I'm thinking about going to college to get a degree in Accounting, could someone explain the different degrees

Question

I know there are all sorts... A/S, AA, BA, BS. I'm a little confused at the moment. Would someone sort them out for me?

Answer 1

Really, the basic difference is between the Associates Degree and the Bachelor's Degree. An associate's degree is what you get when you finish two years at a community college in an academic track. The bachelor's degree is traditionally a four-year program in the U.S. The reason I say traditionally, though, is that because of the requirements for the CPA exam, many accounting programs require a few more than the usual number of units, so it may take a little over 4 years. In addition, many states now require that someone applying to take the CPA exam have 150 units, which is the equivalent of 5 years of education (in most places, though, the remaining units don't actually have to be in accounting).

Okay, that takes care of the first letter of each degree. The second A or S after the Associates or Bachelors stands for Arts or Science. While you wouldn't get a bachelor of arts degree in physics, or a bachelor of science in drama, accounting is one of those things which kind of falls in between - it isn't really an art or a science. So each school decides for itself which degree to give. I would guess that more give it a science than an arts label. But as far as the difference this makes to a graduate, it doesn't make any. While a lot more jobs are available to someone with a bachelors than to someone with an associates degree, the same is not true of the arts or science distinction.

Answer 2

The person above me explained the prefixes quite well. Anyhow, I think you can major in anything you want as well as get accounting credentials. To qualify to take the CPA exam in most states, you will need to get 150 credits, so that will mean at least a Bachelor's degree and 5 years of education. You can get a Master's degree during that 5th year if you wish.

At my college, the Accounting degree falls under BPS--Bachelor's of Professional Studies. Or, I could get an MBA (Master's in Business Administration) with a concentration in Accounting after I finished my bachelor's degree in whatever major I wished. After I get 150 credits, I could take the CPA exam.

Also, you will have to be careful in selecting your courses, There are about three different exams you can take (the CPA, CMA, and CIA), depending on what kind of accountant you want to be. There may be specific courses that you will be advised to take, depending on what kind of accountant you want to be. I don't remember what the three designations stand for--you can google the topic.