Upon completion of specific accounting courses and an ethics course, students can apply to the Maryland Board of Public Accountancy to sit for the Uniform CPA Examination.
Applicants for a Maryland CPA license must:
- Satisfactorily complete a Board approved-accounting curriculum while earning a minimum of 150 semester hours or their equivalent.
- Pass the Uniform CPA Examination. Examination candidates must pass each of the following sections of the Uniform CPA Examination with a grade of 75%: Auditing and Attestation (AUD), Business Environment and Concepts (BEC), Regulation (REG), and Financial Accounting and Reporting (FAR).
- After passing the Uniform CPA Examination, a candidate must complete a Home Study Course in Professional Ethics that is offered by the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants. The candidate must send a copy of the ethics course completion certificate with the Report of Practical Experience in order to complete the license application process.
- Following passage of the Uniform CPA Examination, an applicant must file a Report of Practical Experience that documents that the applicant has a minimum of 2,000 hours of experience in accounting-related activities verified and endorsed by a licensed CPA.
- (FCC courses are recommended based on information provided by the Maryland Department of Licensing and Regulation. However, the college has no authority over the state’s acceptance of any courses to satisfy specific requirements. Those interested in more information regarding the requirements to sit for the CPA exam in Maryland should contact the State Board of Public Accountancy, 500 N. Calvert Street, Room 308, Baltimore, MD 21202-3651 or email [email protected] or call 410.230.6258.)
For more specific information concerning Maryland requirements, visit the Maryland Department of Labor, Licensing, and Regulation website. Additional information concerning the Uniform CPA Examination can be found at aicpa.org.
CPA Licensing in Other States
- Prospective accounting majors should carefully research accounting curricula and the requirements of any states in which they hope to become licensed.
- All states use the four-part Uniform CPA Examination prepared by the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants (AICPA). The CPA examination is rigorous, and less than one-half of those who take it pass any part they attempt. Candidates are not required to pass all four parts at once, but most states require candidates to pass all four sections within 18 months of passing their first section. The CPA exam is now computerized and is offered two months out of every quarter at various testing centers. Most states also require applicants for a CPA certificate to have some accounting experience requirement (Maryland’s experience requirement is 2,000 hours - see DLLR website for details); however requirements vary by state or jurisdiction.
- Due to the complexity of the Uniform CPA Exam, many students find a CPA exam review course helpful to achieve their goals of passing the CPA exam. FCC does not offer such a review course; however, there are numerous commercial providers of CPA exam study materials including CD, online, or in-class formats.