The Best Bachelor's in Accounting Programs in Pennsylvania for 2027

Bucknell University's Accounting & Financial Management major leads to a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration through the Freeman College of Management. Its signature feature is the Student Managed Investment Fund, an experiential capstone open to select seniors and second-semester juniors who manage roughly $3.6 million in real university funds, applying portfolio management, asset allocation, accounting, economics, and statistics while presenting strategy to the Board of Trustees. The program also runs through the Dominguez Center for Data Science, launched in 2024, and its own page states that accounting majors regularly exceed the national average on first-attempt CPA exam pass rates and typically secure top-tier accounting firm internships that lead to job offers before senior year.

Bucknell graduates 86% of its students and admits 29% of applicants, the highest admit rate and lowest graduation rate of the four programs here. Tuition is $67,446 a year, the highest of the four and identical for in-state and out-of-state students since Bucknell is private. Its Program Score of 95.3 ties Lehigh's but ranks fourth for 2027. The fit is a student who wants a small cohort, Bucknell enrolls 3,969 total students, well under a fifth of Penn's size, with direct, hands-on capstone experience managing real capital rather than a simulation.

Four years of sticker tuition total $269,784, the highest total cost of the four programs. Against the national median pay for accountants and auditors, $87,660 a year per the BLS Occupational Outlook, that is just over three years of salary. For CPA licensure specifics, see the AICPA.

Pennsylvania State University's Smeal College of Business builds its accounting major around the three major post-baccalaureate exams: the CPA, CMA, and CIA. Smeal calls itself a national recruiting school for the Big Four, Deloitte, EY, KPMG, and PricewaterhouseCoopers, and students who need the extra 30 credit hours most states require for CPA licensure can stay on campus for a Master of Accounting, offered as either an Integrated MAcc built into the four-year plan or a One-Year MAcc after the bachelor's degree.

Smeal's accounting program carries a Program Score of 93.6, the highest of the four Pennsylvania programs profiled here, built on an 86% graduation rate and a 61% admit rate at a school of 50,737 students. In-state tuition runs $20,066 a year; out-of-state students pay $41,212, a $21,146 gap that makes Pennsylvania residency the single biggest lever on total cost. Nationally, accountants and auditors earn a median $87,660 a year, per the BLS Occupational Outlook; that figure applies across employers, not to Smeal graduates specifically. Check state-by-state CPA rules at AICPA.

University of Pittsburgh-Pittsburgh's accounting major is an 18-credit add-on to the BSBA, and the college is explicit about the CPA pathway: students who also complete the 9-credit Public Accounting Certificate take extra courses in auditing, taxation of entities, and advanced financial accounting aimed at the Uniform CPA Exam, and the program page states Pitt accounting majors typically post among the highest pass rates in the state. Pitt has also partnered with Becker Professional Education, giving students no-cost access to one section of the CPA review course plus discounts and scholarships on the rest.

Pennsylvania requires 150 credit hours to cut the post-graduation work requirement from two years to one, and Pitt directs students toward its Katz Graduate School of Business Master of Science in Accounting to cover the extra 30 hours; requirements vary by state, so the program points out-of-state candidates to AICPA licensure resources. The program carries a Program Score of 92.9, backed by an 85% graduation rate and a 58% admit rate, the most selective of the four schools here, at a school of 35,724 students. In-state tuition is $20,556 versus $40,060 out-of-state, a $19,504 gap. Nationally, accountants and auditors earn a median $87,660 a year, per the BLS.

Muhlenberg College's accounting major is a 12-course B.A. inside a liberal arts core, capped by an Auditing and Assurance capstone, ACT 490. The program page notes that students graduate with enough credit hours to sit for the CPA exam right away, and it lays out three routes to 150 hours, the traditional CPA license route: load up on extra coursework at Muhlenberg for about 38 total units, pursue a formal articulation with Lehigh University's Master of Science in Accounting and Information Analysis program for a fifth year, or add hours later, though the page warns that last option will most likely limit job placement opportunities at CPA firms. Accounting students can also study abroad at Maastricht University in the Netherlands or intern with government and nonprofit offices in D.C. through the Lutheran College Washington Semester program.

Muhlenberg posts a Program Score of 87, with an 82% graduation rate and a 72% admit rate, the most accessible of the four schools here, at a small campus of 1,788 students with a 9:1 student-to-faculty ratio. The page reports 93% of graduates begin a career or further study within six months. Tuition is flat at $62,035 regardless of residency, $41,969 more than Penn State's in-state rate, the tradeoff for a small liberal-arts setting with Big Four internship placements built in. Nationally, accountants and auditors earn a median $87,660 a year, per the BLS; check state rules at AICPA.

Drexel University's LeBow builds its accounting major around the school's co-op model: students alternate six-month academic terms with six-month full-time jobs, and a plan of study with up to three co-ops adds as much as 18 months of paid work experience before graduation, at employers the program page lists including KPMG, PwC, Vanguard, Comcast, and Chubb. After four core courses in financial reporting, taxation, managerial accounting, and audit, students pick electives such as ACCT 327 Financial Statement Analysis or TAX 360 on state and local taxation, plus an experiential elective like TAX 415, where students get IRS training and prepare returns for low-income Philadelphia families. Students aiming for CPA licensure add the required credit hours through an accelerated MS program or by double majoring.

LeBow's accounting program carries a Program Score of 86.6, the lowest of the four schools here, with a 78% graduation rate and a 79% admit rate, the most open admissions of the group, at a school of 21,153 students. Tuition is flat at $60,042 regardless of residency. The tradeoff against Penn State or Pitt is a lower graduation rate and a higher flat tuition, offset by co-op paychecks that reduce net cost while students are still enrolled. Nationally, accountants and auditors earn a median $87,660 a year, per the BLS; CPA credit-hour rules are set state by state, per AICPA.

Grove City College offers a four-year Bachelor of Science in Accounting in its Winklevoss School of Business, which the school reports is ACBSP accredited. Students can add a CPA concentration, which adds coursework aimed at the four-part CPA exam, or a nonprofit and corporate accounting concentration. The curriculum is built to prepare students for the CPA, CMA and CFP exams, and a CFP Board registered financial planning minor can be paired with it. The business core is Christ-centered, and students may double major. Internships have been held with national and regional CPA firms, corporations, small businesses and nonprofits. The school reports that in 2024 its accounting students' CPA first-time pass rate was 12% higher than the national average.

Grove City has an 83% graduation rate and a 72% admit rate. Tuition is $21,700 for in-state and out-of-state students. The program's Program Score is 86.4 out of 100, the basis of its ranking. It fits students who want a faith-framed accounting degree with a clear route to CPA preparation, and who value a lower sticker price than many private colleges. Those headed for public accounting, corporate finance or nonprofit work can shape the degree through the two concentrations.

Temple University's Bachelor of Business Administration in Accounting is a 124-credit degree in the Fox School of Business. The page says it prepares students for public accounting, corporate financial management, consulting, government or nonprofit accounting, and tax. Coursework includes Auditing, Cost Accounting, Federal Taxes on Income, and Intermediate Accounting I and II, along with accounting information systems and data analytics in accounting. Temple states that the major is designed so students use data analytics in problem solving and decision making. It also lays out the Pennsylvania CPA route, which requires 36 hours in accounting and auditing, business law, finance or tax subjects, plus one to two years of supervised work experience and passing the CPA Exam. Graduates can continue into Temple's Master of Accountancy.

Temple reports a 75% graduation rate and an 80% admit rate. Tuition is $21,989 in-state and $37,789 out-of-state. The program earns a Program Score of 86.2 out of 100, which is the basis of its ranking. It suits students aiming for the CPA or CMA who want analytics skills in the accounting curriculum, and Pennsylvania residents who would pay the lower in-state rate.

Drexel University's LeBow College of Business offers an undergraduate accounting major with a curriculum designed to let students customize their plan of study. The recommended plan includes applied and social sciences, marketing and business communication, finance, business law and management information systems. Accounting classes from intro to capstone use current cases and applications, and one tax course trains students through IRS training to prepare returns for low-income Philadelphia families. Through the Drexel Co-op program, majors alternate six months of classroom learning with six months of full-time work, with up to three co-ops and as much as 18 months of experience. The page lists past placements at firms including KPMG, PricewaterhouseCoopers and Comcast. Students planning to sit for the CPA exam can reach the required credit hours through an accelerated MS program or by double majoring. The school reports the program is endorsed by the Institute of Management Accountants.

Federal data show a 78% graduation rate at Drexel and a 79% admit rate. In-state tuition is $60,042, the same as the out-of-state figure because Drexel is private. The program scores 85.3 out of 100 on the Program Score that determines its ranking. It fits students who want paid work experience built into the degree and a clear path toward CPA credit hours.

The accounting major at the University of Scranton is a four-year Bachelor of Science program in the Kania School of Management, totaling 125 to 127 credits. Students must earn at least a C in both accounting principles courses. Required courses include federal taxes, cost accounting, advanced accounting, auditing theory, accounting information systems, and accounting analytics and visualization. Students can focus on general accounting or add a minor in forensic accounting, accounting information systems or business analytics. The page says the program suits those pursuing credentials such as the Certified Management Accountant and Certified Internal Auditor.

The department also runs a VITA tax program, student internships and chapters of groups such as Beta Alpha Psi and the Institute of Management Accountants. Federal data shows an 80% graduation rate and an 81% admit rate, with tuition of $53,208 for in-state and out-of-state students alike. The program has a Program Score of 85 out of 100, the basis of its ranking. It fits students who want a traditional on-campus accounting degree with hands-on tax and internship options and the flexibility to specialize through a minor.