Pathways to CPA Licensure Success: Correlation of Diagnostic, Academic Performance, Pre-Board and Board Examination Performance of Accounting Graduates in an HEI

Abstract

Improving the educational system at a higher education institution is indispensable to enhancing students' educational experience in the accounting discipline. This goal can be achieved by determining which areas of accounting instruction are students' or graduates' strengths and which are opportunities for improvement to be academically successful. This study intends to ascertain the relationships among the applied dimensions in the accounting instruction such as diagnostic or psychometric examination results in terms of intelligence quotient (IQ), abstract reasoning, arithmetic, and language comprehension; general weighted average (GWA); pre-board examination results and Certified Public Accountant (CPA) Board Examination results of the Bachelor of Science in Accountancy (BSA) graduates in a higher education institution with the end view of devising an intervention schemes that can be translated into improved or maintained board examination results and the fulfillment of the program's outcomes and educational objectives.

This study applied a descriptive-correlational research design to determine the relationships among psychometric examination results, academic performance, pre-board, and the Certified Public Accountants’ Board Examination results of the BSA graduates of the university. Utilizing simple random sampling, thirty-nine (39) graduates were chosen as research subjects whose records were obtained from the Guidance Center, Registrar's Office, and the Dean's Office. A simple percentage was used to interpret the data on the profile of subjects' diagnostic examination results, general weighted average (GWA), pre-board, and Certified Public Accountant Board Examination results. Moreover, Pearson's r test was used to assess the relationship between diagnostic test results and academic performance, including GWA, GPA, and pre-board performance. Furthermore, the Chi-Square Test of Independence was used to determine the relationship between the pre-board and the CPA Board Examination results. Finally, Multiple Logistic Regression Analysis was used to determine which of the three dimensions of the accounting program mentioned above can predict success in the CPA Board Examination.

The results indicate that most research subjects had average IQs, abstract reasoning, arithmetic, and language comprehension. Moreover, most of them had an excellent academic performance. Also, intelligence quotient, abstract reasoning, and arithmetic ability contributed significantly to the academic success of the Bachelor of Science in Accountancy graduates, evidenced by their Grade Weighted Average. On the other hand, language comprehension contributed, but not significantly, to their subject academic success, while academic performance, as measured by the Grade Weighted Average (GAW), has a high correlation with the pre-board examination results. The pre-board examination has an insignificant relationship with the CPA Board Examination performance of the BSA graduates. Therefore, intelligence quotient, academic achievement, and pre-board examination results are not good predictors of success in the CPA Board Examination.