CPA Resource Page

You just joined one of the best accountancy programs in the country. As you advance in your accounting career, you may be interested in becoming a CPA. Our curriculum thoroughly prepares you for the content that is tested on the CPA exams. The following sections provide you with information on CPA benefits, eligibility requirements, course planning, application processes, and exam content.

We hope these resources will aid you as you begin to apply and study to become a CPA during your time at Illinois.

Why Should I Become a CPA?

Becoming a CPA is no easy task, so students often ask themselves, "is it worth it?" To help answer that, here are some of the most cited benefits of becoming a CPA.

Career Mobility:
A staggering amount of accountants in management and directorship positions are CPAs.

Salary:
CPAs tend to make about 10-15% more than their non-certified counterparts.

More Career Opportunities:
CPAs can work for public firms, private companies, local businesses, and international businesses.

Financial Incentives:
Many companies offer employees a completion bonus to pass the CPA exam.

Increased Job Security:
There is currently a CPA shortage and every sector of business will needs accountants.

Increased Trust and Respect:
CPAs are symbols of trust and professionalism in business due to the rigor needed to earn this license.

How to Become CPA Elgibile in Illinois

There are 3 ways students become CPA eligible while a student in Gies. Each path has slightly different education requirements, so be sure to carefully review each one. Your advisors can also help you decide which path is the right one for you.

The requirements below are only for Illinois' CPA. These requirements can also be found on the ILBOE Website.

  • CPA Eligiblity as an Undergraduate Student (BSA 150)

    Students can become CPA eligible while completing either our ACCY or ACCY+DS majors. However, there are additional requirements you must complete that are not worked into our curriculum but can still be completed before graduation. Please read the table below for more information.

    Requirement Is it worked into our program? Can it be completed before graduating?
    Bachelors in Accountancy from an accredited school Yes, we are an accredited school
    150 credit hours No, our program only requires 124 credit hours It depends. Work with your advisor to see if 150 credits can be completed before graduating
    30 credit hours in ACCY No, our program only requires 27 credit hours (ACCY 201 & 202 included in this count) Yes, there are ACCY electives you can take for the remaining 3 ACCY credit hours
    24 credit hours in business other than ACCY Yes, the Business Core fulfills this requirement
    At least one course in management & financial accounting, audit and tax Yes, completing all ACCY major courses will fulfill this requirement
    2 credit hours in business communication It is not required to complete our program. Yes, students can take BTW 250 and it also completes the advanced composition gen ed
    3 credit hours in business ethics Yes, it is worked into the business core & ACCY major

  • CPA Eligibility for Graduate Students in the MAS program

    Accountancy students often decide to stay 1 additional year and complete our MAS program. One of the benefits of this program is that is leaves you fully CPA eligible. In fact, a graduate degree in Accountancy from an accredited institution will make you CPA eligible if it also gets you above 150 credit hours. The reason we do not worry about the credit hour total for the MAS program is because you need at least 124 credit hours to complete your undergraduate degree and the MAS program is 32 credits, so completing both will provide at least 156 credits for Gies students. To see if this route is right for you, talk with an advisor and review the eligibility for the MAS program on this page here.

    Another added benefit to the MAS program regarding the CPA is that many students are eligible to start sitting for CPA exams during the program. However, since the most CPA exams takes an average of 80-120 hours of studying to prepare, some students will just spend extra time preparing for the exams during the MAS program. Regardless if you want to sit for CPA exams or are looking for ways to start studying, talk with your advisor and see what options and resources are available to you.

  • CPA Eligibility for Gies Graduate Students not in an Accountancy Program

    While many Accountancy students will pursue the MAS program, sometimes they decide to enter a graduate program in a different sector of business. Luckily, you can still become CPA eligible this way as well. However, you will still need to complete 150 credit hours with at least 30 credit hours in Accountancy and at least one course in management & financial accounting, audit and tax.

Preparing for CPA Eligibility

Step 1: Review Education Requirements

Each state has different requirements. So if you are planning on becoming a CPA in a different state, you will need to find their specific requirements as they may differ. This Way to CPA has a database for all state requirements to help get you started.

Step 2: Create a Plan

It is essential to plan ahead regardless of which path you take for CPA eligibility. While we recommend you meet with an advisor, here is how you can get this process started on your own:

  1. Run a DARS report
  2. Create a course plan for completing your undergraduate degree
  3. Based on this plan, determine what CPA requirements you are missing and which path above would be the best for you to fulfill them

Step 4: Meet with an advisor

Meeting with our academic advisors is a great way to make sure you are on track to complete all CPA requirements as they are familiar with Illinois' requirements.
Note: Only the ILBOE can confirm if you are CPA eligible but our advisors are a good first check.

Step 5: Explore Available Resources

There are several resources students can use to prepare for the CPA exam by keeping up to date with exam changes and the cost. Here are some of them:

Studying for the CPA Exam

On average, students will study 80-120 hours for each CPA exam. To help get you started, here are some helpful resources to know what is on the exam and its format.

AICPA CPA Exam Blueprint

This resource is great for learning what content is on each exam, the format of questions, and how they are scored.

Learn More

ACCY 398: Practical Problems in Atg

This course allows you to study for the CPA with the Becker Review Material. You also have your professor as a resource to help understand the content and exam process.

Learn More

ACCY 419: Financial Atg for Gov and Nonprofit Entities

Learn about areas of the CPA not taught in our other courses. It is a great way to study for the CPA through a typical class structure.

Learn More

Seniors & MAS CPA Study Nights

These events provide a space to prepare for the CPA exams. Professors also attend to assist students with different sections of the CPA. Look for them in our events page.

Learn More

ACCY CPA Curriculum Mapping

Gies' Accountancy curriculum can help you succeed on the CPA exam. The following charts will help you understand how your accounting courses in the undergraduate and MAS program align with each section of the CPA exam. This is a useful resource to help you plan your schedule in advance and have a better idea of which CPA exams you should take first based on materials already covered in class.

Note: Although these ACCY classes are great for learning material that is often tested on the CPA Exam, they are not intended to be CPA review courses.

Signing Up for CPA Exams

After meeting the education requirements and having begun studying for the CPA, you will want to begin signing up for your exams.

To do this, follow the instructions below or click here for the instructions from the ILBOE's website.

Step 1: Create an ILBOE Account

Follow this link to create an account. You will only need an email to create this account.

Step 2: Apply for a Credentials Evaluation

More information about the costs and how to send in your credentials can be found here.

Before taking this step, you can have the ILBOE complete a pre-evaluation for $50. It is highly encouraged as it will save you the risk or having to pay for 2 full priced evaluations. The pre-evaluation can only be completed once.

Step 3: Send in Your Official Transcript

You can find out how and where to send your transcripts on this page.

In response, you will get a results letter. For instructions on how to read this letter, please click this link.

Step 4: Make Your Initial Exam Request

This will be completed through your ILBOE account by clicking on the "Online Application" link. This is only done the first time you test.

When making this request, you can choose to sign up for 1-4 exams. To determine how many you should sign up for, ask yourself "how many exams can I complete in the next 6 months."

For detailed instructions, click here.

Step 5: Create a NASBA Account

After completing the Initial Exam Request, you will receive an email with a jurisdiction ID. You need this to create your NASBA account.

You will pay for the exams through this account, so keep an eye out for a Payment Coupon. You have 90 days to pay it.

Step 6: Schedule Your Exams

1-2 days after paying, you will receive your Notice to Schedule (NTS). You will need this not only to sign up for the exam through Prometric, but also to enter the testing facility. So be sure to print out a copy and take it to the exam.

Step 7: Take Your Exams and Repeat

Once you have completed all the exams you signed up for, you will complete the Re-Examination Request (similar to the Initial Exam Request), pay the Payment Coupon, and receive a new NTS.

You will complete this process until you have completed all your exams.

Additional Resources:

To help you navigate this process, here are some helpful resources:

30-Month Rule

Once you have your first passing score, you have 30 months to complete the other exams. This deadline can be found in your account after passing your first exam. If you do not complete all exams in the 30 month window, exam scores will begin to be invalidated in the order you passed the exams. If you pass all 4 sections in this timeframe, your exam scores will NOT expire.

Study Advice from Alumni

There are many different methods for optimizing your study time while preparing for the CPA Exams. Hear directly from Gies alumni about what strategies worked for them!

"Be okay with not knowing the best way for you to learn and study in the beginning of the process. The way I studied for my first test was very different than how I studied for my last. For some sections, watching the lectures don't help, or doing MCQ before doing the reading is the best way to learn for you. Being okay with my study style changing throughout my time studying was crucial."

- MAS '20

"Make sure to self review before you move on to a new topic. I always did multiple groups of 10 multiple choice questions for every section. Make sure to build your stamina for sitting in a 3-4 hour exam with limited breaks. Also, don't study with the intention of memorizing; if you don't understand something take the time to go back and practice until you do understand."

- MAS '20

Set a realistic study schedule with at least 2 weeks left for review. Don't be discouraged if you struggle to understand a topic 100% as you go through the material for the first time. The final review brings everything together and narrows down focus areas. I recommend the AICPA practice exam to familiarize yourself with question format and mock exams to nail down timing."

- MAS '21

Get your CPA studying done earlier in the day! It's easy to push off studying for the CPA since most of us have months to finish all 4 sections before start work full-time. Because of this, I noticed that if I did my schoolwork and then tried to study for the CPA, I was too tired and didn't have the motivation to get much done. Once I started doing my CPA studying early in the day, I was more productive since I was well-rested. After I do my CPA studying, I know that I need to complete my schoolwork since those assignments have hard deadlines, so I can't push that work off like I can push off the CPA. This small change has made a big difference in my productivity!"

- MAS '21

My biggest piece of advice is to create a plan both for the week and for every individual day you plan to study so that you have something to stick to. It can be overwhelming to tackle the amount of the material in each section of the CPA, so it helped me to set goals for what content I wanted to get through and when I wanted to do so. It was as easy as writing down every night what my tasks were for the following day and how I would accomplish them! And, remember not to get discouraged along the way if you aren't meeting study goals or are not grasping the material. Simply putting in the work to study and learn is enough to be successful... believe in yourself!

- MAS '21

Making myself do mini 'midterms' after I finish 2-3 units of my study material was very useful for me as it was a forced way to review older concepts as I was studying. I also recommend completing the AICPA sample exams when in the review stage for your exam. Finally, when taking practice "mock" exams, be sure to time yourself for each testlet. I was given the advice of spending no more than 45 minutes per multiple choice testlet and 50 minutes per task-based simulation testlet.  Someone once told me that no one will ask you how many times it took to pass a section - it just matters that you pass eventually. Keep your determination strong and your spirits up!

- MAS '21

The Elijah Watts Sells Award

The AICPA has bestowed the Elijah Watts Sells award on candidates for outstanding performance on the Exam since 1923. Candidates are eligible for the award in the award in the calendar year following the year in which they completed testing. If a candidate meets all criteria for eligibility, they will be contacted by the AICPA and informed of their recipient status. The award is bestowed annually upon candidates who:

  • Have obtained a cumulative average score about 95.50 across all four sections of the CPA Exam
  • Passed all four sections of the Exam on their first attempt.

Previous University of Illinois recipients:

Emma Weber - MAS '21

Kaylee Bastien - MAS '20

Hannah Smith -MAS '20