@She Check with your state. Many state only said “experience under a CPA”, so if you run into a CPA in India and he / she is willing to certify you, then it's fine. There's actually a lot of CPA working in foreign country, mainly in big companies that have business dealing with the US. In addition, under the very special foreign CPA-equivalent rule, for five specific countries, you can obtain a CPA license if you pass the exam or is already a “CPA” in that country…
There are many ways to get a license. If you are fresh graduate, your one year of OPT will be just enough to get yourself a license within the time frame (assuming you find a job right at graduation). Else, accounting firm / law firm / big international business firms will be your best bet. Non-profit, educational industries, and research organization will be your last heaven because they are sponsor-exempted. (Note: Subject to change under current administration).
@Anonymous and to the rest – Check with your state. In most state, it doesn't matter if it is public, private, non-profit. It only matters if you work in public accounting as a CPA, because many state (like NY), will require all public accounting CPA to file additional paperwork (subject to the conflict of interest, SEC and three /five years rotation rule).
If you work in the government, it's a whole different story. Some state / city / county have civil service exam system and that's the only thing that rank you on. Getting a license or not only matters in terms of “minimum qualifications”, which is usually a combination of degree, years of experience, and license. If you pass the exam and work there for about 40 years, your retirement salary will likely to be $150K. There's very few exam-exempt position, like working at the city hall / political office / confidential office (FBI), or if you are a CEO / CFO level. Most big cities have this kind of system.
New York - NYC
Passed CPA Exam (11/2014)
In search for a position in NYC that will fulfills the license requirement.