Is Community College CPA Examination Preparation Effective? Some Evidence to Date from Texas

Abstract

This paper studies the results of the relatively recent change in the Texas educational requirements for students to qualify to take the CPA examination. Since 2004 community colleges were allowed to offer the accounting coursework required for taking the examination. In Texas, these offerings were tightly controlled by the State Board of Public Accountancy. Four community colleges gained approval to offer courses. This paper compares the CPA examination results from these community colleges to the overall Texas results and shows that such course offerings have provided an avenue for many students to successfully study for, and pass, the CPA examination.