Pennsylvania CPA exam application process
To sit for the CPA exam as a first-time four-part candidate in Pennsylvania, follow these steps: You must be at least 18 years of age, a resident* of Pennsylvania and you will need:
- A Bachelor's degree from a regionally accredited college or university approved at the time of graduation by the Department of Education, to include 24 semester hours** in accounting, auditing, business law, finance or taxation subjects, or
- A Master's, or other post-graduate, degree from a regionally accredited college or university approved at the time of graduation by the Department of Education, to include 24 hours** as required in #1 above, or
- A Bachelor's, or higher, degree from a regionally accredited college or university approved at time of graduation by the Department of Education with 150 credit hours of post secondary education, to include 36 hours** as required in #1 and #2 above.
** Must include 3 hours in accounting and 3 hours in either auditing, business law, finance or taxation subjects. The remaining 18 hours may include any combination of accounting, audit, tax, business law and finance.
If you meet the educational requirements, submit your application to the CPA Examination Services Pennsylvania Coordinator in Nashville, Tennessee. The application fee will be $95, the exam fees will total $743.20, and the process may take as long as eight weeks. 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 CPA Examination Services 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, CPA Examination Services 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 Allentown, Clarks Summit, Erie, Harrisburg, King of Prussia, Lancaster, Monroeville, North Wales, Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, York, or any other Prometric location that is convenient to you.