At the entry level, all you really need is basic understanding of double-entry, BS/IS/CF statements, and how to jockey a spreadsheet… If you want to be independent or move up (in accounting) you need the three letters after your name.
Agree if you want to be independent as an audit and/or tax preparer you have to pass the CPA test. Moving up in some firms does not seem to be limited right now to those with a CPA designation, but ultimately time will tell how things shake out…again it’s a numbers game (pun intended LOL.) If one has to do more to get a certification than previously, there usually will be fewer people pursuing said certification.
I’d add, corp controllership path (by far, the largest “finance” group in a non-banking/non-investment company) to the list of requireds…
I think the hardcore accountants go the certification route, the rest decide to do other “finance”/general business/something else.
In my experience, at some point, being viewed as a CPA is a detriment/limiting factor in going up the non-accounting “finance”/general business hierarchy.
The knowledge is valuable, but the perception isn’t.
I 100% agree with this and always found it somewhat surprising. I could really dive into this (finance and/or cpa) but will restrain myself. 
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Not necessarily - but I do think Kelley does a fabulous job of of teaching relevant soft skills - ie presentations, interview preparation, business writing (ie how to write an email).
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My son is a junior and dead set on Kelley. He’s in-state with a 1410 SAT and 4.3 GPA, so he’ll be DA. Does anyone have a sense for how sensitive merit for in-state is to SAT? I’m trying to figure out if he should keep testing in the name of merit?
You’ll likely get some varying responses to continuing to test. It’s highly dependent on the student. Does studying and testing take away from other endeavors, coursework or cause stress? If the student is unbothered by taking additional tests then there’s no harm in trying. I can’t speak to instate merit but out of state merit did seem to coincide with higher scores. Are there other outside scholarships etc where test scores could come into play? Is there any other context where this could matter to your student? Do other programs like ACE matter to your student? A higher score in your child’s case could be beneficial. Depends on what you are trying to do and at what cost to the student.
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If your scores meet the criteria, I’d put the additional effort into getting some useful practical work experiences and business tool courses (spreadsheet, database, analytics, etc.).
Kill 2 birds with 1 stone: get relevant experience/training, and have material for some good essays. This will go much farther than a few more SAT points.
My child applied OOS test optional for a unique and selective degree program at IU in another college. She got multiple merit awards and an honors college offer. I attribute these to non-stat elements in her application.
While these are standard at most universities, taking advantage of the opportunities is mostly an individual choice.
Yes, agree - but I think Kelley does a better job by embedding into the curriculum.
I am not sure how much merit IU gives in state students with admission. They are not as transparent as Purdue with their scholarship amounts.
I think if he wants to put in effort to review to take again before he sumbits his application, he should.
I would have him apply or be nominated for some of the scholarships for high achieving students.
There is also the oppurtunity for department and honor college scholarships after admission too.
Congratulations on your son’s success!
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Ok, good.
I just take it for granted that every school would do this to some extent - especially a biz school.
I don’t see it as having much weight as a school’s differentiating factor; it definitely is a student’s differentiating factor.
I think you are correct. And a truly good student will have the best chance at passing the CPA in general. Go to any decent school - and work hard, network hard. If I’ve learned anything getting older - if employers recognize you have a good work ethic… you will be all set.
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S25 has a high SAT score, but got very little merit from IU. Also DA to Kelley, but did not get Hutton.
Is your student in state? The merit scholarahips from IU was the lowest of the schools my kid applied to.
No, we are not in-state. IU has such a big OOS tuition differential. It’s just not in the running since he didn’t get much to offset it.
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Hello! I thought we were done with IU Jacobs because of cost. My son was set to attend UNT. However, Jacobs has doubled his award, and matched UNT, so he will be attending the Jacobs School of Music! Important to know 0 merit comes from Admissions when a kid studies music at IU, it all comes from music school admissions. This was the only school where we experienced this. Now that it’s late in the game, I believe deals are made because money is freed up.
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Data to digest and appreciate:
IU released the number of applications this year (2024-25)
73,400.
That’s a BIG number - and an indicator of the elevated level of competition every applicant faced.
Whatever acceptances, special programs, scholarships, etc a student did or did no get… they can hold their heads high just knowing they were in the largest group competing for those resources ever at this University.
2023-24: 67,731
2022-23: 54,345
2021-22: 50,159
2020-21: 46,623
2019-20: 44,178
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That is a huge jump in a few years.
I don’t think there is a bad option here. My son is a rising senior at Kelley and did the ACE program and is in Kelley Honors now. We are out of state but his mother and I both graduated from IU (A&S) so there was some familiarity.
He is a finance major and has an investment banking internship this summer. He had to work really hard for it though. ACE helped as a freshman and with the direct Kelley Honors as long as you have the minimum GPA, but I do not think it helped him to secure an internship. For IB, there are a couple of finance classes you have to take. Doing well in these classes partially determines entry into IB workshop/seminar. ACE did not factor into this (according to him). Getting the IB internship was like taking an extra class as it is very time intensive. Multiple rounds of interviews with multiple potential employers. It is a long, hard process. Kelley gives you the tools to do well, but they don’t hold your hand through the process. It is really up to the student. You need to be highly motivated and make lots of connections if you want to do IB.
I cannot speak for Ross and what their typical process is for IB.
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