All requirements for majors in the Department of Accounting, Finance and Business Law are outlined below. Among these requirements are a set of Required Courses, Business Core Courses and 30 semester hours of Major Courses.  The major prepares students to enter the fields of public, industrial, service, governmental and nonprofit or tax accounting. It also provides an appropriate preparation for students who wish to pursue graduate work in accounting or other areas of business.

The Virginia Board of Accountancy requires candidates taking the Certified Public Accountant (CPA) exam in Virginia to have a baccalaureate degree, 150 total semester hours of credits, 30 semester hours of accounting, and 24 semester hours of business in order to sit for the CPA exam. The requirements for other states vary; however, most now or soon will require students to meet the 150-hour requirement. Alternatives to meeting this 150-hour requirement include, but are not limited to, entering our Master of Business Administration (MBA) program after completion of the bachelor’s degree or pursuing a double major, perhaps in Accounting and Finance.

The MBA program requires a minimum of 30 hours, thus meeting the 150 requirement.
A double major may not require a minimum of 30 hours, in which case the student would need
to take some additional courses in order to satisfy the 150-hour requirement.) Students should
discuss with their advisor all possible alternatives for meeting the 150-hour requirement at both the
undergraduate and graduate-level.

Core Curriculum Courses 43-45
(Includes 22-23 hours of pre-business required courses)
(See undergraduate catalog for core curriculum requirements)

Business Core Courses  30
ITEC 100. Introduction to Information Technology. 3
or
ITEC 281. Data Management and Analysis with Spreadsheets. 3
Required Courses   21
ACTG 311. Cost Accounting. 3
ACTG 312. Accounting Information Systems. 3
ACTG 313:314. Intermediate Accounting I and II. 3:3
ACTG 411. Federal Taxation. 3
ACTG 414. Auditing. 3
ACTG 416. Governmental and Not-for-Profit Accounting. 3

Choose three courses from: 9
(At least two courses must have ACTG prefix)

ACTG 401. International Accounting. 3
ACTG 412. Advanced Taxation. 3
ACTG 413. Advanced Financial Topics. 3
ACTG 415. Accounting Theory. 3
BLAW 304. Business Law I. 3
FINC 332. Intermediate Finance. 3

Electives 15-17
Total Credits Needed for Degree 120