MSU College of Business professor Marc Giullian teaches graduate students in Accounting Theory and Advanced Issues in Financial Accounting. MSU grad students again placed in the top 10 nation-wide in passing the rigorous CPA test. MSU photo by Erin Raley.

Montana State University accounting students rank sixth in the nation for the first-time pass rate of candidates with advanced degrees on the Certified Public Accountant (CPA) exam.

It is the 17th time in the past 21 years that MSU accounting students have ranked in the top 10 in the country among colleges and university's whose students who have taken the rigorous CPA exam, according to the National Association of State Boards of Accountancy. NASBA tracks and publishes various statistics on candidates success in passing the CPA exam. The MSU College of Business learned about the top-10 ranking this week. The 2003 rankings are the most recent results published by the organization.

"This is a tremendous legacy for the MSU accounting faculty and students," said Rich Semenik, dean of the College of Business. "This ranks MSU in the highest levels with the most prestigious schools in the country and is a great honor."

MSU College of Business students finished with a 68.8 percent first-time pass rate on all four sections of the exam for candidates with advanced degrees. MSU was ranked behind the University of South Florida, the University of Wisconsin-Madison, the University of Iowa, Wake Forest University and the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater. Rounding out the top 10 after MSU were the University of Florida, the University of Houston and a two-way tie with Northern Illinois University and the University of Montana.

Approximately 15 percent of all candidates in the country pass the CPA exam on their first attempt. MSU finished in the No. 1 position last year with an 85.2 percentage first-time pass rate, the highest pass rate in the college's history. MSU accounting students have ranked No. 1 in the country in 1983, 1991, 1995, 1996 and 2002.

On the various sections of the test, MSU accounting students ranked second in the nation in the financial accounting and reporting/business enterprise section of the test with a 93.8 percent pass rate, third in the auditing section, also with a 93.8 percent pass rate and fourth in the accounting and reporting section with an 87.5 percent pass rate.

In addition, Carlen Martinell of Great Fall, a 2003 MSU College of Business graduate with a master's degree in professional accountancy, received the Montana Society of CPA's George D. Anderson Gold Medal Award for a Montana university or college student with the highest overall score on the May 2003 CPA exam. Martinell is an accountant with the firm of Hamilton Misfeldt & Company in Great Falls.

"We are very fortunate to have such a terrific group of dedicated students each year," said Bonita Peterson, MSU accounting professor. "I think I speak for all the accounting faculty when I say that we are thrilled over the students' success at achieving this milestone in their career."

Peterson said the NASBA rankings for the Class of 2004 won t be known for another year.

Written by Carol Schmidt and posted 12/02/04.