• Georgia requires individuals preparing for their Certified Public Accounting (CPA) exam to have their baccalaureate degree. In addition to college coursework, before taking a Georgia CPA exam, an individual must work two years or 4,000 hours in public accounting under the supervision of a licensed CPA, five years or 10,000 hours in business or a combination of the two.
  
  

General Education

• The general education classes should include core classes in liberal arts studies. This broad base of knowledge from history, communications arts and science gives the accounting student a solid foundation for her accounting career. Courses should concentrate on the study of higher level mathematics, including college algebra, calculus, probability and statistics. Information technology and computer literacy classes are important to meet the Georgia CPA exam requirements as well. Foreign language is not a required subject, but it is helpful in the job market. During the first two years of the four-year course of study for a bachelor's degree, the accounting student should take at least 15 hours of introductory business and accounting courses. During this period of time, the accounting student should acquire an understanding of the concepts behind regulatory law as it pertains to certified public accounting.
  
  

Business

• Depending on the university, the accounting student may have to show proof of a certain grade point average before taking higher level business and accounting classes. The higher level classes may have different specific titles from university to university but typically they follow the same subject areas. Core business classes should include accounting information systems, business statistics, quantitative analysis, corporate finance, strategic management, principles of management, operations management and principles of marketing. Economics and additional math courses may also be subjects included in an accounting major's education.
  
  

Accounting

• CPA requirements for education in Georgia mandate the accounting student complete 150 hours of college credit to earn the bachelor's degree. To finish these hours, the accounting student should take all levels of intermediate accounting available at his university as well as all levels of managerial accounting and international accounting. Courses in income tax laws and auditing should complete his training. Depending on the university's requirement, the accounting major may also have to complete courses in professional accounting. These courses may lead to a capstone project or an internship. Individuals preparing to take the CPA exam may take specialized courses devoted to preparing for the exams. To satisfy CPA educational requirements, the accounting major must graduate with at least 30 hours of accounting classes above the basic level and 24 hours of additional business classes, also above the basic level.