The business world iscounting on you
Did you know that you have the power to change the business world? Yes, you really do! And with relevant training and a recognized professional designation, you will have even more power to change it. The Chartered Professional Accountant (CPA) designation is for people like you who want to make their mark and aspire to do great things. Become one of tomorrow’s leaders!
If you want to…
- head organizations
- join a respected, influential community that is growing fast
- travel the world in search of new challenges
- show your leadership
… then the CPA designation is for you!
CPAs are supervised by a professional order, the Quebec CPA Order, whose mission is to protect the public. As Quebec’s one and only accounting credential, the CPA designation is synonymous with quality and reliability.
A future with many possibilities
The CPA designation will take you where you want to go and even farther. Become an interpreter of financial and strategic data, while you put your decision-making skills to good use. As a leading expert in economic development, you will have a world of opportunities at your disposal.
CPAs do much more than crunch numbers! When you choose to become a CPA, you opt for a rewarding, exciting and credible profession that will give you access to key positions in the business world: entrepreneur, chief financial officer, manager, financial analyst, and many others.
What your career could look like
Fields of expertise
- Audit and assurance
- Management accounting
- Taxation
- Financial management
- Financial reporting
- Strategy and governance
Areas of activity
- Firms
- Financial institutions
- NPOs
- SMEs and large corporations
- Public sector
Types of positions
- Financial analyst
- External auditor
- Controller
- Account manager
- Entrepreneur
- Forensic accountant
- VP of Finance
Go global with your ambitions
The CPA designation is recognized around the world. You can work in Canada and abroad with it.
In Quebec
- 42 000 CPA
- 4 500 CPA en devenir
In Canada
- 220 000 CPAs
Internationally
- 12,500 Canadian CPAs abroad
Recognized key competencies
- Detect opportunitiesand threats in various markets
- Assess the impact of a decision on overall performance
- Advise executives on the right financial approach
- Analyze the financial statements of small and large companies
- Help keep innovative organizations stable and profitable
- Optimize the human and financial resources of organizations
- Gain access to management positions in companies or partner positions in firms
- Lead diverse and multidisciplinary teams
- Start a company
- Make use of innovative technologies to provide better advice
- Convert data into relevant information for decision making
- Identify the risks of fraud and cyber risks
The profession is constantly changing, spurred on by the rise of new technologies such as artificial intelligence. Innovative technologies like these help CPAs become more efficient, by automating repetitive tasks and providing predictive analytics that improve financial decision-making.
CPA Canada’s 2.0 competency map shows the path forward for the profession. It will guide future CPAs and help them remain trusted leaders.
Find out how to become a CPA
S’inscrire au cégep dans un de ces programmeenroll in one of these cegep programs
Pre-university programs
- Naural sciences
- Social sciences, with mathematics
technical programs
- Accounting and management
Complete an undergraduate degree in accounting or equivalent
Have you studied in another field or outside Canada?
Visit equivalence.cpaquebec.ca
Register with the CPA order
Successfully complete the cpa professional education program
You have 2 options
University graduate program (DESS)
- 9 to 24 months
- Full or part time
- Classroom or online learning
- Coaching from teachers
National program
- 12 to 24 months
- Part time
- Online
- Self-study with coaching from experienced CPAs
pass the common final examination (cFe)
Visit the How to become a CPA section for full details..
Harness your potential
CPAs who enter the job market can earn higher salaries right from the start, which can include, depending on the employer, a wide range of employee benefits, performance bonuses and even the reimbursement of certain expenses, such as smartphones, tablets, laptops, gym memberships, etc.
Moreover, students who choose the CPA profession are highly sought after by recruiters and will easily find internship opportunities in industry or public practice.
annual median compensation by years of experience
| Annual median compensation by years of experience | Salary |
|---|---|
| Less than 4 years | 108 000 $ |
| Between 5 and 9 years | 121 000 $ |
| Between 10 and 14 years | 138 000 $ |
| Between 15 and 19 years | 152 000 $ |
| Between 20 and 24 years | 157 000 $ |
| 25 years or more | 162 000 $ |
* Source: Leger and CPA Canada. CPA Profession Compensation Study – Summary Report for Quebec
