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BeanCountierFTW
Newbie
Joined: 27 Oct 2009
Location: United States
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Posts: 5
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| Posted: 27 Oct 2009 at 14:45 | IP Logged
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I have an undergrad in Accounting and have met the 150 credit hour
minimum. However, I did not apply myself in school. I graduated with a
2.9 and now work in Governmental Accounting.
I plan to sit for my CPA in Indiana. My question is should I attend grad
school first? I have been accepted into a Masters of Accountancy
program. My work will reimburse most of it and it will take me
approximately 18 months.
Although I have my 150, I feel that in order to be hired into public
accounting, I need to prove academic excellence. However, I am
wondering if I should just prepare and pass the CPA or should I get my
MSA first and use that as a foundation to prepare and pass the exam?
Most public accounting firms have a minimum GPA of at least 3.0 to
interview (understandably). Does undergrad GPA still matter when
applying with 2 years work experience and after passing the exam?
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chow4me
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| Posted: 27 Oct 2009 at 18:18 | IP Logged
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Take the CPA first. All you need is an undergrad in accounting for most of the knowledge. There isn't anything in grad school that will help you other than non-profit and governmental but that can be learned from the Gleim book to pass the exam. 99% of the material is basic (just TONS of it) and the freasher it is to you the better you'll be. I have seen more people pass on the first time coming right out of undergrad than people who waited till after they went to grad school. Besides, once you pass and are finishing up grad school you'll appear that much more marketable than the other graduates who still have to prove that they can pass it.
__________________
AUD 90
BEC 86
FARE 82
REG 88
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kj_nyc
Major Contributor
Joined: 05 Jun 2009
Location: United States
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Posts: 1145
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| Posted: 27 Oct 2009 at 18:24 | IP Logged
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In my experience, it is only at the entry level that CPA firms care about your GPA. When I interviewed at entry level, they asked for my GPA, but when I interviewed after 2 years of experience, no CPA firm asked for my GPA. So I also suggest going right for the CPA exam. You will probably need a little more study time than a recent graduate with a high GPA would, but there is no need to spend another 18 months on an MS before taking the CPA exam.
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BeanCountierFTW
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Joined: 27 Oct 2009
Location: United States
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| Posted: 27 Oct 2009 at 18:33 | IP Logged
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Thanks for the feedback.
chow4me: I took fund accounting as an undergrad which covered both
governmental and NPO so I have a basic understanding. However, I did not
take Advanced Financial so FAR will be a big challenge.
kj_nyc: Thanks. I was hoping that would be the case, but my only
experience with recruiting is through my Career Planning Office and GPA is a
huge factor.
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kj_nyc
Major Contributor
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| Posted: 27 Oct 2009 at 18:37 | IP Logged
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That's because you went through your career planning office. :) College career centers are geared toward graduating seniors who would be going into entry-level positions.
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Topic: MSA, then CPA or CPA
Topic Closed)
