Helping Canadians get back to work.

CPA Atlantic School of Business

Suite 5005 7071 Bayers Road, Halifax NS

Possible funding to those who qualify*

  • Nova Scotia Student Loan
  • Loans
  • Grants
  • Bursaries
  • Scholarships

Programs

Programs offered at each campus may vary, so be sure to check other campus offerings for the course you are most interested in.

Business, Accounting, Marketing Programs

  • The CPA Professional Education Program (CPA PEP) is a part-time, graduate-level program designed to meet the business needs of industry, government and public accounting firms.

    MY PATH: THE CPA PROFESSIONAL EDUCATION PROGRAM

    The CPA Professional Education Program (CPA PEP) is a part-time, graduate-level program. CPA PEP is comprised of a series of modules that focus primarily on enhancing CPA candidates’ ability to apply knowledge, values, ethics and attitudes in a professional context. The program’s structure is modular and should be viewed as a continual building of knowledge and skills over a two-year period, with each module ending in an examination. Candidates must pass each module examination to proceed to the next module.

    CPA PEP IS:

    Modern: The CPA PEP prepares candidates for a career in business, not just accounting. The program focuses on developing competencies in a number of areas including management, communications and business ethics. Nationally developed: CPA PEP is nationally developed by CPA Canada and delivered locally by CPA Atlantic School of Business in Atlantic Canada and Bermuda. The program is designed to prepare candidates with the professional knowledge and skills for business and accounting, in compliance with lnternational Federation of Accountants Canada (IFAC) standards for professional accounting bodies. Hands-on: Throughout their studies, candidates have the opportunity to work at relevant employment for 30 months of paid practical experience, during which candidates demonstrate that they have gained the professional knowledge, skills, values, ethics and attitudes required for entry to the CPA profession. Candidates may track their practical experience before, during, and/or after their CPA PEP studies. Affordable: CPA PEP maintains one of the lowest tuition rates for a professional, post-graduate education program at less than half the price of a post-graduate degree from a Canadian university. Flexible: CPA Atlantic offers three entry points per year into the CPA PEP. Candidates may choose to take a 21-month path that begins in January, a 25-month path that begins in September, or an accelerated 16-month path that begins in May. All paths allow candidates to work around their personal schedules and towards their career goals while working towards the Common Final Examination (CFE). The program is part-time to allow candidates the opportunity to work full-time throughout their studies and study where they want, when they want. Accessible: CPA PEP uses a combination of eLearning with face-to-face workshop instruction and examinations. Workshops and exams are available throughout the Atlantic Provinces and Bermuda, and CPA PEP instruction and courses are offered in both official languages.  

    CPA PEP IS SUITABLE IF YOU:

    • Have an undergraduate degree in accounting, and/or
    • Have an undergraduate degree in another discipline with the prerequisite course coverage required for admission to the CPA Professional Education Program (CPA PEP), and
    • Aspire to have a career in business and accounting that prepares you for mid-level to management level positions.
  • The CPA preparatory courses are a suite of 14 courses that provide specific subject area coverage for admission to the CPA Professional Education Program (note that a completed university degree is also required to enter PEP).
    If you are seeking admission to the CPA PEP but lack some or all of the necessary prerequisites for entry, you can take CPA preparatory courses to gain the knowledge requirements you are missing. You only have to complete the courses you require.
     
    The only academic prerequisite for admission to these courses is 30 credit hours completed at a recognized post-secondary institution or 3 years of relevant work experience, but there are internal sequencing requirements to be aware of as some courses are prerequisites for others.
     
    The 14 CPA preparatory courses are delivered online through a blend of self-study and instructor-facilitated learning formats, and each course ends with an examination.
     

    NON-CORE COURSES

    The following courses are offered on a self-study basis. You must receive a grade of 50 per cent or higher to successfully pass each course.
    •  Introductory Financial Accounting (IFA)
    • Introductory Management Accounting (IMA)
    • Economics (ECO)
    • Statistics (STA)
    • Business Law (BUL)
    • Information Technology (ITE)
    Students are able to register for non-core CPA preparatory courses any day of the year, as these courses do not have specific start dates. After registering for the course, students have up to 12 months to select from five examination dates that best meets their needs and schedule.
     

    CORE COURSES

    The following courses are led by instructors who are responsible for reviewing and providing feedback on course assignments and responding to student questions. You must achieve a minimum of 50% on your examination and an overall grade of 60% in the course to pass each core course.
    • Intermediate Financial Reporting 1 (IF1)
    • Intermediate Financial Reporting 2 (IF2)
    • Advanced Financial Reporting (AFR)
    • Corporate Finance (COF)
    • Audit and Assurance (AUA)
    • Taxation (TAX)
    • Intermediate Management Accounting (MAA)
    • Performance Management (PMA)
    All core courses are delivered in a standardized format that includes six instructional weeks (minimum 60% required to pass) and a final exam week (minimum 50% required to pass).   It will be assumed that the first available exam dates associated with the course will be your exam date; however, students have the opportunity to defer their desired exam date to any one of the future exam dates – within the posted schedule period (deferral fees will apply). Beginning soon, students will be able to register for their desired preparatory course and examination separately – as per the posted schedule.  

Halifax Campus

The Canadian CPA is the pre-eminent , globally respected business and accounting designation.

Chartered Professional Accountants (CPA) is a unified Canadian accounting profession, built on the strengths of the three legacy designations (Chartered Accountant, Certified Management Accountant and Certified General Accountant), that will be more than 190,000 members strong and better positioned to represent their interests in Canada and abroad. Unification will also enhance the influence, relevance and contribution of the Canadian accounting profession. The public interest will be served by common codes of conduct, disciplinary systems and licensing regimes.

For more information of the CPA Canada designation, please visit CPAcanada.ca


*All student funding, whether made available privately or through various government branches, is only approved to those who qualify, by the original source of funding. There are many criteria that each candidate must meet to be approved. Schools can only inform you of what may be available.