WEBSITE DISCLAIMER

Not all of our students are interested in seeking a CPA license. However, if you plan to sit for the CPA exam and obtain CPA licensure outside of Florida, please read.

CPA Exam Florida Educational Requirements

To become a CPA in Florida, candidates must meet education and work experience requirements. There are requirements to sit for the CPA exam and additional requirements to license as a CPA in Florida. If you are planning to license as a CPA in another state, please check with your State’s Board of Accountancy.

Total Credit Hours required to take the CPA Exam: 120 (must have Baccalaureate degree)

Total Upper-level Accounting Credits Required to Sit the CPA Exam in the State of Florida:

1. 24 upper-level accounting credit hours which must include 3 credit hours in each of the following subjects:

  • Financial
  • Cost/Managerial
  • Taxation
  • Auditing

2. Upper-level accounting courses include those numbered in the 3000, 4000, 5000, 6000, and 7000 range with prefixes ACG and TAX.

3. Upper-level accounting credits in excess of 30 may be counted as general business hours.

Total Upper-level General Business Credits Required:

1. 24 credit hours which must include 3 credits of business law.

2. Four courses can be at a lower level (freshman or sophomore), the other course must be upper level (3000 level or higher).

3. All general business credits must be upper level, except for:

  • Introductory Macro and Micro Economics
  • Business Law I
  • Introductory Business Statistics
  • Introduction to Computer Information Systems
  • Any written or oral communication course as described in Board of Accountancy Rule 21A-27.002(2)(b) (Subject to change)

4. Notes

  • 6000 (7000) level courses are only available to graduate (doctoral) students.
  • Business Law 1 and Legal Environment of Business are often considered duplicative regardless of course level.

For application forms and information concerning the CPA exam, visit the Florida Board of Accountancy website.

CPA Licensure Florida Requirements

1. Total Credit Hours Required For Florida CPA Licensure: 150 (must have Baccalaureate degree)
2. Total Upper-level Accounting Credits Required: 30 credit hours
3. Total Upper-level General Business Credits Required: 36 credit hours (including three credits of Business Law)

Work Experience Requirement

One year of work experience verified by a licensed CPA is required for licensure in the state of Florida. This includes any type of position involving the use of accounting, attesting, compilation, management advisory, financial advisory, taxation, or consulting skills. This may be gained in government, in industry, in academia, or public practice. This experience requirement may be met only after completing the educational requirements to sit for the exam.

Recommendations

Students are encouraged to satisfy the additional educational licensure requirements by pursuing a graduate degree. The Executive Master of Accounting (concentration in Professional Accounting) program counts for 27 upper level accounting and three upper level business credits for students with an undergraduate degree in Accounting, or 30 upper level accounting and nine upper level business credit hours for students completing the program on the “Business Track”. Non-business majors may need additional courses to meet the CPA requirements in Florida after completing the program.

Twenty-seven of the 30 credit hours in the Executive Master of Accounting (concentration in Forensic Accounting), Executive Master of Accounting (concentration in Business Valuation), Executive Master of Accounting (concentration in Digital Accounting Forensics and Data Analytics) and Executive Master of Taxation programs count toward the upper division accounting credits required to become a CPA in Florida; 3 credit hours in the programs count toward the upper level business section of the CPA in Florida.

Resources

For information concerning the CPA exam in all 50 states, visit the National Association of State Boards of Accountancy web site.

CPA Review

The FAU School of Accounting Executive Programs does not endorse any one particular CPA Review course. However, we do suggest that students planning to sit for the CPA exam consider taking a review course.