Maryland CPA Exam Requirements

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To sit for the CPA exam as a first-time four-part candidate in Maryland, follow these steps: Before applying for the exam, evaluate your current credentials. You will need:

A Bachelor's degree in Accounting, or its substantial equivalent, with 120 undergraduate semester hours (180 quarter hours) from an accredited institution of higher education as specified in the Maryland Public Accountancy Act. A major in accounting on the baccalaureate level, or its substantial equivalent, shall consist of a minimum of fifty-one (51) semester hours in the following required accounting and related business subjects as indicated below:  

Group 1 (30 semester hours, 45 quarter hours) - Auditing-3 credits, Financial Acctg-9 credits, Managerial Cost Acctg-3 credits, U.S. Federal Income Tax-3 credits, Ethics-3 credits, and Other Acctg Courses-9 credits.

Group 2 (21 semester hours, 32 quarter hours) - in five of the following nine business related subjects:  Statistics, Economics, Corp or Business Finance, Management, U.S. Business Law, Marketing, Business Communication, Quantitative Methods, and Computer Science/Information Sys. (NOTE: An applicant must have at least 3 undergraduate semester hours or 4 undergraduate quarter hours in five of the nine subject areas above.)

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If you meet the educational requirements, submit an original application for review of educational requirements to the Maryland Board of Public Accountancy using the link provided in the Becker website. The application fee will be $60. Your name on the application should exactly match your name on your primary form of identification, which is usually your driver's license. At this time you should also begin planning your study approach by making inquiries into CPA reviews available in your area. The Becker CPA Review offers classes live, online or self-study to accommodate the needs of all candidates.

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Contact any educational institutions attended and request that transcripts be forwarded to the State Board for their evaluation. If you do not expect any problems in processing your application it is best to make plans to start your review at this time. The Becker CPA Review will significantly increase your chances of passing the exam.

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After receiving the required information, the State Board will notify you to begin your registration for the CPA exam. You can apply online and pay the exam fees of $895.00 for all four parts. Once fees are paid, you will receive a Notice to Schedule (NTS) which is good for 180 days; however, since every third is non-testing, the NTS covers approximately four testing months.

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Your NTS allows you to start scheduling your exams. You can sit for the exam parts in any sequence so you can plan your reviews to coincide with your exam scheduling. The most efficient approach is to sit for two parts in each exam window; however, exam fees paid for parts not taken are not refundable. Exam times are scheduled with Prometric and can be set up online at www.prometric.com/cpa. You can take the exam at a site in Baltimore, Bethesda, Columbia, Lanham, Salisbury, Towson. Woodlawn, or any other Prometric location that is convenient to you.