public accountant (CPA), you will likely need to earn 150 college credits including a minimum of a bachelor's (or baccalaureate) degree. It is reasonable to expect that you will earn 30 of these credits in accounting courses and another 30 in business and/or economics courses. (The exact requirements vary by state.)

Not all colleges offer an accounting degree program. Of those that do, not all programs offer the accounting courses a student needs to take in order to pass the CPA exam. You need a comprehensive understanding of accounting prior to taking the CPA exam, so my advice is to be smart about choosing your college. Not all accounting degree programs are created equal—find a college with an excellent reputation in the teaching of accounting. It should have the rigor necessary to prepare you for the CPA exam, as well as for long-term success in the accounting profession. That being said, don't think you are limited to expensive, ivy-league schools—you may be surprised at the number of affordable state schools that offer excellent accounting degree programs.

How does one go about the task of evaluating accounting programs at various colleges? Here is my advice: First, contact each college that you are interested in and inquire as to whether or not the school's accounting program meets the educational requirements of your state's CPA licensing agency. (Since the exact requirements vary with each state in the U.S., you should determine what is required by the state in which you plan to receive your certification or licensure.)

Next, research the accounting program itself. For each college or university, I suggest the following:

1. Ask to see the last five years of pass rates on CPA exams as taken by the school's graduates. A high quality accounting program will produce a high percentage of students who pass the CPA exam. (Note: If the college only cites one impressive statistic from 1997, that isn't enough. The college may have gotten lucky a decade ago when one exceptionally bright student achieved the highest score in the nation. Find out how all the accounting students have been doing on the exam in more recent years.)
2. Look at the college's career services and placement office. Ask if national and regional CPA firms and large corporations regularly visit the campus to recruit graduates. Is there a high placement rate for accounting students? Are those students getting quality jobs in their area of choice? A first-rate placement office combined with an excellent accounting program will attract recruiters, and this will make your search for an appealing, full-time position much easier.

3. Are there student organizations that operate within the college's accounting program? Does the college have a chapter of the national honorary accounting fraternity Beta Alpha Psi? Is there a student chapter of IMA (Institute of Management Accountants)? If these are not available, inquire whether the accounting program has an active accounting society or accounting club.

   
   

   Being a member (and later, being an officer) of a student organization will teach you more about the accounting profession, help you develop leadership skills, and give you valuable experience interacting/networking with accounting professionals. It also provides the opportunity for you and your professors to get to know each other better, something that becomes important as you begin to list their names as references on applications. Students who served as officers in their accounting organizations are often sought after by firms—these companies understand that excellent leadership and communication skills can be just as important as excellent grades.

4. Inquire about accounting internships that are coordinated by the college's accounting department. Not only will a paid, full-time internship be an impressive addition to your resume, it will also give you valuable, on-the-job experience. Many people assert that their internship was the best thing they did in college: it helped them to narrow their focus in terms of career choices, it opened up new avenues of networking, and it infused them with renewed motivation to finish their coursework and prepare for the CPA exam.

Uniform CPA Exam

In addition to the 150 credits and the college degree, you will need to pass the Uniform CPA Examination. The CPA exam is a very rigorous, academic-style test, and for that reason, I recommend that you take the exam as soon as you are eligible—this will typically be near the end of your time in college. In order to be as well prepared as possible, many students take a CPA review course before sitting for the actual exam. Some colleges might offer such a review course on campus. If a campus does not offer a review course, you can usually find a CPA review course in the larger cities. CPA review manuals are also available for self study.

As the title suggests, the Uniform CPA Examination is a uniform exam, meaning it is the same whether it is taken by a person in Pennsylvania or a person in California. It is a 14-hour exam that consists of the following sections:

1. Auditing and Attestation (4.5 hours)
2. Business Environment and Concepts (2.5 hours)
3. Financial Accounting and Reporting (4 hours)
4. Regulation (3 hours)

I want to emphasize this point: In order to pass the CPA exam, you need to know the material taught in your accounting courses. Don't simply memorize facts and formulas, but make the effort to really learn the underlying concepts and principles. When studying a particular topic, ask yourself "Why is this the case?" or "What is the reason for this rule?"

A weak accounting program staffed by undemanding professors who give easy exams and high grades may, in the end, be a waste of your time and money. Those high test scores you receive may give you a false sense of confidence when it comes time to take the CPA exam. (It may interest you to know that the pass rate on the CPA exam is much lower than the pass rate on college accounting exams.) Again, find an accounting program with a solid reputation, one that will prepare you to be a successful professional.

(For those of you who may still be in high school, challenge yourself to take the harder math classes, as well as an additional class or two in English—both will make your college coursework go a bit smoother.)

CMA Exam

After you have passed the CPA exam, I want to encourage you to sit for the CMA exam as well. CMA is an acronym for Certified Management Accountant. When both credentials are listed after a name ("CPA, CMA") it is likely that more job offers and/or a higher salary may follow.

CMAs learn management-level skills that are useful in areas such as business performance, information management, and strategic planning. As a CPA, you may work for a CPA firm or you may work for a firm that has a broader business mission. Either way, your clients will benefit from the knowledge and expertise that a combined CPA/CMA can offer.

Some content of the CMA exam is similar to the CPA exam. Since you are not required to take the entire CMA exam at one sitting, I recommend taking one or two of the parts soon after taking the CPA exam. When you combine your recent preparation for the CPA exam with the use of a CMA review manual, you will be well on your way toward earning the CMA credential.

Here are the parts of the CMA exam:

1. Business analysis (3 hours)
2. Management accounting and reporting (4 hours)
3. Strategic management (3 hours)
4. Business applications (3 hours)

Your accounting degree plus a CPA designation (and perhaps a CMA designation as well) will provide you with a great set of skills that will open up many opportunities. Many CEOs, company presidents, executive vice-presidents, and successful entrepreneurs have accounting backgrounds. Here is a listing of just some of the positions held by men and women with accounting degrees:

Chief Financial Officer (CFO)
Vice President - Finance
Corporate Controller
Divisional Controller
Plant Controller
Assistant Controller
Director of Accounting
Accounting Manager
Chief Accountant
Accounting Supervisor
Staff Accountant
U.S. Accounting Research
Financial Analyst
Supervisor of Special Accounting Studies
Cost Accounting Manager
Cost Accounting Supervisor
Director of Budgeting
Budgeting Manager
Credit Manager
Director of Internal Audit
Internal Auditor

Many CPAs work in the following areas of public accounting:

1. Auditing
2. Tax
3. Forensic Accounting
4. Mergers & Acquisitions
5. Administrative Services/Consulting, and others

The list of potential employers is vast, including banks, insurance companies, investment firms, government agencies (FBI, SEC, IRS), not-for-profit organizations, as well as just about every for-profit business imaginable, from manufacturing plants to health clinics to casinos.

Because the material covered here is considered an introduction to the topic of accounting degrees, there are many complexities not presented. You should always consult with an accounting professional for assistance with your own specific circumstances.

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