SUMMARY The accounting profession is undergoing a period of rapid change in education requirements for CPA licensure. Many states and jurisdictions are reducing minimum required education for CPA licensure from 150 to 120 hours (Hood 2023; AICPA & National Association of State Boards of Accountancy (NASBA) 2024, 2025). However, little research has examined the relation between education level and CPA performance in practice. In this article, we summarize the published study by Barandi, Campbell, Guo, and Notbohm (2025), which finds a positive association between audit engagement partner graduate education and audit quality. The authors suggest that graduate programs enhance critical thinking, communication, and technical skills that are vital to auditing. As alternative pathways to licensure gain traction, these findings highlight the practice implications of graduate education. Public accounting firms, audit committees, and regulators could consider these results when making decisions and assessing the long-term effects of CPA licensure policy changes. JEL Classifications: M42.
Campbell et al. (Mon,) studied this question.