[Trotta]

So here’s a little background about my situation. I received my bachelors degree in Finance and later went back to school to get my accounting certificate which is an additional 24 credits and combined with my bachelors degree gives me 153 credits and allows me to sit for the CPA exam in my home state of Connecticut. I passed my final section in August 2019 and low and behold went to apply for my license in Connecticut only to find out I need 36 accounting credits to meet the education requirement… I have someone to verify my professional experience but I do not plan on practicing publicly I really would just like to be able to add CPA to my resume.

What are my options besides taking additional accounting courses? Is it strange to get licensed in another state just to be able to call myself a CPA?

Any help anyone can provide would be greatly appreciated!

[DDylan]

yeah….I licensed in Oklahoma and work in Texas and I put CPA after my name on Linkedin and emails (sometimes)…As you do not practice, it does not really matter. I got questioned once about this during interview, I just said I started the CPA process in Oklahoma when I was in school and I do not want to deal with the paperwork, and they are totally fine with it.

[bigstakk]

Just do the educational requirements and get licensed in your state. You can complete the 12 units required in one quarter and it should be a piece of cake since you already know the material so you will not even need to really study.

[monikernc]

Check out Montana's education requirements. They don't require residency for a license. Beware, to call yourself a CPA in CT, your out of state license has to be recognized by CT through reciprocity. Call the boards in both states and find out what the processes are for each.

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[Trotta]

Thank you all for the suggestions. Is getting licensed in another state without the intention of practicing common?

I feel like my situation is unique because I don't plan on practicing and my role at my organization has changed significantly from accounting to a more financial planning and strategy development. I work in the private industry and was contemplating getting my CPA or MBA and after meeting with my mentors they all suggested going for my CPA because it would look more impressive on my resume and to the senior leaders in my organization.

[Recked]

You can read into the actual texts of the laws of each state, especially CT, to see what the rules are.
Most states require that the state the license is issued in needs to have requirements that are substantially equivalent, or that you've been licensed for so many years.
You can always include CPA(MO) or something to designate which state you are licensed in.
NY is very particular about holding yourself out as, or practicing as a CPA, in the state if you are not licensed, unless you are just commuting in for a small job.
Good luck to you. You might be able to take some additional online classes or credits to fulfill the requirement. I have seen that a lot for NY candidates who don't want a masters.

[monikernc]

Trotta, one benefit (others might see it as a drawback) to the CPA over the MBA is that it is an established credential with all that goes into attaining and maintaining it. I have an MBA and there is no way to prove you have kept up with anything – with the CPA you have to do continuing education to keep the license. I think that it stands out as a result.

FAR 7/25/15 76!
AUD 10/30/15 93
BEC 2/27/16 82
REG 5/23/16 88!
Ninja Book and MCQ and the forum - all the way!!!
and a little thing i like to call, time and effort!
if you want things to change, you have to do something different

[Trotta]

No doubt I have decided to apply for my license in DC as they have less strict education requirements. I just wanted some assurance that applying for a license in a state that I don't plan to practice is not uncommon. Thank you all for the feedback and wish me luck

[NoName]

It's common to see people put Jane Doe, CPA on their email signature.

I was thinking about this recently. Let's say you are a CPA in state X and send an email to someone in State Y. Are you holding yourself out as a CPA in state Y?

This is in the context of non public accounting (e.g. as a member in business). I was actually thinking about adding (CA) after the CPA in my email signature so there could never be the accusation I was holding myself out as a CPA in state Y in the example above.

[NoName]

Better yet, I think this looks cleaner:

Jane Doe, CPA**
Corporate Controller
Company Name XYZ
Los Angeles, CA 12345

**Licensed as a CPA in the State of California

[Author]

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