Accounting Major, BS

Print Degree Planner (opens a new window) |

College of Business Admission Requirements

Admission Requirements
Admission requirements to major programs within the College of Business are identical regardless of the location of the program. Students must first be accepted by the university and, if applicable, the university center which they plan to attend. Then, students must formally apply to the College of Business and be admitted to a College of Business Program prior to enrolling in 300- and 400-level courses within the college.

Students must attend a College of Business major orientation to be fully admitted to our majors. Applications are only accepted at new student orientations. The application form must be completed and returned to the appropriate office along with copies of current transcripts.

If a student has met the requirements of admission but has struggled to do so, the College of Business reserves the right to offer conditional admission status for up to 2 quarters and/or 30 credits in order for the student to demonstrate she/he will be successful. Final admission to the College of Business under these circumstances is not guaranteed.

Students must have the below requirements to be admitted to a College of Business major. Students seeking entry to the College without these requirements will be granted pre-major standing.

Completion of 30 credits (If a student is a transfer student, credits must be transferable)
The applicant must be in good academic standing
2.25 Collegiate GPA
Completion of ENG 101 and ENG 102 with a C- or higher, or equivalent
Attend a College of Business Orientation

International students whose native language is not English must meet one of the following English proficiency requirements:

A score of 71 or above on the Internet-based TOEFL or 525 or above on the paper-based TOEFL (195 for computer based, 71 for internet based), OR
A score of 6.0 or above on the International English Language Testing System (IELTS) exam, OR
A 3.0 (B grade) or above in each two college-level English composition courses from an accredited United States college or university. Contact the Office of Admissions to find out what courses are acceptable.

Students who have met all of the above requirements will be admitted unless the number of applicants exceeds available space. In that case, acceptance will be competitive, based on a selection index.

Previous or Transfer Coursework Policy
Business courses taken to fulfill the requirements for an undergraduate or graduate degree from the CWU College of Business must have been taken within the last 10 years at the time of graduation. Exceptions may be made, but must be approved prior to acceptance into the College of Business by the department chair and dean or designee.

Students wishing to have credits from non-United States institutions considered for transfer into the College of Business for any major or minor must have their transcripts evaluated through outside credential evaluators who are members of the National Association of Credential Evaluation Services (NACES), such as the Foundation for International Services (FIS), the World Education Service (WES), or Educational Perspectives. Students who intend to pursue the CPA may instead decide to use the NABSA (National Association of State Boards of Accountancy) international evaluation services since it is a requirement of the CPA. Credits for current students participating in a CWU study abroad program will be evaluated by the Office of the Registrar.

Equivalent lower-division (100-200 level) courses may be transferred toward meeting the foundation course requirements for any BS degree in the college. Upper-division (300-400 level) courses may be transferred toward meeting the major requirements only with the approval of the department chair and the college dean (or designee).

Academic Jeopardy Policy
The College of Business is committed to the success of its students. If a student that has been admitted to the College of Business is deemed to be in academic jeopardy, the College of Business may place restrictions on the student. A student is considered in academic jeopardy for the following reasons:

On academic warning or probation
Frequently withdraws from class
Repeating coursework to be successful
Has less that a 2.5 (2.499 and below) in any of the required GPAs for graduation.
- CWU GPA
- Collegiate GPA (CWU and all transfer coursework combined)
- Major GPA
- Upper-division coursework in the major GPA
- Accounting majors: upper-division Accounting coursework GPA

The College of Business may do the following in response to an Academic Jeopardy situation:

Limit College of Business coursework in future quarters
Require academic advising with both faculty and/or professional advisors
Require academic success plans
Double majors or double specialization students may be limited to one major plan in the College of Business

If a student is unable to improve academically while receiving intensive advising and support or does not actively participate in required advising, the student may be subjected to the College of Business Separation Policy.

Separation Policy
If a student that has been admitted to the College of Business is placed on academic probation, suspension, received multiple academic warnings, has repeat academic course withdrawals, or whose academic performance is below the necessary grade point averages required to graduate, then the student’s admission into the College of Business may be rescinded. Once rescinded, the student will be denied readmission to the College of Business for one year following which a written petition for readmission must be presented at least 30 days prior to the start of the quarter in which readmission is desired. The decision to readmit will be based on meeting current admission standards, analysis of the entire academic record, as well as any other sources of information deemed appropriate. Readmission is not guaranteed.

Service to Other Majors
Students majoring in programs outside CB who are required to take courses in this college for either their major or minor will be eligible to enroll on a space-available basis. These students will be given priority over other non-college majors wishing to enroll in courses. All students must have taken prerequisites for courses prior to enrollment.

Repeat Policy
Business administration courses may be repeated only once.

Additional BSBA Graduation Requirements
The following special rules apply to students seeking the BSBA major:

Students must earn a minimum cumulative GPA of 2.25 in the 99-to 100- credit in-the-major coursework to be eligible for a degree. In addition, the Department requires a minimum GPA of 2.25 in the 59- to 60-credit upper-division component of the in-the-major total.
Transfer students must complete at least 40 College of Business credits at CWU to be eligible for the BSBA degree including MGT 489. Additionally, students seeking a human resource management specialization must complete HRM 486 at CWU and students seeking a marketing specialization must complete MKT 470 at CWU.
The BSBA program requires a single specialization of at least 25 credits. Occasionally a student requests a second specialization. To be eligible for a second specialization, a minimum of 20 unique credits must be completed. Unique in this sense means the credits have not been used as part of any other BSBA specialization.

College of Business Curriculum
The College of Business Curriculum is divided into 4 tiers: foundation courses, core courses, major/specialization courses, and capstone. Students completing foundation courses may enroll in core courses so long as course pre-requisites are met. All foundation courses must be complete with a minimum grade of C- and a collegiate gpa of 2.25 or higher prior to a student enrolling in major courses. Students completing foundations courses may enroll in major courses so long as course pre-requisites are met. In order to enroll in the capstone course, students must complete all core courses with a minimum grade of C- and have a collegiate gpa of 2.25 or higher. Core, major/specialization, and capstone courses all require admission to a College of Business major.

Accounting Requirements

The Department of Accounting will allow non-matriculated students in their classes under the following conditions:

Post-baccalaureate students who have a business degree from an AACSB-accredited program in the United States, or
Current students who are enrolled at another AACSB-accredited program in the United States.

These requests will be addressed on a space-available basis and will need the permission of the Accounting Chair. If you meet either of the above criteria, please email the Accounting classes you desire (including the course location): Ellensburg, Lynnwood, or Des Moines) and an unofficial transcript to the Chair of the Department of Accounting. The Chair will then prepare the necessary paperwork for admission into the course.

Graduation Requirements
To graduate with an accounting degree, the department requires a cumulative grade-point average of at least 2.0 in in-the-major upper-division accounting courses completed at CWU, in addition to the university grade-point average requirements that apply to all CWU major programs. Accounting majors cannot earn a business minor.

Upper-division (300-400 level) courses may be transferred toward meeting the major requirements only with the approval of the department chair and the college dean (or designee). Transfer students must earn at least 45 credits at CWU. Transfer students and post-baccalaureate students must complete at least 20 CWU in-the-major upper-division accounting credits to be eligible for the accounting degree. In addition to the 20 CWU in-the-major upper-division credits, transfer students and post-baccalaureate students must complete an additional 17 CWU in-the-major accounting major required course or elective credits to be eligible for the accounting degree. Lower-division (100-200 level) accounting or business courses cannot be transferred to meet upper-division (300-400 level) course requirements. No accounting courses are offered for challenge by examination. CWU students who desire to study abroad must have the department chair and dean pre-approve credits transferred back to the College of Business using the Credit Transfer Agreement.

Central accounting students who are up to 180 days prior to obtaining a degree and at least 225 quarter credits, or who are completing the Master of Professional Accountancy Program, are qualified to sit for the Uniform Certified Public Accountant (CPA) examination. Washington law requires individuals wishing to sit for the CPA examination to have completed a minimum of 36 quarter credits of study in accounting and a minimum of 36 quarter credits in related business courses. See WAC4-25-710 for educational requirements). Registration for the examination is made through the State Board of Accountancy, Olympia, Washington www.cpaboard.wa.gov/. Graduates are also prepared to sit for the Certified Management Accounting examination and the Certified Internal Auditor examination. Students should consult with their major advisor for details.