<p>I am in the Business program at my school as of now and i plan on getting my CPA also. Is it smarter to get the CPA cert. first of get my MBA first?</p>
<p>Most schools want you to have work experience (2-5) before they let you into the MBA program.</p>
<p>A CPA license is something that you need 150 credit hours to sit for. I think it's smarter to get the CPA, and then you might find you don't even need the MBA.</p>
<p>or get an MBA to satisfy the 150 hours required to sit for the CPA. ;)</p>
<p>is your major actually accounting or is it just general business administration? I ask because Northeastern U has an MBA/MS Accounting program that actually qualifies you to sit for the CPA exam. its only 15 months long an dincludes 3 months paid internship. its job placement is 100 percent. the catch is that its designed for those who did NOT major in accounting. I think they have a regular MS in Accounting program that is like 2 years but i dunno if work experience is required for it.</p>
<p>a random question that is semi related to op's.</p>
<p>I majored in history, only took 1 accounting class (which i really liked). I'm thinking about maybe splurging and taking another class to see if I still like it. </p>
<p>anyways, i'm a bit confused about the 150 hour requirement. can I somehow get another major in accounting, and be well over the 150 hour requirement, and still be able to sit for the CPA exam, even though many of those classes are made up of lib arts requirements. is this advisble, knowing how difficult this exam is?</p>
<p>How less attractive would i look by having a CPA but not having a masters?</p>
<p>No, you probably won't be able to sit for the exam if you only have 2 Acc. classes.</p>
<p>My state requires at least 24 hours of accounting. </p>
<p>You don't need a Master's degree to have a CPA, but you have to meet the accounting requirements to sit for the exam. You CAN meet those requirements as an undergrad (picking up another major or double minor), but you still NEED those accounting classes (not just 2) to even be able to sit for the exam.</p>
<p>The only reason I plan to get my M.S. in Accounting after I graduate w/ a B.S. in Accounting is because the big four accounting firms don't recruit on my campus right now...but they do in the grad school I want to go to.
And from what I've read, only about 10% of the people pass the exam the first time around.</p>
<p>"anyways, i'm a bit confused about the 150 hour requirement. can I somehow get another major in accounting, and be well over the 150 hour requirement, and still be able to sit for the CPA exam, even though many of those classes are made up of lib arts requirements. is this advisble, knowing how difficult this exam is?"</p>
<p>You'll have to research the requirements of your state--each is different and some will require a master's in accounting (although most don't).</p>
<p>Whether or not you have a Master's will not make a difference in terms of recruiting or career progression (assuming its not required to take the exam). Having a CPA license is essential (and required by most firms if you want to be promoted to senior or manager). A large portion of CPAs (including Big 4 partners) do not have anything beyond a bachelor's and a CPA simply because nothing more is required--what you do and learn on the job is what's important.</p>
<p>As for the requirements for the exam, in general (again, you'll have to check with your specific state), you're required to have taken 24 credits in accounting and 24 credits in business courses. There are usually certain specific courses that you need to take within those two requirements (for example, in accounting: Int. I, Int. II, Tax, Cost, Auditing, for business: Stats, Law, Finance, IS/IT). The rest of the 150 can be made up of any courses you want provided they are taken at a 4 year university (or transferable into one). The purpose of the 150 rule is to make CPAs more educated--having a liberal arts foundation is an excellent way to fulfill the extra requirement (that's what I did--and the partners I interviewed with appreciated it). You don't necessarily need to major in accounting--although you'll probably end up doing so by taking the required courses for the exam. Keep in mind that the introductory courses (Financial and Managerial accounting) usually don't count towards the 24 credits.</p>
<p>thanks for the responses. good info. yeah, i didn't write that clearly. I know that i need more than 2 accounting classes (both to meet the 150 hour requirment and to have any chance passing the cpa exam).</p>