North Carolina CPA exam application process
To sit for the CPA exam as a first-time four-part candidate in North Carolina, follow these steps: You must be at least 18 years of age, a citizen of the United States, or have the intention to be, and you will need:
- A Bachelor's* degree from a regionally-accredited institution that either includes, or is supplemented by, 30 hours in undergraduate accounting (no more than 6 hours allowed for principles of accounting and 3 hours in business law) or 20 hours in accounting at the graduate level, or
- Have scored in the 50th percentile, or higher, on each part of the Graduate Record Examination or Graduate Management Admissions Test and has enrolled for an advanced degree at a regionally-accredited institution, having completed 10 hours of graduate courses including 6 hours of graduate accounting
If you meet the educational requirements, submit an original application for review of educational requirements to the North Carolina State Board of CPA Examiners using the link provided in the Becker website. The application fee will be $230 and the exam fees total $784.50. 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.
Contact any educational institutions attended and request that transcripts be forwarded to the North Carolina State Board of CPA Examiners 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.
After receiving the required information, the State Board will issue your Authorization to Test (ATT) to the National Association of State Boards of Accountancy (NASBA). You will receive a Notice to Schedule (NTS) which is good for six months; however, since every third is non-testing, the NTS covers four testing months.
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 Asheville, Charlotte, Greensboro, Greenville, Raleigh, Wilmington, or any other Prometric location that is convenient to you.