Section 16-71-17 - Education(a) An applicant for a license of certified public accountant shall:(1) Present satisfactory evidence that the applicant has received a baccalaureate degree from a university, college, or other four-year institution of learning accredited by a regional or national accrediting agency or association recognized by the Secretary of Education under the requirements of 20 United States Code section 1099b, as amended; or(2) Present satisfactory evidence that the applicant has received a baccalaureate or comparable degree from a foreign or U.S. university, college, or other four-year institution of learning and provide evidence that the baccalaureate or comparable degree qualifies the applicant for acceptance for an advanced degree at an accredited university, college, or other four-year institution of learning as specified in paragraph (1).(b) An applicant who passed the examination prior to December 31, 2000, or who earned conditional credits prior to December 31, 2000 and subsequently passed the examination before the conditional credits expired, shall, in addition to meeting the requirements in subsection (a), present evidence of satisfactory completion of at least thirty semester hours of upper division or graduate level study comprised of such subjects as: (1) Accounting and auditing;(7) Functional fields of business (e.g., finance, production, marketing, personnel relations, business organization, and business management); or(8) Other business-related subjects as approved by the board, at an accredited university, college, or four-year institution of learning as specified in subsection (a). The baccalaureate degree and the thirty semester hours of additional study shall have included a minimum of eighteen semester hours of upper division or graduate level accounting and auditing subjects.
In the event the additional studies of thirty semester hours are completed before the baccalaureate degree is conferred, the applicant shall furnish the board a letter from the university, college, or four-year institution of learning indicating that the additional studies were not counted toward the baccalaureate degree.
(c) An applicant who did not earn conditional credits prior to December 31, 2000 and who passed the examination after December 31, 2000, shall, in addition to meeting the requirements in subsection (a), present evidence of satisfactory completion of at least one hundred fifty semester hours of college education which shall include: (1) At least twenty-four semester hours in accounting courses, of which at least eighteen semester hours are upper division or graduate level accounting courses, including without limitation courses in: (A) Financial accounting;(D) Managerial accounting; and(2) At least twenty-four semester hours in upper division or graduate level accounting or non-accounting business-related courses including without limitation courses in: (B) Legal and social environment of business;(F) Organizational, group, and individual behavior;(G) Quantitative applications in business;(H) Communication skills;(K) Total-quality management;(N) Other business-related courses.(d) Each applicant shall present evidence satisfactory to the board that the requirements provided in section 466-5(f), or 466-5.5, HRS, as applicable, have been met. Satisfactory evidence shall take the form of a certified copy of a diploma, a certified transcript (date and degree granted), or a statement from a college official indicating that the applicant will graduate within one hundred twenty days after the examination.(e) An applicant requesting an exemption from the educational requirements pursuant to section 466-5(c), HRS, shall arrange to provide direct confirmation to the board, from an appropriate source, that the applicant meets the requirements stated therein.[Eff 1/1/74; am 5/12/78; am 3/6/80; am and ren § 16-71-17, 6/25/81; am and comp 6/8/84; am and comp 10/23/87; am and comp 2/22/94; am and comp 6/3/95; comp 1/22/01; am and comp 1/30/10; comp 2/13/12] (Auth: HRS § 466-4) (Imp: HRS §§ 466-5, 466-5.5)