All persons must have completed at least 150 semester credits to sit for the CPA Exam. This is often referred to as the 150-hour requirement.  In case you don’t know, the CPA Exam is nationally prepared and graded by the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants (AICPA). Each state, however, sets the education requirements to sit for the Exam and the experience requirement to become licensed as a CPA. Although a CPA license is technically needed only to sign an audit certificate, the CPA designation is widely recognized throughout the business community. Accordingly, even persons not planning to enter the public accounting profession should plan to become a licensed CPA for the value placed on the CPA credential in the marketplace and the prestige it brings you on the job.  A graduate degree is not required, although it is an option you may choose.

MEETING THE 150-HOUR REQUIREMENT

Wisconsin wisely allows you great latitude in planning a program to meet the 150-hour requirement. Your faculty advisor will provide you with an objective evaluation of whether your 150-hour plan is reasonable. Like all plans it is subject to change and should be updated on a regular basis.

UW-L OPTIONS FOR THE 150-HOUR REQUIREMENT

1. Complete the bachelor’s degree, followed by the MBA. Graduate in the spring of the fifth year.
2. Complete the bachelor’s degree, enroll in the MBA, complete an internship in the spring and complete the MBA in the fall of the sixth year.
3. Complete the bachelor’s degree in four years and seek employment. Complete the additional credits to reach 150 while working full-time.
4. Complete the 150 hours in four and a half years, including a full-time internship in public accounting during the spring of the fourth year.

Each alternative has its advantages and disadvantages.

Alternative 1: The obvious advantage of this alternative is getting an additional degree from the 30 credits over the bachelor’s degree. One disadvantage is the wait between completing the accounting courses and taking the CPA Exam. Also, May graduation can be a disadvantage for students interested in public accounting.

Alternative 2: A spring internship may be combined with the MBA to create a December graduation. This makes for a five and a half year program.

Alternative 3: The major advantage to this approach is reaching the job market in the shortest possible time. This approach appears to be the least desirable because of two major disadvantages. The first is that your marketability with less than 150 credits is uncertain. Most firms indicate that they want their employees to have completed college before starting with the firm. Second, you put off taking the CPA Exam for an extended period of time while completing the additional credit requirement.

Alternative 4 has become, by far, the most popular alternative among UW-L accounting majors.