A national leader, Commonwealth University's accounting program focuses on decision modeling, risk analysis and measurement, and reporting of financial information.

Accounting

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A national leader, Commonwealth University's accounting program focuses on decision modeling, risk analysis and measurement, and reporting of financial information. It's no wonder we have the highest CPA exam pass rate in the State System and a more than 90% job placement rate for more than a decade.

Degrees & Offerings
  • B.S.B.A.
Location
  • Bloomsburg
  • Lock Haven
  • Mansfield
Department
College
Program Contact
Professor of Economics
Secretary of the Department of Accounting, Economics, Finance, and Law
Illustration of Mountain

Program Overview

Though still a semester away from graduating college, Josah Du was eager to apply his accounting skills to the real world.
  • Applied Curriculum — Coursework driven by course-embedded projects, industry-leading software, simulations, and cases.
  • Zeigler Institute for Professional Development (ZIPD) — Sponsors executive panels, seminars, and a business conference to help students develop professional skills and network with alumni.

Course Delivery Format

  Bloomsburg

  Face-to-Face
Online
Hybrid

  Lock Haven

  Face-to-Face
  Online
  Hybrid

  Mansfield

  Face-to-Face
  Online
  Hybrid

Courses and Curriculum

The accounting program curriculum is tailored to address the demands confronted by today's professional accountants. You might not think it the case, but successful accountants spend more time working with people than with numbers.

To prepare for a BSBA in accounting, students take a combination of specialized business classes and round them out with general education courses.

  • Core business courses include basic accounting, information technology, management, finance, marketing, and business law.
  • The accounting curriculum includes ten advanced accounting courses plus business and commercial law.
  • General education courses include composition, public speaking, business mathematics, economics, and business statistics. 

Degree Requirements

  Degree Progress: Enrolled students can review program requirements and track progress toward degree completion using the university’s degree audit and advising tool, Degree Works.

Accounting Major

Upon successful completion of this program, students will possess the critical thinking, problem solving, and technical skills to be able to:

  1. Accumulate and summarize transactional information.
  2. Analyze, interpret, and communicate financial information in accordance with accounting rules.
  3. Apply data analytics tools to analyze and interpret accounting data, and effectively communicate insights to support business decision-making.
  4. Interpret income tax regulations for planning and compliance.
  5. Apply generally accepted auditing standards and procedures to determine whether an organization's financial statements present fairly in all material respects.
  6. Apply professional and ethical standards required by law and licensing associations.

Accounting Minor

Upon successful completion of this program, students will be able to:

  1. Analyze financial accounting at the transactional and financial statement level.
  2. Analyze accounting information prepared by others for decision making.
Department of Business, Innovation, and Technology
Three female student pose for phot during ZIPD Business Conference in 2025.

Your MBA, Accelerated

Fast-track your future with Commonwealth University’s Accelerated MBA. Students from any major can begin MBA coursework as seniors and apply graduate-level credits toward their undergraduate degree. With multiple concentrations—including a build-your-own option—you can customize your path to fit your career goals.

Accelerated MBA Program
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Commonwealth U Because

Faculty and alumni will help you every step of the way. Take advantage of every opportunity to become career-ready. Critical thinking and problem solving, combined with strong technical skills, will help you get ready to hit the ground running on the first day of your first job.

Careers

Our alumni are employed at such notable accounting firms as:

  • Deloitte and Touche
  • KPMG
  • Kreischer Miller
  • Boyer & Ritter
  • Ernst & Young
  • RKG

Internships

As an accounting major, you are encouraged to participate in internships during your junior or senior year. Many students have interned with public accounting firms, private businesses, or the nonpublic sector. Examples of accounting internships with accounting firms in recent years include:  

  • H&R Block 
  • Jackson Hewitt 
  • Emert & Associates 
  • Keystone Central School District 
  • First Quality 
  • Clinton County Tax Counseling for the Elderly 
  • Liberty Tax Service 
  • Smith, Elliot, Kearns, and Co. 

The Commonwealth Difference

$71K
Competitive salary
According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the median annual wage for accountants and auditors.
4%
Job Growth Projected
Our alumni are employed with Kreischer Miller, Boyer & Ritter, Ernst & Young, RKG, and more. Source: Bureau of Labor Statistics

Careers

Many graduates become certified public accountants (CPAs), financial and investment analysts, auditors, financial managers, join corporations, or enroll in graduate school, including the Master of Accounting program at Commonwealth University. National, regional, and local public accounting firms, government agencies, and private sector organizations recruit on campus each year.

Potential Job Opportunities

  • Certified Public Accountant
  • Financial and Investment Analyst
  • Auditor
  • Financial Manager

Top Skills Employers are Looking For

  • Accounting
  • Auditing
  • Financial Statements
  • Financial Analysis
  • Financial Accounting

Continue to Explore

The best part of being in Honors is that it offers some special opportunities and privileges like early class registration.

I love calculating and analyzing, which played a major role in me choosing to major in accounting. I enjoy researching about how to handle and manage your business financials, how to be a successful businesswoman, and how to remain relevant in business world. I have my sights set on becoming a certified public accountant.

Titi Adekola ’26
Accounting
ZIPD has made me quite marketable in my future career field.

ZIPD has made me quite marketable in my future career field. The networking has already helped me make connections with potential employers. ZIPD has also taught me how to act and present myself professionally at networking events, interviews, and online.

Tabitha Delmont '23
Accounting
Brynn Gasperetti

Being both an accounting major and a cheerleader at Lock Haven has been an incredible experience. My professors and coaching staff are dedicated to helping us succeed academically and professionally, and I've learned so much that's preparing me for a career in accounting. Balancing my studies with cheer has taught me discipline, teamwork, and time management, which are skills I know will benefit me in the future.

Brynn Gasperetti '28
Accounting
ZIPD has made me quite marketable in my future career field.
Brynn Gasperetti
The best part of being in Honors is that it offers some special opportunities and privileges like early class registration.
Accounting major Josiah Du standing near KPMG sign.

Accounting major turns Baker Tilly internship into launchpad for opportunity with Big Four firm

Though still a semester away from graduating college, Josiah Du was eager to apply his accounting skills to the real world. Well, the Commonwealth University-Bloomsburg senior did just that as an intern with Baker Tilly Advisory Group, where he gained hands-on experience in the firm’s Pittsburgh office and discovered firsthand what a career in accounting looks like beyond the textbooks.

Read Article

Accounting Contacts

CommonwealthU University Employee

Brooke Faus

  • Secretary of the Department of Accounting, Economics, Finance, and Law
  • Bloomsburg
Loren Selznick

Loren Selznick

  • Professor, and Director of Diehl Center for Law School Preparation
  • Bloomsburg
CommonwealthU University Employee

David Sedlak

  • Associate Professor of Business Law
  • Bloomsburg

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