FAQs - Academic Credentials Evaluation

The Illinois Board of Examiners evaluates both domestic and international credentials based on long established standards and policy.  International education varies widely throughout the world and presents a considerable challenge to be fair and equitable to all candidates.  In order to meet this standard, the Illinois Board of Examiners works with the International Association of Universities through the utilization of the International Handbook of Universities, 2011 edition.  If an International candidate submits documentation of an undergraduate degree from an accredited international educational institution recognized by the Board of Examiners, the degree will be evaluated based on an equivalent U.S. bachelors degree and the candidate will be credited with 120 semester hours. 

The undergraduate degree must be recognized by the Illinois Board of Examiners to be substantially equivalent to a U.S. Bachelors degree.

No, the results of your evaluation will be mailed when completed. 

 

There are clearly two distinct meanings to the word “accredited” as it relates to the evaluation of your credentials with the Illinois Board of Examiners.   The primary meaning of accredited means that a college or university is accredited by a regional accrediting body and for credit to be recognized by the Board of Examiners, a college or university must be regionally accredited.

The second meaning of accredited refers to accreditation by either the Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business (AACSB) or the Accreditation Council for Business Schools and Programs (ACBSP).  If your graduate program is accredited by either of these two accrediting bodies, additional credit will be counted for each semester hour of accounting coursework.

All fees are non-refundable.  We encourage you to have an evaluation of your credentials completed before making application if there is any question as to your eligibilty to sit for the exam.  You will not be assessed additional fees for future evaluations and applicaton fees are valid for three years. 

 

Comparison of Current and Proposed Educational Requirements to Sit For the CPA Examination in the State of Illinois

(Changes Highlighted in  Bold)

All semester credit hours (SCH) stated below are at the undergraduate level.

One graduate SCH is equivalent to 1.6 undergraduate SCH.

Any credits earned in excess of maximums stated count towards the 150 hour requirement.

 

 

Current Requirements

Proposed New Requirements

1. 150 SCH

1. 150 SCH

2. Baccalaureate or higher degree

2. Baccalaureate or higher degree

3. Degree earned from an accredited

3. Degree earned from an accredited school:

school:

 

A. Graduate degree in accounting

A. Graduate degree in accounting

 

•    Accountinq proqram must be accredited by

 

AACSB

 

•    No requirements for SCH in Research &

 

Analysis in Accounting (RAA), Business

 

Communications (BC), or Business Ethics

 

(BE)

B. Graduate degree in business

B. Graduate degree in business

 

•    Business program must be accredited

 

bv AACSB or ACBSP

•     Minimum of 24 SCH in acctg.

•    Minimum of 30 SCH in accounting

•    At least one course in financial

•    At least one course in financial accounting,

accounting, auditing, taxation,

auditing, taxation, and management

and management accounting

accounting

 

•     2 SCH in integrated or stand-alone RAA

 

(maximum towards the 30 accounting SCH)

 

•     No requirements for SCH in BC or BE

C. Bachelor's degree in business;

Now included in option C below

D. Bachelor's or graduate degree

C. Bachelor's or graduate degree

•   Minimum of 24 SCH in acctg.

•    Program must be accredited

•    At least one course in financial

(see options in §1400.90(g)(8))

accounting, auditing, taxation,

•    Minimum of 30 SCH in accounting

and management accounting

•    At least one course in financial accounting,

 

auditing, taxation, and management

 

accounting

 

•     2 SCH in integrated or stand-alone RAA

•     Minimum of 24 SCH in business

(maximum towards the 30 accounting SCH)

other than accounting

•    Minimum of 24 SCH in business other than

 

accounting

 

•    2 SCH in integrated or stand-alone BC

 

and 3 SCH in integrated or stand-alone

 

BE (maximums towards the 24 business

 

sch;

4. Internships or Life Experience -

4. Internships or Life Experience

Maximum of 6 SCH of Internships or Life

A. Maximum of 3 SCH toward 30 SCH

Experience count toward the 24 SCH

accounting requirement

accounting requirement

B. Maximum of 3 SCH toward 24 SCH

 

business requirement

5. Provisional approval of in-progress

5. Provisional approval of in-progress

courses - 120 days to submit evidence

courses - 120 days to submit evidence

of completion of all requirements

of completion of all requirements

An earned degree does NOT substitute for verification of the 150 hours.  We must compute the total hours earned one course at a time.

We need a complete and accurate Academic Credentials Evaluation Request form (which can be completed in our online system) that shows the chronology of all colleges and universities attended. Applicants from countries that do not claim English as their official language should provide original transcripts (or mark sheets from India and Pakistan) and certification of degrees and diplomas from institutions attended, accompanied by official English translations. We need a transcript from ALL institutions attended.  If complete information is not provided, a delay in processing will occur. Have the institution send your official transcript to the Illinois Board of Examiners, 100 Trade Centre Drive - Suite 403, Champaign, Illinois 61820.

Yes, in order to be considered official, all academic records/transcripts must bear a seal, and a signature, in ink, of an authorized official of the institution (such as the Registrar or Recorder of Records). Official documents must be provided from the institution awarding the degree. A photocopy, fax, email, or notarized document is not considered an official document and will not be evaluated.

All candidates presenting international course work must pay the $250 evaluation fee to have their foreign credentials evaluated for the CPA exam.  We will waive the $250 evaluation fee if we need to verify ten or fewer hours of international credit toward the 150-hour requirement.  However, international documents must still be presented for evaluation.  A combination of domestic and international credit requires payment of $250.00.

No, we do our own evaluations based on the original documents and our own standards and polices. A credential evaluation service applies judgments and interpretations based on their own particular standards and polices.  An educational institution (college or university) also awards transfer credit based on their own standards and policies.

Evaluations take anywhere from 6-8 weeks to complete, once completed you will receive a letter in the mail with the results.  Results can not be given over the phone or email. If more information is required the evaluator will send you a letter requesting the information needed.

No, documents issued in languages other than English, must be accompanied by a certified word-for-word translation into English. In order to qualify as certified, translations must be provided by the issuing educational institution, showing official letterhead, stamps, seals, signatures, etc. or they can be provided by a professional agency. A translation performed by a member of American Translators Association (ATA) is acceptable. An acceptable one for Canada is Association of Translators and Interpreters of Ontario (ATIO).

Yes, you must list on the application and submit the original transcript from the institution where the course was taken.

We accept hours if they are accepted by the institution.  We also accept graded course work of A, B, C, or D that has been awarded “earned” by the institution.

Economics, Business Law, Marketing, Finance, Business and Technical Communication, Business Ethics, International Business, Legal and Social Environment of Business, Management, Business/Management Information Systems, Quantitative Methods and Statistic courses taught by the accounting department.  All courses are subject to review by the Illinois Board of Examiners.

On the back of the transcript an explanation is given of how hours are computed, and how to do the conversion to semester hours if needed.

The limitation of six hours of internship or life-experience credit toward meeting the accounting requirement refers to credit earned outside the usual classroom venue that is posted on a transcript.  If a candidate has attended a college that awards credit based on evaluation of work and life experience, accounting credits from that evaluation process are limited to six semester hours.  The same applies to accounting internships.

Yes, as long as it is posted on the domestic transcript as “study abroad”.

Yes, as long as they are posted on the transcript where the course work was taken.

Yes, courses in progress must be indicated on the "Courses in Progress" form, submitted with the evaluation application and  must be completed in the current semester or quarter in which you are applying.

You may only be approved ONCE as a provisional candidate.  Once approved, no changes may be made to your courses in progress.  You may not add or delete exam sections while approved as a provisional applicant.  Final transcripts must be received by the board within 120 days of having sat for the first exam.  Scores will be voided for all exam sections taken if the transcripts are not received within 120 days of having sat for the first exam.

We do not award credit for repeated or duplicated classes.  Repeated classes are those taken more than once at the same institution.  Duplicated classes are courses similar in content and level taken at two different institutions; if you complete Principles of Taxation at Northern Illinois University and take the course again at University of Iowa, we will not award/count the credit hours twice.  The policy of the institutions awarding the credit does not supersede the Board’s policy regarding duplicate courses.  The only exceptions to the repeated course rule are courses with the same prefix and title that are allowed by the institution for repeat credit and it is clearly stated as policy in their course catalogue.

The letter will tell you specific information on what is needed to complete your evaluation. 

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