UT Tyler Office of Marketing and Communications

UT Tyler Leads in CPA Licensure Pass Rates

February 2, 2021

The University of Texas at Tyler announced that Master of Accountancy graduates taking the Uniform Certified Public Accounting licensure exam ranked first in Texas in terms of pass rates.

In its most recent publication, the National Association of State Boards of Accountancy (NASBA) reports UT Tyler’s pass rate for first-time exam takers with advanced degrees is 84.6 percent.

“This distinction exemplifies the rigor of our degree program and the preparedness of our graduates to successfully pass the exam and get a head start on their professional careers,” said Roger Lirely, PhD, chair of the Department of Accounting, Finance and Business Law. “The overall pass rate in 2019 for first-time takers was 84.6 percent. Our pass rate for first-time takers is well above the 53 percent national average.”

The national average score for first-time takers was 73. UT Tyler’s average score was 83.

UT Tyler has been in the NASBA top 10 for first-time exam takers for the last few years. One UT Tyler graduate, Douglas Brown, was one of six Texas candidates and 93 nationally to receive the Edwin Watts Sells Award for scoring 96 percent or better on all four sections of the exam. He is the first graduate to receive this honor.

With a mission to improve educational and healthcare outcomes for East Texas and beyond, UT Tyler offers more than 80 undergraduate and graduate programs to 10,000 students. Through its alignment with UT Health Science Center at Tyler and UT Health East Texas, UT Tyler has unified these entities to serve Texas with innovative medical research, medical education and excellent patient care. Classified by Carnegie as a doctoral research institution and by U.S. News & World Report as a national university, UT Tyler has campuses in Tyler, Longview, Palestine and Houston.