Getting an accounting certificate typically involves completing a focused set of college courses or passing an industry exam, depending on which type of credential you’re after. The term “accounting certificate” covers several distinct paths: university-issued academic certificates, professional certifications like the CMA or CIA, software-specific credentials like QuickBooks ProAdvisor, and post-baccalaureate certificates designed to qualify you for CPA licensure. Which one you need depends on where you are in your career and where you want to go.
Academic Certificates vs. Professional Certifications
These two categories sound similar but work differently. An academic certificate is awarded by a college or university after you complete a set of courses in a subject area. It’s about education. Most programs are shorter than a degree, and many have few or no admission requirements beyond a high school diploma. You list them on your resume under education.
A professional certification, on the other hand, is granted by an industry organization after you demonstrate mastery through an exam, work experience, or both. Think of credentials like the Certified Management Accountant (CMA) or Certified Internal Auditor (CIA). These typically come with a professional designation you can use after your name, and they require ongoing maintenance through continuing education. A certification says you’ve proven competency; a certificate says you’ve completed coursework.
University Accounting Certificate Programs
If you’re starting from scratch or switching careers, a university-issued accounting certificate is often the most straightforward entry point. These programs teach foundational accounting topics like financial accounting, managerial accounting, tax, and auditing through credit-bearing college courses. They’re offered by community colleges, four-year universities, and online institutions.
A typical undergraduate accounting certificate runs about 18 credit hours, or six courses. At that length, you can finish in roughly two to three semesters if you’re studying part-time, or faster if you take courses in accelerated terms of eight to ten weeks. Tuition varies widely by institution. As a reference point, one large online university charges $342 per credit for its undergraduate certificate ($6,156 total for 18 credits) and $659 per credit for its graduate certificate ($11,862 total). Community colleges are often significantly cheaper, sometimes under $200 per credit. Active-duty military members and their spouses frequently qualify for reduced rates.
To enroll, you’ll typically need a high school diploma or GED for undergraduate certificates. Graduate-level certificates usually require a bachelor’s degree. The application process is generally straightforward compared to a full degree program.
Using a Certificate to Meet CPA Requirements
Many people pursue an accounting certificate specifically to qualify for the CPA exam. Most states require 150 semester hours of college credit to become a licensed CPA, which is 30 hours beyond a standard bachelor’s degree. If you already have a bachelor’s degree in another field, a post-baccalaureate accounting certificate can help you accumulate both the accounting-specific coursework and the total credit hours you need.
There’s an important detail here: the courses must be credit-bearing. Non-credit continuing education courses or certificate programs that don’t award college credit won’t count toward the 150-hour requirement. If CPA eligibility is your goal, confirm before enrolling that the program awards actual college credits and that those credits will be accepted by your state’s board of accountancy. Requirements vary by state, but many require at least 24 semester hours of accounting coursework within a degree program. A bachelor’s degree in an unrelated field supplemented only by non-matriculated accounting courses may not be accepted in some states.
The Certified Internal Auditor (CIA) Path
The CIA credential, issued by The Institute of Internal Auditors, is one of the most recognized certifications in accounting and auditing. Getting it requires passing a three-part exam and meeting education and experience requirements.
The exam breaks down like this:
- Part 1: 125 questions, 2.5 hours
- Part 2: 100 questions, 2 hours
- Part 3: 100 questions, 2 hours
Your required work experience depends on your education level. With a master’s degree, you need one year of internal audit experience. With a bachelor’s degree, you need two years. Without a degree, you can still qualify through the Internal Audit Practitioner pathway, but you’ll need five years of experience, with at least two of those years falling within the past three. Active CPA or CA holders can qualify with a letter of good standing from their accounting body. Once accepted into the CIA program, you have three years to complete all the eligibility requirements.
Internal audit experience can come from several related areas, including quality assurance, risk management, compliance, external audit, and internal control roles.
QuickBooks and Software Certifications
If you’re looking for something faster and more practical, software-specific certifications can make you employable quickly, especially in bookkeeping and small business accounting roles. The QuickBooks ProAdvisor program is the most widely known.
Intuit offers a free Bookkeeping Certification designed for career switchers and people new to accounting. It takes about 30 hours to complete and covers bookkeeping basics, expense and liability tracking, asset and sales tracking, and account reconciliation. You’ll need access to a spreadsheet program like Excel or Google Sheets. The final exam is proctored (not open book) through a Chrome extension that limits you to a single browser tab.
Beyond the bookkeeping certification, the ProAdvisor Academy has two main levels. Level 1 introduces essential QuickBooks workflows through five core courses. Level 2 goes deeper into product knowledge, advisory skills, and custom reporting. Both exams are open book, require an 80% passing score, and allow three attempts with a cool-down period between retakes. If you’re already experienced with QuickBooks, you can skip the modules and go straight to the exam.
There are also specialty certifications for QuickBooks Online Payroll, Desktop, and Desktop Enterprise. All ProAdvisor certifications require annual recertification, with exams available from April through June each year. Accumulating enough certification points (500) unlocks benefits like premium support and a listing in the Find-a-ProAdvisor directory, which can help you attract clients if you’re running your own bookkeeping practice.
Choosing the Right Path
Your choice depends on your current credentials and your career goal. If you have no accounting background and want to enter the field, a university certificate program gives you a solid educational foundation and, if it awards college credit, can serve as a stepping stone toward a degree or CPA eligibility. If you already have a bachelor’s degree and want to pivot into accounting, a post-baccalaureate certificate fills in the coursework gap while building toward the 150 credit hours most states require for CPA licensure.
If you’re interested in internal auditing specifically, the CIA credential is your target, but you’ll need to pair it with relevant work experience. For people who want to start earning quickly in bookkeeping or small business accounting, the free Intuit Bookkeeping Certification or QuickBooks ProAdvisor credentials offer a low-cost, fast path to practical skills that employers and clients recognize.
Many accountants stack these credentials over time. You might start with a bookkeeping certification, move into a university certificate program, and eventually pursue a CPA license or professional certification as your career advances. Each credential builds on the last, and none of them locks you out of pursuing something more advanced later.