Certificate of Professional Accounting - Business Subjects
Certificate of Achievement (Transcripted) Accounting · Santa Ana College · 2026-2027 Catalog
Program Code: SAC.ACTBS.CA
Program Control Number: 35703
This certificate is designed for an individual that has a bachelor’s degree other than in accounting that wishes to be licensed as Certified Public Accountant (CPA). This certificate in conjunction with Certificate of Professional Accounting – Accounting Subjects and Certificate of Professional Accounting – Accounting Study & Ethics will prepare an individual for the CPA exam as well as meet the educational requirements for licensure. The courses contained in this certificate meet the specific course requirements of section “Business Subjects” set forth by the California Board of Accountancy (CBA). Upon successful completion of this certificate along with the Certificate of Professional Accounting – Accounting Subjects and Certificate of Professional Accounting – Accounting Study & Ethics, a student will have taken all the necessary Accounting, Business and Ethics courses required for licensure (license granted upon successful passing of the Uniform CPA exam). CPA licensure affords promotional opportunities in public accounting, taxation, as well as administrative departments of businesses in public and private sector areas such as manufacturing, merchandising, financial service, wholesale trades, and government. This certificate covers business & finance principles necessary for financial reporting, analysis and critical review of accounting information. Entry-level employment opportunities include professional positions in financial statement auditing, income tax preparation, cost accounting, financial reporting and a number of trainee positions. Promotional opportunities include higher-level responsibilities in these same areas.
Note 1: Some of the courses listed in this certificate overlap with courses listed in the Certificate of Professional Accounting – Accounting Subjects and/or the Certificate of Professional Accounting – Accounting Study & Ethics. It is imperative that an individual does not take any courses for this certificate that have already counted towards either the Certificate of Professional Accounting – Accounting Subjects or the Certificate of Professional Accounting – Accounting Study & Ethics.
Note 2: While a bachelor’s degree is not a prerequisite to obtain this certificate, the student needs to obtain a bachelor’s degree for CPA exam eligibility (may occur concurrently). In addition to passing the Uniform CPA exam and meeting the educational requirements, an individual must also meet general accounting and business work experience as required by the CBA for licensure. Please refer to http://www.dca.ca.gov/cba/index.shtml for a complete list of all requirements and options for licensure requirements for a CPA.
Note 3: A student may be eligible to sit for the CPA exam concurrent with obtaining this certificate. To qualify and sit for the Uniform CPA exam one will need a bachelor’s degree and evidence of at least 24 semester units of business-related subjects and 24 semester units of accounting subjects. For more information regarding this requirement, please refer to: http://www.dca.ca.gov/cba/applicants/ed-requirements.shtml
Learning Outcome(s):
- illustrate their understanding ofbusiness conceptsthrough examination and practical exercises.
- demonstrate the use of the Microsoft suite (Word, PowerPoint and Excel) in their completion of assignments.
| Course | Title | Units |
|---|---|---|
| Business Subjects - Required Courses - 13 Units: | 13 | |
| ACCT 204 | Managerial Cost Accounting | 3 |
| orACCT 210 | Accounting Information Systems | 3 |
| ECON C2002 | Principles of Macroeconomics | 3 |
| ECON C2001 | Principles of Microeconomics | 3 |
| STAT C1000 | Introduction to Statistics | 4 |
| Business Subjects - Electives - Select a Minimum of 11 Units from below or from any courses not taken in required section above. | 11 | |
| ACCT 108 | Tax Practices and Procedures | 3 |
| ACCT 113 | Intermediate Income Taxes – Corporations | 2 |
| ACCT 114 | Intermediate Income Taxes - Partnerships and LLCs | 2 |
| ACCT 124 | Computerized Income Tax Preparation | 2 |
| BUS 100 | Fundamentals of Business | 3 |
| BUS 120 | Principles of Management | 3 |
| BUS 121 | Human Relations and Organizational Behavior | 3 |
| BUS 130 | Personal Finance | 3 |
| BUS 140 | Principles of Finance | 3 |
| BUS 160 | Introduction to Stock and Bond Investments | 3 |
| BUS 222 | Business Writing | 3 |
| MKTG 113 | Principles of Marketing | 3 |
| CMPR 167 | Microsoft Access | 3 |
| BA 188 | Microsoft Excel | 2 |
| BA 189 | Advanced Microsoft Excel | 2 |
| Total | 24 | |