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Accounting

The McAfee School of Business at Â鶹ÊÓƵ University is accredited by the Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business (AACSB). The BSBA in Accounting and the Master of Accountancy are accredited under the College's accreditation status. The Department of Accounting is not separately accredited.

Accounting Licensure Disclosures

Requirements

Requirements for the Certified Public Accountant (CPA) license vary by state and involve more than successful degree completion. Candidates for licensure need to satisfy other requirements, including but not limited to completing an application, paying a fee, passing licensure exams, and work experience.

The BSBA in Accounting by itself does not meet all the educational requirements for any states, because all states require 150 credit hours. However, candidates may go ahead and sit for the Uniform CPA exam in Tennessee prior to obtaining the 150 credit hours if they have (a) a Baccalaureate or higher degree conferred by a regionally accredited college or university recognized by the Board; and (b) At least eighteen (18) semester hours of accounting education at the upper division level, junior level courses or higher. Semester hours from internship programs may not be applied to the eighteen (18) semester hours in accounting.

To apply for an Initial CPA license in Tennessee, candidates must earn a baccalaureate degree from an accredited college or university and obtain a total of 150 semester hours of education. Education must include 30 semester hours in accounting (24 of which must be in upper division courses) and 24 semester hours in business courses. The candidate must then:

  • Pass the Uniform CPA Examination,
  • Pass an ethics examination given by the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants (AICPA) with a score of 90% or better; and
  • Complete one year of experience in accounting acceptable to the Board.

The BSBA in Accounting at Â鶹ÊÓƵ University provides at least 130 total credit hours, 27 credit hours of accounting courses and at least 30 credit hours of non-accounting business courses. Candidates would need to earn up to 20 additional credit hours to satisfy requirement 150 credit hour requirement.

Combined with a bachelor’s degree providing at least 130 credit hours, the Master of Accountancy meets all the educational requirements for Tennessee.

Other states

State licensing requirements are always subject to change at the discretion of the state licensing board. The University will routinely update this page, but we strongly recommend you inquire with your program director and with the applicable state agency to confirm your eligibility for licensure. See for more details.

Reciprocity

For purposes of reciprocity, Tennessee’s educational requirements are recognized as substantially equivalent to all other US states’ requirements, and therefore Tennessee CPA license holders can apply for a license via reciprocity with any other US state. Applicants need to pay a fee (determined by each state), submit applications and forms determined by each state, and may be subject to criminal background checks, experience requirements or other requirements as determined by each state. Some states have a “two-tier” system, in which a certificate is initially issued.

Licensure or Certification Status

The following table indicates if the Master of Accountancy curriculum Meets that state's requirements for licensure or certification; Does Not Meet that state's requirements for licensure or certification.

MAcc Professional Licensure Disclosures by State

State Credits for License Accounting Credits Additional Credits Age Citizenship Residency Meets w/ Macc Does Not Meet Related URL
Alabama 150 24 24 hours of business 19 Yes No x
Alaska 150 24 9 Econ, Blaw, Stats or Math 19 No No x
Arizona 150 36 30 "closely related" 18 No No x
Arkansas 150 30 (upper-level) 30 Business N.A. No No x
California 150 24 24 Business, 10 Ethics N.A. No No x - Only 6 hrs. of ethics available at UU vs 10
Colorado 150 27 (c or better) 6 Auditing, 3 Business Ethics, 27 Bus. Admin N.A. No No x
Connecticut 150 36 30 business or econ, 60 general N.A. No No x
Delaware 150 24 N.A. No No x
D.C. 150 24 18 No Yes x
Florida 150 30 36 upper-level business N.A. No No x
Georgia 150 30 36 general business 18 No No x
Hawaii 150 18 18 Yes No x
Idaho 150 24 24 general business 18 No Yes x
Illinois 150 30 18 No No x
Indiana 150 24 24 bus or econ 18 No No x
Iowa 150 N.A. No No x
Kansas 150 30 42 bus and gen ed, 2 classes in "legal aspects of business" or Blaw N.A. No Yes x
Kentucky 150 27 12 business 18 No No x
Louisiana 150 24 24 general business N.A. Yes Yes x
Maine 150 15 3 auditing N.A. No No x
Maryland 150 27 3 audit, 9 financial, 3 managerial, 3 federal income, 3 ethics 18 No No x
Massachusetts 150 18 No No x
Michigan 150 21 3 audit, 24 general business N.A. No No x
Minnesota 150 24 24 business N.A. No No x
Mississippi 150 24 48 upper division or grad level acc and business courses N.A. No Yes x
Missouri 150 33, 27 upper-level 1 audit course, 60 hrs of acc and other related courses 21 No Yes x
Montana 150 24 2 general business N.A. No No x
Nebraska 150 30 30 general business N.A. No Yes x
Nevada 150 30 24 general business N.A. No Yes x
New Hampshire 150 30 24 general business N.A. No No x
New Jersey 150 24 24 general business 18 No No x
New Mexico 150 30 N.A. No No x
New York 150 33 36 general business 21 No No x
North Carolina 150 30 24 general business 18 Yes No x
North Dakota 150 24 24 general business N.A. No No x
Ohio 150 30 24 general business 18 No Yes x
Oklahoma 150 30 1 audit course, 9 hrs gen bus N.A. No Yes x
Oregon 150 24 24 general business N.A. No No x
Pennsylvania 150 24 18 No Yes x
Rhode Island 150 24 24 general business N.A. No Yes x
South Carolina 150 36 (24 upper-level) 36 general business 18 No No x
South Dakota 150 24 24 general business N.A. No No x
Tennessee 150 30 (24 upper-level) 24 general business N.A. No No x
Â鶹ÊÓƵ w/ Macc 160 45 42
Texas 150 30 2 hr acc/tax research, 24 hrs upper-level business, 2 hr acc/bus communications, 3 hrs in ethics N.A. No No x - Acc/Tax Rsrch
Utah 150 30 N.A. No No x
Vermont 150 42 N.A. No No x
Virginia 150 24 24 general business N.A. No No x
Washington 150 24 24 general business N.A. No No x
West Virginia 150 30 27 general business, 6 hr Blaw? 18 No Yes x
Wisconsin 150 24 24 general business 18 No No x
Wyoming 150 24 (upper-level) 24 general business 18 No Yes x
American Samoa X - Contact American Samoa Bar Association, Post Office Box 23, Pago Pago , American Samoa 96799
Guam X
Northern Marina Islands X
Puerto Rico X
U.S. Virgin Islands X