Aquarius76

Hello CPAboundk,

I would not suggest UoP. They are wonderful people do not get me wrong. The one problem I had with them was the "team assignments." I have noticed many student are not as dedicated than others. Thus, you end up working harder to obtain a decent grade. I am only referring to the team assignment, which is 30% of your grade. Yes, they are extremely expensive...so if you do not want to pull your hair out and become frustrated with someone from a different state, seek an on-line campus that will benefit you and the grade you receive is solely the work that you have to do.

Good Luck

MBA Grad 2009

Good morning CPABoundK;

First off, congratulations on your success up to this point. I have just a couple of suggestions on your school selection.

First, from your opening post you have said you intend to sit for the CPA exams in the next couple years. It happens that I am also working towards earning my CPA - harder in Texas because at least half of the 30 upper-level semester hours in Accounting have to be taken in face-to-face classes, so online courses are out for the most part. But the real focus in choosing where you take the necessary classes is the school's effectiveness in helping you pass the exams. There is a very big difference between schools which simply teach the courses, and those which teach them well enough to help you pass the exams. As I am sure you know, 40-45% of candidates pass any one section of the exam at a time, and only about 10% pass all four sections on one attempt, meaning that for most students it will take multiple attempts to pass the tests. In fact between 8-16% of candidates who take the exam will never pass all four sections. There is a definite correlation between certain schools and your chances of passing the test.

Here in Texas the State Board of Accountancy publishes passing rates by school each quarter. I mention this because, as an example, no candidate from the University of Phoenix has ever passed even one section of the Uniform CPA Exam in Texas. Not one. So, while U of P may be a good school in some areas, I would frankly warn you off going there to prepare for the CPA Exam. The State of Washington's Board of Accountancy does not publish results by school, but you can still get there by asking schools you are considering, how well their students do in the CPA exam. I am not as familiar with Washington as I am with Texas, but another student had a similar question and the University of Washington boasts impressive results:

Foster accounting grad receives top honor for CPA exam performance - Michael G. Foster School of Business - University of Washington, Seattle

In general, while you can find easier classes and cheaper tuition, if your goal is to earn your CPA license the primary focus should be on schools which are best at getting you there.

Good luck!

FHSU student

I am not plugging my school, but FHSU offers certification, CPA prep and Masters programs, at $161 a credit hour. Classes are asyned so you take them when you can fit them into your schedule. They will accept your credits, and are transferrable to other schools. This is a brick and mortar school that does not charge you out of state tuition. That was a huge reason why I picked it for MIS. The professors are the most unbelievable teachers I have found yet, I already have favorites my second semester in. I am cranking up the classes to 16-18 per semester, and average A's and B's. I couldn't do that without my advisor and professors.

Take a look at this school.

tbradford

Here is what I would recommend from my experience looking into PhD programs and master's programs:

1. Make sure the program you choose is AACSB accredited, large public accounting firms generally require this (or come close to requiring it).

2. Don't worry about transferability, if you decide to pursue a PhD the school will not transfer credits regardless of the school you went to, the programs are generally designed with different goals in mind. Also schools don't like to accept other schools grad credits and generally limit it to 3 classes or less in the same program (such as master's).

3. Some affordable (relatively-speaking) online accounting programs that are AACSB accredited include UConn, Stetson University and the California state one (Sacramento) mentioned above. Stetson is the most expensive at 22k, but offers rolling start dates.

4. FAU offers a program also (someone else mentioned this) but it is cost-prohibitive, in my opinion (~45k).