Looking for cheap MS / MBA in Accounting to sit for CPA exam, already have MBA

Discussion in 'Business and MBA degrees' started by KONANRICH, Sep 15, 2009.

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  1. KONANRICH

    KONANRICH New Member

    Are online LSU accounting course undergrad or grad?
     
  2. AV8R

    AV8R Active Member

    You are supposed to submit all college degrees. The state accountancy board will need all transcripts to ensure that you meet the requirements to sit for the CPA exam.
     
  3. friartuck

    friartuck New Member

    Looking at the horses mouth, they tell you to submit alltranscripts and not to make assumptions what the BOA needs. Also, it appears you need to pay a $250 fee to have foreign credentials evaluated. I see you can do this before submitting your application for the CPA exam.

    LSU certificate is undergraduate, therefore you'd still need 24 accounting credits.
     
  4. Dave Wagner

    Dave Wagner Active Member

    Yes, check with your State Board of Accountancy. However, I doubt whether most states will have a problem with using regionally accredited DL accounting units to sit for the Uniform CPA examination.
     
  5. friendorfoe

    friendorfoe Active Member

    Except for Texas, where they specifically state you need 30 upper division credits of which not more than 15 can be earned online. But then Texas is an odd duck in that regard.
     
  6. KONANRICH

    KONANRICH New Member

    Thank you all, I am not sure I will go for the CPA, I have a good job and I was only comtemplating the CPA certificate for personal satisfaction. Maybe I should try CFA. At least I can start studying for the exam right away, I don't need to take additional classes.
    I have an MBA in international business, I work in Supply Chain and Logistics. I attend to stay in the field for awhile but need a finance credentials so I can get a CFO position in Africa when I go back maybe in 10 years.
    Any advice?
     
  7. AV8R

    AV8R Active Member

    I would never recommend pursuing the CPA for personal satisfaction. The CPA exam is the hardest exam I've ever taken. The CPA exam has a remarkably low pass rate. In addition to this board, I also frequent a popular accounting discussion board. I've discovered that it's entirely normal for a CPA candidate to take the exam many times before eventually passing. Becoming a CPA consists of passing a series of four exams. Each attempt is about $200. If a person has to take each exam three times (not uncommon) to pass, you can see how it quickly gets expensive. Life is too short to pursue the CPA solely for personal satisfaction.
     
  8. friartuck

    friartuck New Member

    I'm not sure CFA is what you want either. That's a long hard slog too, and from what I've heard, even more difficult than the CPA exam. And it will definitely take longer to pass and it's expensive. It's directed towards people who analyze securities and such, not so much for directing the finances of a company. I don't know what you do for a living, but you might end up not getting the certificate if you don't have acceptable experience.

    Browse this forum for a while:

    http://www.analystforum.com/phorums/index.php?23

    Given your goal I think a CPA certificate is more appropriate of the two but again if you don't have the qualifying experience you're not going to get it, even if you pass the exam. Two tier states are going by the wayside so you do need accounting experience, public accounting in many states. An option is to take the Colorado exam after taking a masters in accounting, the education substitutes for the year's experience requirement.

    Really though, I think the CMA exam is the best fit, most realistic for your goal and circumstances. You only need a bachelors degree and the experience requirement isn't quite as strict. You'll need accounting or financial experience but it needn't be public accounting.

    http://www.imanet.org/certification.asp


    Also, if you want to see if you like accounting and taking certifiction exams, you can tune up with this exam:

    http://www.acatcredentials.org/credentials/ABA.htm

    It's like a CPA light. In Minnesota anyway if you pass it and have qualifying experience you can become a Registered Accounting Practioner (RAP) and can do compilation work and other stuff CPA's can do except for attestation.
     
  9. Dave Wagner

    Dave Wagner Active Member

    AV8R is right about the personal satisfaction issue... It isn't a fun test and then you have to get the right experience supervised by a CPA, and it could be tricky for you to get the necessary audit experience in your current position. So, define personal satisfaction for me... Is it knowing you have some additional career options down the road?
     
  10. ideafx

    ideafx New Member

    The CFA exams are much harder than the CPA exams. There are people who study 500+ hours for each CFA exam and don't pass. It can easily take you 3 years to pass all 3. Plus, you need 3 years of experience as a financial analyst to actually become a CFA.

    Of course, you also need work experience to become a CPA, usually one year under a CPA with a certain number of hours in auditing and attestation. This may be difficult to obtain unless you're currently working in public accounting.
     
  11. mrbean72

    mrbean72 New Member

    Some More Guidance

    Hi Konanrich,

    I am in agreement with the advice of the other posters in this thread. The CPA and CFA designations are very difficult to achieve, both in terms of passing the exams and acquiring the necessary work experience. Most notably, the CFA Institute has tightened up the definition of acceptable work experience. Now a CFA candidate would probably have to work either in investment banking, commercial banking, asset management or as an investment advisor in order to meet the requirements, especially since Levels 2 & 3 of the exam concentrate on portfolio management. Given the recent meltdown in the financial services sector, it may be hard to find a job there.

    Since you aspire to be a CFO in Africa within 10 years, I would think that the CPA or CMA designations would work best in achieving that goal. As the CFO position is quite senior level, you would also need a significant amount of work experience in accounting and finance (at least five years, but 10 years or more would be better). Have you thought about the implications of a career change to accounting and finance (both positive and negative), especially given that you seem satisfied with your current career path? I do not mean to discourage you from making a change, as accounting has been a great choice for me and many other people. However, it does require a huge commitment, both in terms of additional education and work experience, so you should be sure about your choice before diving into it.

    On a related note, I have attached a document which summarizes the CPA education and experience requirements for the various states:

    http://www.aicpa.org/download/states/require_pract.pdf

    According to this document, Illinois does not require any public accounting experience and they only need 1 year of total work experience in accounting. Overall, their requirements seem rather flexible.

    Here is a link to the various State Boards of Accountancy, which you should consult in terms of deciding which state fits your needs best for getting the CPA designation:

    http://www.nasba.org/nasbaweb/NASBAWeb.nsf/WPMSBL?OpenForm

    Once again, good luck! :)

    Regards,

    Michael Weedon, CA
     
  12. rjktck

    rjktck New Member

    minnesota cpa

    friar,
    i live in minnesota and have quite a few credits as part of my MS (BA was physics).
    i see you went to metro state. i am considering working with rasmussen in lake elmo, but lsu would be quite a bit cheaper at 90per credit.
    i sent lsu an email. any advice? i really need a school that wants to help me identify the minimum courses needed at the best price. i am a high school math teacher and pretty capable textbook learner and test taker.
    thanks in advance for any help here in minnesota.
    regards
     
  13. Ted Heiks

    Ted Heiks Moderator and Distinguished Senior Member

    Holy thread necromancy, Batman! A three year old thread!
     
  14. RFValve

    RFValve Well-Known Member

    If you are an accounting GURU, you can try passing the ACCA exams. I have them evaluated by WES as 5 credits per exam passed. The whole thing cost me less than 1000 dollars. If you really want the masters, you can top it up by spending another 6K and completing a thesis and get a british masters. The whole thing would be less than 8K.

    If you want an easier path, you can do credits with Walden University. Each course is 5 credits and doesnt require an exam but a bunch of assignments. Not cheap but easier.

    There is no cheap and easy in my list but cheap and hard with british education.
     
  15. friartuck

    friartuck New Member

    I wouldn't spend the money Rasmussen asks. If you need hands on classes, yeah I'd go to Metro. I've never taken an accounting class at Metro but I know many who have who felt the instruction was very good. You could do a community college program also, but then I believe you'd have to transfer the credits to a level 1 or 2 school.

    If you don't mind the solitude, yes the LSU certificate should give you what you need at a reasonable cost. You would have to arrange for proctored exams however. I'd double check with the MN Board of Accountancy. Steve Renville is usually good about answering questions.

    Minnesota CPA education, exam and certificate requirements
     
  16. rjktck

    rjktck New Member

    thanks much, friar.
    there are organizations, exam coordinators and the regional board, all of which don't seem to communicate as effectively for the "random customer". i wish the organizations were more helpful in dealing with non-traditional students. i have also been unimpressed with colleges' knowledge of requirements for non-traditional students. st mary's did look at my transcripts and has an expensive option.
    i will be contacting Vicky Oehrlein at the mn boa.
     
  17. friartuck

    friartuck New Member

    And Nasba is terrible to work with. Yeah Vicky is the other person who can answer questions at BOA. Are you interested in working in public accounting?
     
  18. vcruz06

    vcruz06 New Member

    LSU info needed

    Hi,

    I am also looking for information on obtaining my required courses for my CPA. I have an MBA in finance and I am seeking the accounting hours. I am planning taking their certificate in accounting which will almost get me there but I will still be short. Does anyone know if you can take Masters level courses with LSU without signing up to complete a degree? I need about 36 hrs of upper division accounting.

    Val
    Florida
     
  19. Phdtobe

    Phdtobe Well-Known Member

    Try liberty.edu ms in accounting. It is only 10 inexpensive courses which should meet and prepared you for the cpa exams.
     
  20. mbaonline

    mbaonline New Member

    If you're in Florida...


    I do not know about LSU but if i was in Florida, I'd check out this program: UWF - Department of Accounting & Finance - Certificate Programs - Accounting
    U of West Florida has a great certificate that will help you get ready for the CPA exam.
     

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