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As a general rule, most states now require
first time CPA exam candidates to have 150 hours of basic
education. The ASU Bachelor of Science in Accounting is
126 hours. While a uniform CPA Exam is given, minimum qualifications
to sit for the CPA Exam can vary from state to state. Access
to rules for specific states is available through the
website, http://www.nasba.org/nasbaweb.nsf/exam
.
Arkansas’s rules are available at the
following website,
http://www.arkansas.gov/asbpa/rules.html
. Those interested in the CPA exam will need to be familiar
with the specific residency and coursework requirements
of the state where they plan to take the CPA exam and discuss
these rules with their advisor in planning specific electives
in their program of study.
First time candidates for the CPA Exam in Arkansas must
have a minimum of 150 hours of college credit hours to sit
for the CPA exam including 30 semester hours of accounting
at the graduate or undergraduate level with a minimum grade
of “C” in each course.
ASU students have four tracks they can use
to prepare themselves for the CPA exam:
1) A Bachelor's of Science in Accounting (126
hours) plus the Master's of Accountancy (MAcc) (31 hrs).
2) A Bachelor's of Science in Accounting (126 hours) plus another College of Business's graduate degree such as the Master's
in Business Administration (34 hrs) or the Master's in Information
Systems and E-Commerce (31 hrs).
3) A Bachelor's from the College of Business with a major
other than Accounting (such as finance or information systems)
plus 30 semester hours of accounting courses at the undergraduate
or graduate level.
4) A Bachelor's degree other than in a business areas plus
24 hours of course work similar to the College of Business
core and 30 hours of undergraduate or graduate course work
in accounting.
The first and second tracks above (BS in Accounting plus
MAcc or other graduate business degree) are recommended
to prepare for the CPA Exam in Arkansas, but the last two
approaches provide flexibility for mature students coming
back for a second degree. A special requirement in Arkansas
is that your preparation must include coverage of governmental/nonprofit
accounting. Accounting advisors will help students build
this requirement into their undergraduate coursework for
students planning to sit for the CPA Exam in Arkansas.
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