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Designation Programs
The field of accounting offers a number of career opportunities built on globally recognized professional designations. Taking your business or economics degree (with a concentration in accounting) to the next level is possible if you pursue one of the following designations.
Laurier’s CPA Accredited Programs Leading to Chartered Professional Accountant (CPA) Designation
Students wishing to enter the accounting profession can take all of the courses required by CPA Ontario covering Core 1, Core 2, Elective 1 and Elective 2 in CPA Ontario's Professional Education Program (PEP) at Laurier. The courses are offered as part of the undergraduate programs in Accounting at the Lazaridis School of Business and Economics together with the Graduate Diploma in Accounting.
CPA Path for Current and New Students
Completing a BBA, double degree or BA Economics and Accounting as part of the CPA-accredited stream 2014 or later.
The CPA qualification process combines academic study, professional education and practical work experience. The program enables individuals from all educational backgrounds to become Chartered Professional Accountants.
Courses
The core academic requirement consists of a university degree that covers all of the courses in one of the Accredited Programs and five add-on courses designed to meet CPA Ontario Graduate level course requirement and prepare students to enter Capstone 1 and 2 and write the Common Final Evaluation. All courses for one of the Accredited Programs listed on the CPA Chart must be completed. Students must achieve a combined GPA of 7.0 (B-) on all courses listed in the selected Accredited Program, and the minimum grade for each Accredited Program course is C- (4.0 GPA) to meet CPA requirements.
Summary
- Complete your BBA, double degree, or BA in Economics and Accounting degree at Laurier (as part of you electives, the seven "CPA Electives" must be taken and the minimum grade and GPA requirements must be met).
- Upon completion of course requirements and your BBA, double degree or BA in Economics and Accounting degree, you will be required to complete the five courses included in the Graduate Diploma in Accounting* program to meet CPA Ontario Graduate level course requirements.
*Note: This program is not eligible for OSAP.
Upon successful graduation from Laurier's CPA-accredited program:
- You will have completed all the Core 1 and Core 2 requirements as part of your BBA, double degree or BA in Economics and Accounting and Graduate Diploma courses.
- You will have completed all four CPA elective modules and have exceeded the elective requirements of CPA Ontario.
- You will not be required to take any challenge exams.
Proposed pathway for new students (entering the BBA program September 2014 or later):
- Laurier BBA, double degree or BA Economics and Accounting
- Laurier grad diploma
- CPA Capstone 1 and 2
- Common Final Examinations (CFE)
- CPA
Required Courses By Program
CPA Ontario requires a minimum grade of 50% in its Preparatory courses and a minimum 60% in all other Accredited Stream courses (with an overall average across all non-preparatory Accredited Stream courses of 70%). (More specifically CPA Ontario requires: (i) a minimum grade of 50% for: BU127; BU247; EC120; EC140; BU255/EC255/ST260/STAT231 or equivalent statistics course; and BU231, and (ii) a minimum grade of 60% in all other required CPA Accredited Stream BBA Courses, required Economics Courses, CPA Electives and Grad Diploma Courses and an overall average across these other CPA Accredited Stream courses of 70%). Please also note, that Laurier requires a minimum of 70% to pass the Graduate Diploma in Accounting courses (BU517, BU527, BU537, BU547, BU537).
Any exceptions to the courses listed below must be approved in advance.
Business Administration (BBA)
Includes BBA/BSc Computing and Computer Electronics (Laurier) and Honours BBA/Honours BSc Computer Science (Laurier) programs.
Required BBA courses:
- BU127
- BU231
- BU247
- EC255
- BU283
- BU352
- BU354
- BU362
- BU385 or BU375
- BU393
- BU395 or BU375
- BU398
- BU481
- BU486
- BU491
Required Economics courses:
- EC120
- EC140
CPA electives:
- BU357
- BU387
- BU397
- BU466
- BU467
- BU477
- BU487
Grad diploma courses (Note: New course numbers effective May 1, 2017):
- BU517
- BU527
- BU537
- BU547
- BU557
Business Administration (BBA) and Financial Mathematics (BA)
Required BBA courses:
- BU127
- BU231
- BU247
- ST260 or MA240
- BU283
- BU352
- BU354
- BU362
- BU385 or BU375
- BU393
- BU395 or BU375
- BU398
- BU481
- BU486
- BU491
Required Economics courses:
- EC120
- EC140
CPA electives:
- BU357
- BU387
- BU397
- BU466
- BU467
- BU477
- BU487
Grad diploma courses (Note: New course numbers effective May 1, 2017):
- BU517
- BU527
- BU537
- BU547
- BU557
Business Administration (BBA) and Math (UW)
Includes Bachelor of Business Administration (BBA) and Computer Science (UW).
Required BBA courses:
- BU127
- BU231
- BU247
- STAT231
- BU283
- BU352
- BU354
- BU362
- BU385 or BU375
- BU393
- BU395 or BU375
- BU398
- BU481
- BU486
- BU491
Required Economics courses:
- EC120
- EC140
CPA electives:
- BU357
- BU387
- BU397
- BU466
- BU467
- BU477
- BU487
Grad diploma courses (Note: New course numbers effective May 1, 2017):
- BU517
- BU527
- BU537
- BU547
- BU557
Economics (BA) and Accounting
Required BBA courses:
- BU127
- BU231
- BU247
- BU283
- BU393
- BU481
- BU486
Required Economics courses:
- EC120
- EC140
- EC255 or EC285
- EC270
- EC290
- EC295
- EC335
- EC370
- EC390
CPA electives:
- BU357
- BU387
- BU397
- BU466
- BU467
- BU477
- BU487
Grad diploma courses (Note: New course numbers effective May 1, 2017):
- BU517
- BU527
- BU537
- BU547
- BU557
Experience
The practical experience element consists of a prescribed 30-month period of training with a CPA Training Office (CATO).
Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA)
First awarded in 1963, the CFA charter is the designation of professional excellence within the global investment community. The CFA program offers a truly global educational challenge where you'll build a fundamental knowledge of investment principles that is relevant in every market around the world.
The following chart is a guide for students looking to prepare for the Chartered Financial Analyst CFA exams. The chart provides a list of courses that provide some coverage of the topic areas tested in the CFA exams. Please note that there are five elective courses that are deemed to be most critical for coverage of CFA material:
BU473 Investment Management
BU387 Intermediate Accounting I
BU397 Intermediate Accounting II
BU423 Options, Futures and Swaps
BU449 Fixed Income Analysis
|
Topic Area Tested in CFA Exams |
Lazaridis Courses that Provide Some Coverage of the Topic Area |
|
Ethical and Professional Standards |
BU493x CFA Level I Review |
|
Quantitative Methods |
BU255 Managerial Statistics or EC285 Introductory Statistics or ST260 Introduction to Statistics BU493x CFA Level I Review |
|
Economics |
EC120 Introduction to Microeconomics EC140 Introduction to Macroeconomics EC250 Intermediate Macroeconomic Analysis for Management or EC290 Intermediate Macroeconomics I EC260 Intermediate Microeconomic Analysis for Management or EC270 Intermediate Microeconomics I BU443 International Financial Management or EC249 International Finance BU493x CFA Level I Review |
|
Financial Reporting and Analysis |
BU127 Introduction to Financial Accounting BU247 Management Accounting BU387 Intermediate Accounting I BU397 Intermediate Accounting II BU417 Financial Statement Analysis BU493x CFA Level I Review |
|
Corporate Finance |
BU283 Financial Management I BU393 Financial Management II BU463 Advanced Corporate Finance BU493x CFA Level I Review |
|
Equity Investments |
BU283 Financial Management I BU473 Investment Management BU493x CFA Level I Review |
|
Fixed Income |
BU283 Financial Management I BU449 Fixed Income Analysis BU473 Investment Management BU493x CFA Level I Review |
|
Derivatives |
BU423 Options, Futures and Swaps BU473 Investment Management BU493x CFA Level I Review |
|
Alternative Investments |
BU473 Investment Management BU493x CFA Level I Review |
|
Portfolio Management |
BU283 Financial Management I BU443 Management of Financial Institutions BU473 Investment Management BU493w Behavioural Finance BU493x CFA Level I Review |
Notes:
- Laurier courses are not CFA preparation courses. The CFA syllabus and Laurier courses have significant overlap but are not the same. Please refer to the undergraduate academic calendar for course descriptions.
- Most of the 400 level courses cover material that can be found in all three levels of CFA exams.
- The courses do not earn you the designation, but do prepare you for designation examinations.
For further CFA information at Laurier, contact Bruce Everitt at beveritt@wlu.ca, Gerry Ramos at gramos@wlu.ca, Ning (Tony) Tang at ntang@wlu.ca or Ernie Cosgrove at ecosgrov@wlu.ca.
Visit www.cfainstitute.org for all current requirements.
Some students are interested in pursuing careers in financial planning. A popular designation for financial planners is the Certified Financial Planning (CFP) designation. The CFP registered certification marks identify individuals who are dedicated to a high level of professionalism in providing financial planning advice. The CFP credentials assure you that those using them have agreed to adhere to the highest internationally recognized standards of competence and ethical practice as set out by Financial Planners Standards Council (FPSC).
The following list of Laurier courses will help you prepare for the CFP exams:
- BU111: Introduction to Business Organization
- EC140: Introduction to Macroeconomics
- BU127: Introduction to Financial Accounting (formerly BU227)
- BU231: Business Law
- BU283: Financial Management I (formerly BU383)
- BU393: Financial Management II
- BU357: Taxation
- BU413: Personal Financial Planning and Management
- BU473: Investment Management
- BU483: Life and Health Insurance
Note:
- Refer to the undergraduate academic calendar for course descriptions.
- The courses do not earn you the designation, but provide you some of the background material tested in the designation examinations.
Students who wish to write the CFP exams will need to contact an educational institution accredited by the FP Canada. Laurier is not an accredited educational institution because too few of its students graduate to pursue the CFP. A list of accredited schools can be found on the FP Canada website. The accredited school should be asked to review the courses you have taken at Laurier and then give the appropriate credit for its own courses that cover the same part of the CFP syllabus. The school will then specify which of its courses you will need to take to be eligible to write the CFP exams.
Visit FP Canada for all current requirements.
Certified Human Resources Professional (CHRP): Entry Level
Human Resources professionals at Entry Level act in roles that are mostly administrative in nature, such as a contributing role in a larger HR function, or a sole HR practitioner in a small HR function. Individuals in this level would have responsibilities such as supporting HR initiatives, executing tasks passed down from management, and operating at the tactical and transactional levels. They often have titles such as Human Resources Assistant, Staffing Coordinator, Human Resources Clerk, or Human Resources Coordinator.
Required Laurier Courses for CHRP:
- BU127: Introduction to Financial Accounting (formerly BU227)
- BU247: Managerial Accounting
- BU288: Organizational Behaviour I
- BU354: Human Resources Management
- BU398: Organizational Behaviour II
- BU408: Recruitment and Selection
- BU418: Strategic Human Resource Planning
- BU464: Labour Relations
- BU474: Training and Development
- BU414: Occupational Health and Safety
- BU448: Compensation
Please refer to the academic calendar for course descriptions.
For more information on the CHRP at Laurier, please contact Steve Risavy.
Certified Human Resources Leader (CHRL): Professional Level (Formerly the CHRP Designation)
Human Resources professionals at Professional Level can be found in either specialist or generalist positions with responsibilities such as managing projects, programs, and initiatives, implementing plans passed down by senior management, and delegating tasks to entry-level staff. In professional matters, individuals at this level can act independently and would typically have titles such as Director of HR, HR Manager, HR Generalist, HR Business Partner and HR Specialist.
Required Laurier Courses for CHRL:
- BU127: Introduction to Financial Accounting (formerly BU227)
- BU247: Managerial Accounting
- BU288: Organizational Behaviour I
- BU354: Human Resources Management
- BU398: Organizational Behaviour II
- BU408: Recruitment and Selection
- BU418: Strategic Human Resource Planning
- BU464: Labour Relations
- BU474: Training and Development
- BU414: Occupational Health and Safety
- BU448: Compensation
Please refer to the academic calendar for course descriptions.
For more information on the CHRL at Laurier, please contact Steve Risavy.
Certified Human Resources Executive (CHRE): Executive Level (Formerly the SHRP Designation)
Human Resources professionals at Executive Level can be found in either specialist or generalist positions but with a high level of experience and responsibility such as leading the HR function in large organizations, developing and executing significant HR projects, working with Boards or HR Committees, dealing with executive compensation, and having responsibility for HR strategies in support of long term organizational goals. Typical position titles will be Senior/Executive/Vice President HR or CHRO.
Required Laurier Courses for CHRP and CHRL:
- BU127: Introduction to Financial Accounting (formerly BU227)
- BU247: Managerial Accounting
- BU288: Organizational Behaviour I
- BU354: Human Resources Management
- BU398: Organizational Behaviour II
- BU408: Recruitment and Selection
- BU418: Strategic Human Resource Planning
- BU464: Labour Relations
- BU474: Training and Development
- BU414: Occupational Health and Safety
- BU448: Compensation
Notes:
- Refer to the undergraduate academic calendar for course descriptions.
- The courses do not earn you the designation, but do fulfill academic course requirements and/or prepares you for designation examinations.
For more information on the CHRP or CHRL at Laurier, please contact Steve Risavy.
Visit www.hrpa.ca for all current requirements.