How to Become a CPA: The Step-by-Step Path

8/20/2026

Becoming a certified public accountant is a sequence, not a single test. You meet an education requirement, apply to sit for the Uniform CPA Examination, pass four sections within a credit window, satisfy any ethics requirement, complete supervised experience, and then apply to a state board for the credential. Each step has its own rules, and most of them are set by the board in the state where you intend to be licensed.

This guide walks through the path in order, with what to do at each step and where candidates most often lose time. It is a national overview. The specific hour counts, experience definitions and ethics rules come from your own board, and the CPA exam requirements page covers eligibility to sit in more detail.

Step 1: Choose the State Where You Will Be Licensed

Do this before anything else, including before choosing courses.

A CPA credential is issued by one of 55 state and territorial boards of accountancy, and each board sets its own education, experience and ethics rules. The exam is uniform; the rest is not. The state you plan to be licensed in, usually where you will live and work, determines every target in the steps that follow.

Candidates who skip this step plan around the wrong rules. They take courses that do not count for their board, assume an experience setting qualifies when it does not, or discover an ethics exam they never heard of. If you might move, look at both states now, and learn how mobility works, because practice privileges let a CPA serve clients across state lines but a move of your principal place of business generally means licensing in the new state.

Do now: Find your board's website and download its current education, exam, experience and ethics rules. Read them directly; summaries lag.

Step 2: Meet the Education Requirement to Sit

Education has two thresholds, and they are often different:

• Education to sit for the exam. Many boards authorize candidates to sit with a bachelor's degree, or around 120 semester hours, that includes specified accounting and business coursework.
• Education to be licensed. Traditionally 150 semester hours. The model Uniform Accountancy Act now also recognizes a route with a bachelor's degree, an accounting concentration and two years of experience instead of one, which states are adopting individually.

Within those totals, boards set minimum accounting and business content, and many require specific subjects such as auditing, taxation, ethics or communications. Hours alone do not satisfy the requirement; the right courses inside the hours do.

Do now: Compare your transcript to your board's content rules course by course. If you are still in school, map your remaining terms against both thresholds so you know exactly when you become eligible to sit. If you studied outside accounting, or outside the U.S., get your board's evaluation of your transcript before enrolling in anything new.

Where time is lost: Waiting to start the exam until all licensure education is done, in a state that would have let you sit earlier. Sitting early lets you run the exam and your remaining coursework in parallel.

Step 3: Apply to Sit for the Exam

Once you meet the education requirement to sit, you apply through your board or the organization it uses to process exam applications. Many boards contract NASBA's examination services for this; others handle it themselves.

The application typically involves:

• An application form and fee
• Official transcripts sent directly from your schools
• Identification, and in some states additional documentation
• Selection of the section or sections you intend to take

Once approved and paid, you receive authorization to schedule, and you book a seat at a Prometric test center. Authorizations expire if unused, so do not apply for more sections than you can realistically take in that period.

Our post on how to register for the CPA exam covers the mechanics in detail.

Where time is lost: Transcripts. Request them early and from every school, including community colleges and transfer credits, because a missing transcript stalls the whole application.

Step 4: Pass All Four Sections of the Uniform CPA Exam

The exam has four sections. Under the CPA Evolution model in effect since 2024, everyone takes three Core sections and chooses one Discipline section:

Core (everyone)	Discipline (choose one)
Auditing and Attestation (AUD)	Business Analysis and Reporting (BAR)
Financial Accounting and Reporting (FAR)	Information Systems and Controls (ISC)
Taxation and Regulation (REG)	Tax Compliance and Planning (TCP)

 

Each section is four hours, and a score of 75 passes. Once you pass a section, you have a rolling credit window to pass the rest. NASBA's model rules set that window at 30 months from the release of the first passing score; boards adopt it individually, so confirm the window that applies to you.

Choose your Discipline section

The Discipline choice is an exam choice, not a practice restriction: it does not limit the work you can do once licensed. Pick the section closest to the work you do or expect to do, because current knowledge makes study easier. Tax staff often choose TCP, candidates in IT audit or systems roles often choose ISC, and candidates in financial reporting or analysis roles often choose BAR.

Choose your section order

Many candidates start with FAR because it is the broadest and underpins the others; some start with the section closest to their current work for an early pass. Either can work. The important thing is a sequence that respects the credit window and your work calendar. See which CPA exam section to take first for the trade-offs.

Prepare with a structured review

The exam is where most of the time goes, and a structured review program is how most candidates manage it while working. The CPA Exam Prep All Parts Bundle covers every section in one package, which suits candidates planning to work through all four sections in sequence. Candidates who want to buy one section at a time can choose individual courses: AUD, FAR, REG, and the Discipline sections BAR, ISC and TCP.

Where time is lost: Long gaps between sections. Momentum matters. Schedule the next section soon after each attempt rather than waiting for the score, and plan the broadest sections away from your busiest work season. A weekly plan with fixed study blocks beats an ambitious plan you cannot keep.

Step 5: Complete Any Ethics Requirement

Many boards require an ethics exam or course separate from the CPA exam. The forms vary:

• The AICPA's professional ethics exam, which for licensure requires a score of 90 percent or higher
• A state-specific exam or course on the board's own law and rules
• Both, or neither

Some boards let you complete the AICPA exam at any point; others release their state exam only after you apply for licensure. Check your board's rule early so it does not surprise you at the end.

Step 6: Complete and Document Qualifying Experience

Every board requires experience verified by a licensed CPA. The model act accepts experience in public practice, industry, government or academia, involving accounting, attest, tax, advisory or consulting skills, and its rules define one year as at least 2,000 hours over a span of one to three years. Boards adopt their own versions. Some are narrower about settings or supervision, some require attest experience for certain license types, and the 120-hour education route generally requires two years rather than one.

Do now:

• Confirm whether your current role qualifies under your board's definition
• Identify the licensed CPA who will verify your experience and check that their license is active
• Keep a running record of dates, hours and duties, so verification is straightforward
• Ask whether experience earned before or during the exam counts; in many states it does

Where time is lost: Reconstructing experience at the end. A supervisor who has left the firm, or whose license has lapsed, can turn a form into a months-long problem.

Step 7: Apply for the CPA License

With education, exam, ethics and experience complete, you apply to the board for the credential itself. Expect to submit:

• The license application and fee
• Proof that you meet the licensure education requirement (often final transcripts)
• Experience verification forms signed by your verifying CPA
• Evidence of any ethics exam or course
• Any background check or character information the board requires; the model act conditions the credential on good moral character

The board reviews the file and issues the credential. Only then may you use the CPA title. Our post on what to do after passing the CPA exam covers this stage in more detail.

How Long the Path Takes

For most people it is about five years from the start of college to the credential, but the range is wide, and the variables are within your control more than you might expect: when you start the exam, whether experience runs at the same time, and how steadily you move through the sections. Our post on how long it takes to become a CPA breaks down the timeline and the decisions that shorten it.

A One-Page Checklist

1. Choose the state where you will be licensed and read its rules.
2. Confirm education to sit and education to license, and check your coursework against the content rules.
3. Apply to sit, with transcripts from every school.
4. Choose your Discipline section and a section order that fits your calendar.
5. Pass all four sections within your credit window.
6. Complete any ethics exam or course your board requires.
7. Complete qualifying experience and get it verified by an active licensed CPA.
8. Apply for the license and wait for the board to issue it before using the title.

Start the Exam Step

Most of the steps above are paperwork and planning; the exam is the part that takes sustained effort. The CPA Exam Prep All Parts Bundle covers all four sections, and the individual section courses let you start with one section and add others as you go.

Frequently Asked Questions

What are the steps to becoming a CPA?

Choose the state where you will be licensed, meet its education requirement to sit for the exam, apply and receive authorization to test, pass the four sections of the Uniform CPA Examination within the credit window, complete any ethics exam or course your board requires, complete qualifying experience verified by a licensed CPA, and apply to the board for the credential. The exam is the same everywhere; the education, experience and ethics rules come from your state board, so read its current rules first.

Do you need a master's degree to become a CPA?

No. Many candidates use a master's degree to reach 150 semester hours, but it is one way among several. Additional undergraduate or community college credits can also count toward 150 hours where they satisfy the board's rules. The updated model Uniform Accountancy Act also recognizes a route with a bachelor's degree that includes an accounting concentration plus two years of experience, which states are adopting individually. Check which routes your board offers and when they take effect.

Can I start the CPA exam before finishing my education?

Often yes. Many boards let candidates sit for the exam once they have a bachelor's degree, or about 120 semester hours including required accounting coursework, even though licensure needs more. That lets you take sections while finishing the remaining hours or starting work, which is the single biggest time saving on the path. Confirm your board's requirement to sit separately from its requirement to license, because they are frequently different numbers.

How many sections are on the CPA exam?

Four. Every candidate takes three Core sections: Auditing and Attestation, Financial Accounting and Reporting, and Taxation and Regulation. Each candidate also chooses one Discipline section: Business Analysis and Reporting, Information Systems and Controls, or Tax Compliance and Planning. Each section is four hours, and a score of 75 passes. Once you pass one section, you must pass the rest within your board's credit window, which NASBA's model rules set at 30 months.

Does my CPA experience have to be in public accounting?

Not necessarily. The model Uniform Accountancy Act accepts experience in public practice, industry, government or academia, as long as it involves accounting, attest, tax, advisory or consulting skills and is verified by a licensed CPA. Boards adopt their own rules, and some are narrower, for example about supervision or attest experience for certain license types. Confirm with your board before relying on a role, and check that your verifying CPA's license is active.

Can I call myself a CPA after passing the exam?

No. Passing the exam is one requirement of several. You may use the CPA title only after the board issues your credential, which requires the licensure education, any ethics requirement and verified experience as well. Using the title before then violates state accountancy law. Many candidates describe themselves as having passed the CPA exam while they finish the remaining requirements, which is accurate, rather than as a CPA, which is not.