The basic objectives of the accounting program are twofold: to provide students who do not intend to major in accounting with the basis for understanding the role accounting plays in business today; and to provide those students who desire to major in accounting with the educational background necessary for lifelong learning and a rewarding career in the accounting profession. The curriculum offered by the department attempts to blend the conceptual with the practical. Exposure to the underlying conceptual framework of accounting provides a basis for dealing with emerging accounting issues, while examination of technical pronouncements enables students to gain insight into practical issues encountered in an accounting environment.
Accounting majors may enter the professional world of accounting from a variety of directions. Choices available in the form of elective courses enable students to chart a course that leads them toward public accounting, private accounting, governmental or not-for-profit accounting, as well as other specialties that rely on a strong accounting background. Those students seeking professional certification, such as the CMA or CIA, are able to satisfy requirements to sit for these professional examinations by completing the undergraduate accounting degree. All accounting majors must comply with requirements of the advanced business prerequisites for enrollment in upper-division courses and must complete the common body of knowledge courses as listed previously.
All accounting courses for the major require a minimum grade of C (not C-). In addition to university and college requirements cited previously, requirements for accounting majors include: