I would like to ask for clarification regarding the minimum requirements in order to acquire CPA certification. I am currently living in Osaka and I am 28 years old. I was born in the US before I attended university here. I have dual citizenship so I shouldn’t have any problems taking the exam either here or back in the US.
I know that you need a 4-year bachelor’s degree and 150 credit hours of higher education as one requirement. I have a bachelor’s degree in Liberal Studies from a university in Tokyo but I only have about 124 credit hours so what would be the best way to attain the remaining credit hours needed? Would it be attending a graduate program or a vocational school related to finance/accounting? If I decided to pursue becoming a CPA, would it be better for me to return to the US in order to get the needed credit hours? I tried researching this online and I found some articles explaining this requirement but they never suggested what to do if you need more credit hours. I’ll admit that my GPA wasn’t that great so I’m also curious if that would affect my eligibility for taking the CPA exam too.
Secondly, I know you need 1-2 years of relevant experience within 3 years to be licensed but I heard from someone else that companies in Japan are desperate for English-speaking CPAs and it’s really easy to get hired and get the experience once you pass one of the sections of the CPA. Is that really true? It sounds too good to be true so I’m a little wary.
I appreciate any advice or suggestions in advance. If you already have US CPA or someone you know does, please let me know about how they studied and what kind of textbooks they used to study.
3 comments
The specific rules about education and experience vary by jurisdiction, so first you need to figure out which state or territory you intend to be licensed in.
Then you will be able to deal with more specifics.
In general, online courses should be fine. Some community colleges have certificate programs meant to catch you up to be qualified to sit the CPA exam.
I would suggest you to check with your state board of accountancy. That’s the most reliable resource since each jurisdiction seems to have a slightly different requirements.
For the missing credits, it also depends on your choice but the easiest way in my humble opinion would be taking an accredited online courses. Another option is to enroll with prep school like Abitus or TAC since they provide one-stop service from helping you getting those missing credits, preparing yourself for the exam, even finding someone to verify your working experiences for you. Since you didn’t major in accounting, you could just take those required accounting courses for your credits. Also, no one cares about your GPA. Mine is low too so don’t worry about it.
Audit firms are usually short on people anyway, so the chance is pretty high if you are bilingual.
I used Becker and some supplements (textbooks, i-75 CPA). I highly recommend you to get started before big changes coming in 2024.
Maybe browse [this other reddit sub?](https://www.reddit.com/r/CPA/)