Accounting Programs | Schools By State

The accounting industry is reliable, stable, and strong.

According to a 2020 marketing research report by Kentley Insights, in the past three years, the accounting, tax preparation, and payroll services industry has averaged a growth rate of 3.2% and reached $185 billion in revenue.

In 2020 alone, the Big Four (Deloitte, PriceWaterhouseCoopers, KPMG, and Ernst & Young) generated $157 billion in combined revenue and employed more than 232,000.

Accounting is a profession that lives by rules and numbers. You’ll learn some of this on the job, but without a solid grounding in the basic principles, even the most talented number cruncher isn’t going to get far. Whether you’re just kicking off your accounting career or laying out a strategy for advancement, getting the right degree for the position you plan to fill is key.

FEATURED ONLINE ACCOUNTING PROGRAMS

Accounting Degrees: Certificate, Associate, Bachelor’s, Master’s and PhD Programs in Accountancy

You can get a job walking in off the street as a bookkeeper in some small companies as long as you have a high school diploma or G.E.D. But punching numbers into Excel will probably be as far as you get with those credentials. If you’re a payroll clerk, you probably won’t even pass the corporate controller in the hallway let alone work in the same department.

If you’re just getting started and looking to get some experience, an undergraduate degree will definitely suffice, but if you want to get your hands on the key to the executive washroom, you’re going to need to aim for a master’s.

As a rule, accounting professionals at different levels will hold these degrees:

Certificate in Accounting– Certificates are typically available to high school graduates and cover basic principles of accounting for entry-level bookkeeping or support positions.
Associate Degree in Accounting– Two-year degrees aimed at bookkeepers or low-level support positions.
Bachelor’s Degree Degrees– Four-year degrees serve as primary preparation to sit for the CPA examination. These may be designed as:
1. Bachelor of Science in Accounting
2. Bachelor of Science in Auditing (Forensic Accounting)
3. Bachelor of Science in Finance
4. Bachelor of Science in Business Administration (Accounting focus)
Master’s Degrees– Master’s degrees, available only to those who have already earned a bachelor’s degree, are often the desired path to the 150 credits needed to qualify for the CPA. These degrees provide advanced training in accounting principles and practices and may be designed as an MBA with an accounting focus.
PhD in Accounting– The PhD, which is available to those who have already earned bachelor’s or master’s degrees, involves rigorous training in accounting theory and research and is usually pursued by those interested in attaining academic positions.

Accounting School Programs By State

Each state gives authority for the licensing of certified public accountants to its own state-specific Board of Accountancy. The introduction of the Uniform Accountancy Act has resulted in a great deal of uniformity between states with regard to the requirements that CPA candidates must fulfill in order to be eligible for licensure. Under the Act, all state Boards of Accountancy require candidates to hold a bachelor’s degree at minimum, and to have completed 150 semester hours of college credit, 30 semester hours beyond what is included in a standard bachelor’s program.

Despite this general uniformity, each state Board has different requirements for how credits are distributed among courses in financial and managerial accounting, auditing, taxation, business, business law and ethics. Each state’s Board of Accountancy also acts autonomously when approving schools that offer accounting programs the board deems suitable for preparing candidates for the Uniform CPA Exam, and ultimately for the challenge of the career that awaits them.

Through a review process, each state’s Board of Accountancy is tasked with selecting the regional or national accreditation agencies responsible for reviewing the curriculum of accounting programs offered at the baccalaureate and graduate levels. After final review and approval of the program, the Board will defer to the accreditation agency as the body that determines a program’s ongoing adherence to the Board’s standards. In this way, state Boards of Accountancy can remain impartial and avoid a potential conflict of interest by declaring their general acceptance of all programs accredited by a selected accreditation agency, rather than actually endorsing a specific school and its accounting program.

The Uniform Accountancy Act includes provisions that support licensing reciprocity between states in an effort to allow CPAs greater mobility, and the freedom to work with clients from different states. This means that state Boards of Accountancy routinely approve accounting programs from schools in different states, as well as online programs.

Accountancy School to Prepare for the Jobs You Want

Whether you’re kickstarting your career by landing a job in bookkeeping or shooting for your CPA license, you’ll need to first get a degree.

Accounting jobs and their earning potential are directly connected to the degree you earn.

Corporate Accounting Jobs

Above a certain level, accountants in major companies become more focused on corporate issues and high-level planning and management of financial issues than with the intimate number-crunching performed by CPAs. Here, a master’s in accounting or MBA with a focus in accounting can be the best degree option. The MBA can still provide the credit hours required to sit for the CPA credential, while providing a solid footing for more high-level management positions down the road.

Public Accounting Jobs

A CPA license is the crowning credential in the accounting field. In some states, such as Texas, you are not even allowed to refer to yourself as an accountant or an auditor unless you have your CPA. For both government and public accounting, a CPA is the gateway to professional practice.

Because of this, most bachelor’s degree programs in accounting are heavily weighted toward providing an education that will allow you to sit for and pass the Uniform Certified Public Accountant Examination UCPAE. The UCPAE is a minimum standard required by all fifty states for getting your CPA.

Most states also require one to two years of on-the-job accounting experience, and at least 150 semester credits of college education.

This last requirement poses an issue for BS holders who plan to get their CPA license because most bachelor’s programs clock in at only 120 semester units. The additional 30 have to be acquired elsewhere, or you will have to raise your sights an obtain at least a master’s degree instead (which, conveniently, typically can be had for exactly 30 additional credits).

Some schools are beginning to offer extended five-year bachelor’s programs, which include the complete 150 credits required. However, earning a master’s degree or higher both qualifies you to sit the exam and puts your resume in a separate class from thousands of other entry-level accountants, making it a solid investment even if it’s not strictly required to sit the exam.

Financial Services/Outside Auditing Jobs

In the world of finance, traders, analysts, and bankers deal heavily in accounting but do not necessarily need the background in public accounting that is required of CPAs. Master’s degrees are still a valuable asset, but the license itself may be irrelevant to your career path. Instead, obtaining an MBA (Master’s in Business Administration) with a finance or economics concentration, or even obtaining your master’s in finance or economics directly might afford you better preparation.

Anybody interested in becoming a forensic accountant has other credentials to aim for, either as a Certified Fraud Examiner (CFE) or Certified Forensic Accountant (CFA). The CFE requires a bachelor’s degree but does not specify a field it must be in. However, for both educational and employment purposes, aiming for a bachelor’s in forensic accounting might be beneficial for either role. The CFA also requires a CPA, and there are master’s programs in forensic accounting that can qualify you for both purposes.

Bachelor’s in Accounting Admission Requirements

The admission requirements for online accounting degrees tend to vary. Many programs require students to have a GED certificate or high school diploma. Some programs demand a minimum high school GPA within the range of 2.0-3.0.

In addition to these bare minimums, some programs want their students to have completed general education college courses before applying for an accounting program. Also, students might be required to maintain a minimum GPA before qualifying for the accounting major.

It’s important to note that some schools even require SAT or ACT scores. However, before you can apply for an online accounting program, you need to consider how your academic background fits the program’s obligations.

For example, some online accounting programs will require transfer credits like those earned through certificates or associate degrees. However, some schools will provide students with all the necessary coursework via online study.

Is Accounting a Good Major?

The simple answer to this is yes. If you’d like to start a career in accounting, business, or finance, getting a bachelor’s or a master’s degree in accounting is the way to go. Here are some benefits of choosing accounting as your major:

The demand for accountants is continually growing
An accounting degree is very flexible since you can use it to start a career of your choice in business
Accounting will always be a necessity

What Should I Major In to Become an Accountant?

If you’re an aspiring accountant, you need to pursue a bachelor’s degree in accounting. Other options include a Bachelor of Business Administration (BBA) or a Bachelor of Arts in Business Administration (BABA) specializing in accounting.

Can I Get an Accounting Degree Online?

Yes. You can get an accounting degree online with specialization options as well as CPA preparation.

What Can I Do With a Degree in Accounting?

With a degree in accounting, you can pursue a career in auditing, financial advising, government accounting, tax accounting, and many others. Holding a degree in accounting is an advantage if you plan to go for a top office in management someday.

How Much Does It Cost to Get an Accounting Degree Online?

The cost of getting an accounting degree online will vary depending on the level of degree, the time to graduate, the type of institution, and other factors. In general terms, the cheapest online accounting programs range between $300-$500 per credit.

Is an Online Accounting Degree Worth Anything?

An online accounting degree has the same weight as its on-campus counterpart. It might interest you to know that some schools use identical curricula and often feature the same faculty members.

Accounting is undoubtedly one of the most valuable majors you can pursue in school. This is because it teaches you complex and transferable skills you might need to succeed in any business field.

Consider Accreditation When Looking at Accounting Schools

Assessing the quality of accounting programs can be a difficult task from the outside.

Completing a program from a school a school with basic institutional accreditation is almost always one of the important qualifiers for meeting CPA licensure requirements. Whether you’re shooting for a CPA initially or not, it’s worth checking to see if the program you are considering is accredited by one of these agencies:

Institutional Accrediting Agencies

Institutional accreditation of this sort is par for the course. That’s not to say it isn’t important, just that virtually every public or private college or university operating in the U.S. holds this form of basic institution-level accreditation. These six agencies are recognized by the U.S. Department of Education and the Council for Higher Education Accreditation to accredit post-secondary schools from anywhere in the country. If a school qualifies for Title IV funding through federal student loans and grants, you can be sure it holds this type of accreditation:

Middle States Association of Colleges and Secondary Schools
New England Association of Schools and Colleges
Higher Learning Commission (North Central)
Northwest Commission on Colleges and Universities
Southern Association of Colleges and Schools
Western Association of Schools and Colleges, Senior College and University Commission

Alternately, some schools hold institutional accreditation from one of a few national accrediting bodies, though it’s a relatively small group of schools and is typically reserved for vocational schools rather than degree-granting institutions.

Programmatic Accrediting Agencies

Program-level accreditation, on the other hand, is handled by highly specialized accreditors that deal specifically with degrees offered in a single area of study. Accounting programs fall within the auspices of three specialty business accreditors that establish curriculum and faculty standards for business schools housed within larger universities and the specific programs they offer.

Choosing a program that holds accreditation from one of these agencies, or one offered through a business school that has been accredited, offers an extra layer of assurance that you’re going to be gaining the latest knowledge in the field from instructors who know the business of accounting inside and out.

The Association for Advancing Collegiate Schools of Business (AACSB)(additionally, offers separate accounting accreditation beyond general business accreditation)
The Association of Collegiate Business Schools and Programs (ACBSP)
The International Assembly for Collegiate Business Education (IACBE)

Institutionally Accredited Accounting Schools

Maybe you’re just getting started and looking to earn an undergraduate degree through a full-time program, or perhaps you’re ready to earn an online graduate degree in preparation for the CPA exam. Wherever you are in your career, the schools shown here offer diverse education options for every situation.

Whether you’re looking to earn an associate degree in accounting, or a bachelor’s, master’s or specialized MBA in general accounting, managerial accounting, auditing, forensic accounting, or another specialized area of accountancy, you’ll find the options available in your state right here.