Tennessee

Eligibility for Examination

Effective January 27, 2017

In order to sit for the Exam, you must meet the following education requirement:

• Completed a four-year bachelor’s degree or higher from an accredited institution
• Completed at least 18 semester or 27 quarter hours of accounting at the upper division excluding credits from internship programs

Upper division courses are from the junior, senior and graduate levels.

You may submit your application for the Exam while your education is still in progress; however, you must complete your education before you sit for any section of the Exam. No credit for the Exam will be given to you if you fail to successfully complete your education prior to sitting for the Exam.

In order to qualify for a license in Tennessee, you will have to meet the following education requirement:

• Completed a four-year bachelor’s degree or higher from an accredited institution
• Completed at least 30 semester or 45 quarter hours of accounting including at least 24 semester or 36 quarter hours at the upper division. A maximum of 6 semester or 8 quarter hours from internship programs may be included.
• Completed at least 24 semester or 36 quarter hours in general business such as:
  • algebra, calculus, statistics, probability
  • business communication
  • business law
  • economics
  • ethics
  • finance
  • management
  • technology/information systems
  • marketing

Transcripts

If you who have completed the educational requirement at the time of application:

• You must submit an official transcript from each school you attended. Transfer credits are not acceptable; you must submit a transcript from each institution.
• Official transcripts are those that have been issued by the institution’s Registrar’s Office and include the Registrar’s official seal.
• The degree you have earned must be posted on your official transcript.
• Transcripts may be submitted electronically provided they are official. Some schools do not offer this service. Contact your Registrar’s office for additional information. If an email address is required for electronic delivery, use [email protected]. Electronically delivered transcripts must be submitted directly from the institution(s).
• Photocopies of transcripts are not official and cannot be accepted.
• Please Note: If you have not yet applied when you submit your transcripts, your education documents will be kept on file for one year. After that time, the documents will be destroyed, and you will need to resubmit new education documents when you apply.
• If you completed courses at a campus located outside the U.S. for a school located in the U.S., the official transcript must be issued by the registrar from the U.S. campus. Transcripts issued by the registrar for the campus located outside the U.S. will not be accepted.

If you have completed educational requirements at institutions outside the U.S., you must:

• Have your educational credentials evaluated by one of the following:
  • NASBA International Evaluation Services
  • Academic Credentials Evaluation Institute
  • Center for Applied Research, Evaluation and Education/International Evaluation
  • Foreign Academic Credentials Service, Inc.
  • International Consultants of Delaware, Inc.
  • International Education Research Foundation, Inc.
  • Josef Silny & Associates, Inc.

Note: You are required to have completed a four-year bachelor’s degree or higher. A three-year degree that is equated to a bachelor’s degree is not acceptable.

• require the agency to evaluate as follows:
  • An equivalency summary that indicates the analogous academic degrees in the U.S. you hold;
  • A credential analysis that specifies:
    • The name of the country;
    • The degree awarded;
    • The year the degree was awarded; and
    • The entity that awarded the degree;
  • A course-by-course listing; and
  • A course credit analysis that includes:
    • Total credits earned toward the degree as stated on transcripts submitted;
    • Total accounting credits earned; and
    • Total business credits earned.
• Completed original evaluations must be received by CPAES directly from the evaluation service at the time of application. Photocopies are not acceptable.
• If required documentation is not received within 45 days of the submission date of your application, your application will be marked as incomplete and will not be processed further. Failure to submit all required supporting documents will result in the denial of your application, forfeiture of your application fee, and the secure destruction of all documents submitted.
• A copy of the international transcript must be included with the report sent to NASBA for each individual evaluation from the evaluation service. The application will be considered incomplete without these documents and the processing of the application will not move forward until transcripts are provided.
• Please Note: If you have not yet applied, education documents received will be kept on file for one year. After that time, these documents will be destroyed, and you will need to resubmit new education documents at the time of application.
• If you completed courses at a campus located outside the U.S. for a school located in the U.S., the official transcript must be issued by the registrar from the U.S. campus. Transcripts issued by the registrar for the campus located outside the U.S. will not be accepted.
• Education requirements must be met through academic coursework completed at an accredited institution. Professional training is not acceptable toward these requirements. Coursework completed as part of a Chartered Accountant or similar program is considered professional training and is, therefore, not accepted toward the education requirements for the U.S. Uniform CPA Examination.

Residency

There is not a residency requirement for the state of Tennessee.

1. An official transcript from each school listed on your application. Transcripts must be sent directly from your school to CPA Examination Services.
2. Notarization Form. Submission by you to CPAES.
3. Photograph Form with a 2×2 photograph taken within the last three months, showing your head and shoulders only. Submission by you to CPAES.
4. International Evaluation, if applicable. Evaluations must be submitted directly from the evaluation service to CPA Examination Services.
5. Testing Accommodations Request Form, if applicable. Submission by you to CPAES.

Please allow two to four weeks from your file completion date (when application, fees and all additional required materials have been received) for your application to be processed. Acknowledgment of receipt of application will be sent to you via email, unless otherwise indicated. This notice is sent only as acknowledgment of receipt of application.

If you have previously applied and sat but were currently enrolled in college at the time of application (Certificate of Enrollment form), you are NOT automatically considered a re-examination candidate.

Applicants with Disabilities

In accordance with the provisions of the Americans with Disabilities Act, examination administration accommodations are available, should you qualify. Please download the Testing Accommodations Request Form for more information.

Education Evaluation Application

Before you can apply for an exam section you must first be deemed eligible for the CPA Exam. Your Evaluation Application will determine if you meet the educational requirements needed to take the CPA Exam for your selected jurisdiction.

Education Evaluation Application Fee: $93.00

Exam Section Application

Once you have been found eligible for the CPA Exam you may then apply for a specific exam section. You can only apply for one exam section per application. You are advised to only apply for the exam section if you are ready to take it. Your Notice to Schedule will be valid for a limited amount of time, and you must take the exam section listed on the NTS within this time frame or you will lose those fees paid.

Exam Section Application Fee: $355.64

Refund Policy

There is no provision for withdrawing from the examination and/or requesting an extension of your current Notices to Schedule (NTS). Application and/or examination fees are not refundable. If you have an extreme circumstance, you may request an NTS extension or a partial refund of your examination fees under specific circumstances utilizing the Exception to Policy Form.

Candidates are allowed to sit for each section of the examination individually and in any order. Candidates retain credit for any section(s) passed for thirty (30) months, without having to attain a minimum score on failed sections and without regard to whether they have taken other sections. Candidates must pass all four sections of the examination within a “rolling” thirty (30)-month period that begins on the date of the score release. In the event all four sections of the examination are not passed within the rolling thirty (30)-month period, credit for any section(s) passed outside the thirty (30)-month period will expire and the section(s) must be retaken.

Written requests for exceptions to the requirements set forth above may be granted at the discretion of the Board for individual hardship or other good cause demonstrated in a timely manner.

Transfer of Scores

If you wish to transfer credit from another jurisdiction into Tennessee, you must have earned credit under the same rules as are in effect in Tennessee. Please contact the State Coordinator at [email protected] for questions regarding score transfers.