CPA Exam in Pennsylvania

 

The Pennsylvania State Board of Accountancy contact number is 1-717-783-1404. The email address is: accounta@pados.dos.state.pa.us

 

 

URL for CPA Exam Information:

 

http://www.dos.state.pa.us/DOS/site/default.asp

 

The Pennsylvania Institute of CPAs (PICPA) tries to provide help to students interested in an accounting career and to CPA candidates. The contact number is (215) 735-2635 (http://www.picpa.org).

 

Other States

 

A summary of the CPA licensing requirements in all states can be found by going to the link below to the National Association of State Boards of Accountancy (NASBA), as well as contact information for each licensing authority. http://www.nasba.org/nasbaweb.nsf/lp

 

There are significant differences among the various states in required educational background and required work experience. While all candidates take a Uniform CPA Exam, prepared by the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants (AICPA), the individual states issue the license to practice as a CPA. Most states, but not Pennsylvania, require 150 hours of education as a condition for receiving a CPA license. If you are not planning to reside in Pennsylvania after graduation you should go to the link for the National Association of State Boards of Accountancy to obtain contact information for the state board of accountancy for the jurisdiction where you plan to reside.

Unofficial Summary of the Current Pennsylvania CPA Law Residency

 

At the time the applicant first takes the examination, the applicant must be a resident of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania or be employed full-time in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania under the supervision of a licensee or have graduated from a college or university in the Commonwealth Pennsylvania.

Required Education

 

Note: you do not need to have completed 150 hours of education to be eligible to sit for the CPA exam in Pennsylvania. Candidates who hold bachelors degrees but do not have 150 hours of education and 36 semester hours of relevant course work are still eligible to sit for the exam and become CPAs if they meet the minimum requirements of the current law (24 hours of course work and two years of experience, as described below) The State Board of Accountancy "recommends" that candidates obtain 150 hours of education and provides an incentive for doing so by reducing the required work experience from two years to one year, as described below under required work experience..

 

AICPA. Beginning in the year 2000 the American Institute of CPAs (AICPA) requires that new applicants for full membership (students may be associate members) have 150 hours of education. A masters degree is not required. Membership in the AICPA is voluntary and not a requirement to be a CPA. CPA licenses are issued by the official licensing authorities (State Boards of Accountancy) of the various states. The AICPA prepares and grades the Uniform CPA Exam and reports the results to the respective states, where the decisions concerning required education, work experience and licensing are made.

 

In Pennsylvania, applicants may qualify to sit for the CPA exam under one of the following requirements:

 

·           Bachelors Degree Holders

Applicants must have graduated with a Baccalaureate degree from a college or university approved at the time of graduation by the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Department of Education and also completed at least 24 semester credits in accounting, auditing, business law, finance, information systems and tax subjects of a content satisfactory to the board, not necessarily as a part of his undergraduate work.

 

·           Masters and other Post-Graduate Degree Holders

Must have graduated with a Master's degree or other post-graduate degree from a college or university approved at the time of graduation by the Department of Education and completed at least 24 semester credits in accounting, auditing, business law, finance, information systems and tax subjects of a content satisfactory to the board, not necessarily as a part of his undergraduate or graduate work.

 

·        150 Hour Option (qualify for reduced required work experience) Have graduated with a Baccalaureate or higher degree from a college or university approved at the time of graduation by the Department of Education, and completed a total of 150 semester credits of post-secondary education, including at least 24 semester credits in accounting, auditing, business law, finance, information systems and tax subjects of a content satisfactory to the board, and an additional 12 semester credits in accounting auditing and tax subjects of a content satisfactory to the board, not necessarily as part of their undergraduate or graduate work.

 

·           Required Work Experience Candidates who have completed a baccalaureate degree need to complete two years (3,200 hours) of experience (including 800 hours of attest activity) in order to be certified. Candidates holding a masters or other post-graduate degree, and bachelors degree holders who have satisfied the 150 hours of education requirements, need only one year of experience (1600 hours), including 400 hours of attest activity.

 

• New Computerized CPA Exam

Starting this spring, CPA candidates will be able to take the exam on line in a number of certified testing centers around the state. The exam format has changed considerably. Candidates should go to the following URL, operated by the Pennsylvania Institute of CPAs (PICPA) for additional information about the content of the exam and required registration procedures. http://www.cpazone.org/index.asp