<p>Hi guys</p>
<p>I am an accounting student: I have a two year non accouting degree from another state. </p>
<p>Currently i am in texas taking the courses at Austin community college required to transfer to UT Austin Mccombs for undergrad accounting major to sit for TX CPA</p>
<p>Considering two options:</p>
<p>Start from scratch finish BBA+MPA from Mccombs. Very expensive and time consuming
or
use my already earned transfer credits------finish undergraduate some other univ. and then</p>
<p>Take CPA Professional certificate at austin community college ( it is fully approved by Tx state CPA board). once completed I can sit for the CPA exam. It is equal to master's.</p>
<p>What i want to know: what kind of difference it would make: in interms of networking, job opportunities. How would the employers view this? </p>
<p>What would I 'write in' on my resume to let the employer know that I am eligible to sit CPA exam. P.S. I wont be able to write MS in accounting from Mccombs.</p>
<p>Has anyone even heard of this program
Thank you for help</p>
<p>You should definitely complete a bachelors degree first, and then apply to a masters program, or just simply take additional classes. You said that you have a two year degree. Is it an associate degree? Even if it is not related to accounting, you could use those credits towards 150 hour requirement, and skip pursuing masters. You will have job and networking opportunities while pursuing your bachelors in accounting. Just make sure that your potential school is accredited, and is recruited by major companies.</p>
<p>I find this interesting because I decided to get a masters in accounting instead of the CPA certificate. I also went to UT Austin for undergrad.</p>
<p>The best deal in higher education is taking accounting classes at a community college accredited by the state accountancy board. Of course this is for people that already have a college degree. I think it is a great idea if someone graduated with a non-business degree and wants to take specialized coursework in accounting and become eligible to sit for the CPA.</p>
<p>I already had a degree and I had already had a MBA and elected the masters program because of prestige. I wanted to say I had a masters in accounting. It cost me about about $15k more in tuition. I did make some more contacts and I know that I received great instruction so it was worth it.</p>
<p>The number one criteria for CPA eligibility is to have a degree. The difference in cost from one state school to another in Texas is minor when compared to networking, prestige, and opportunities. If you get accepted to the business program at UT you should accept. If you go to UT and don’t major in accounting then go to a community college to get the accounting hours after you graduate.</p>
<p>The other criteria is to have 30 hours of accounting beyond the intro classes, 150 total hours, and 24 hours of business courses counting with no more than 6 hours per field.
In other words, they want you to have a MBA with 30 hours of accounting.</p>
<p>As far as writing on a resume that you are CPA eligible, just state ‘CPA eligible’ or 30 hours of accounting. </p>
<p>To summarize, go to UT if you can. It is not going to be any faster to go to another school as most colleges have similar requirements for the first 2 years. The basic lower division requirements are calculus, financial accounting, managerial accounting, and statistics. Everything else is the same regardless of major. This is the same for most colleges for an accounting degree. I think you need to research how much time you can save by majoring in something else. My guess is no more than a semester. Remember you can also test out of classes like economics, statistics, marketing, management. I think you can even take some self paced classes at the extension center at UT.
You can also just gain entry into the MPA program with a degree in another field.</p>
<p>Good luck!</p>
<p>Thank you all for replies
I also want to have a plan B
just in case for whatever reason I don’t get accepted to mccombs. I have a gpa of 4.0. And currently taking the required classes. I can write reasonable essays too
if all else fails where should I finish my undergrad in accounting
any ideas</p>