What Courses to Take to Become an Accountant in Canada
To become an accountant in Canada, you need a mix of formal education, practical skills, and — if you want the CPA designation — a professional program. The exact courses depend on which route you take, but the core subjects are the same: financial accounting, management accounting, cost accounting, auditing, taxation, business law, and accounting software. This guide lays out the three main routes, the courses each one requires, and a practical plan to get started.
First, an important correction to a common misunderstanding: in Canada, the professional accounting designation is Chartered Professional Accountant (CPA). It is not the same as the United States’ Certified Public Accountant credential, and Canadian employers expect the Canadian CPA path. If a course promises you a “CPA” without explaining the Canadian route, ask which country’s credential it means.
The Three Routes to Becoming an Accountant
Route 1: Degree + CPA designation (the professional route)
This is the route to becoming a Chartered Professional Accountant. In Ontario, it is administered by CPA Ontario, and the other provinces have their own CPA bodies (for example, CPA Alberta). The standard path is: a university degree with the required prerequisite courses, then the CPA Professional Education Program (PEP), then the Common Final Examination (CFE), plus 30 months of relevant practical experience. You can read the full breakdown in our guide on how to become an accountant in Canada.
The degree-stage courses you need include introductory and intermediate financial accounting, management accounting, auditing, taxation, finance, business law, economics, statistics, and information systems. If your degree is in another field, you can usually complete the missing prerequisites through CPA preparatory courses (CPA PREP) instead of starting a second degree.
Route 2: Diploma or certificate + work experience (the practical route)
Not every accounting job requires a CPA. Many accountants, accounting technicians, and senior bookkeepers build their careers on a college diploma or a practical training program plus work experience. Employers for these roles care most about whether you can do the work: keep clean books, run payroll, prepare tax returns, and produce reliable financial statements. A focused program such as GTGH’s Accounting Course, which teaches through real-life cases, fits this route — especially when paired with resume help and job support.
Route 3: Career changer (finance degree or another field)
If you already hold a finance degree, much of your knowledge transfers — financial analysis, corporate finance, and reporting — but you will still need dedicated accounting courses in financial accounting, tax, and audit to be hired as an accountant rather than as a finance generalist. Our guide to getting an accounting job with a finance degree maps exactly what transfers and what gaps to close.
The Core Courses, Explained
Financial accounting
The foundation. You learn the accounting equation, double-entry bookkeeping, how to record transactions, and how to prepare and read the income statement, balance sheet, and cash flow statement. Every other accounting subject builds on this one — if it is weak, everything else wobbles.
Management accounting
Where financial accounting reports to outsiders, management accounting reports to the managers inside a business: budgets, forecasts, variance analysis, and cost information for decisions. You learn to prepare monthly management accounts, advise on financial goals, and build the budgets and forecasts that support business planning.
Cost accounting
A branch of management accounting focused on what things actually cost: fixed and variable costs, labour, materials, and overhead, measured by product, department, or service. Cost accountants help a business see where its money goes, which products are profitable, and where savings are possible.
Auditing
Auditors examine an organisation’s systems and records for accuracy, honesty, and risk. You learn to test controls, identify where systems may fail, recommend checks, and perform risk analysis. Audits are often a legal obligation and are usually performed by a team at the client’s premises. The skill this course builds — professional scepticism — is useful in every accounting role, not just audit.
Taxation (Canadian)
Canadian tax, not generic tax theory: personal tax (T1), corporate tax (T2), GST/HST, and payroll source deductions. One course alone will not make you a tax expert, but it gives you the base every accountant needs — and it is the subject where Canadian-specific training matters most, because Canadian rules differ sharply from American or other countries’ rules. Note also that in Canada, tax is federal and provincial, not “federal and state” as in the United States.
Business law and ethics
Contracts, business structures (sole proprietorship vs corporation), directors’ duties, and the ethical rules that govern accountants. Ethics is not a soft extra: accountants handle other people’s money, and employers test judgment as hard as they test technique.
Accounting software
QuickBooks Online and Excel are the working tools of most Canadian small and mid-sized accounting roles. A course that teaches only theory, with no software practice, leaves you unprepared for the first week on the job. Practise entering transactions, reconciling, running payroll, and generating reports until the software feels routine.
What About Salary? A Reality Check
Salary figures you see online vary widely because they mix entry-level bookkeepers, experienced accountants, and CPAs into one number. A more useful benchmark is the Government of Canada’s Job Bank, which publishes wages by occupation: financial auditors and accountants (NOC 11100) in Ontario have a median wage of $40.87 per hour. Your actual pay depends on your designation, experience, city, and industry — treat any single “average accountant salary” figure with scepticism, and check Job Bank for the occupation and province you are targeting.
A 90-Day Plan to Get Started
- Weeks 1–2: Diagnose your gaps. Compare your existing education against the core course list above. If you lack financial accounting, start there — it is the prerequisite for everything else.
- Weeks 3–6: Take one foundational course. Financial accounting plus software practice. Do the exercises; do not just watch the lessons.
- Weeks 7–10: Add tax and payroll. Canadian personal tax basics and payroll source deductions are the skills small employers ask for first.
- Weeks 11–13: Build proof of work. Volunteer bookkeeping for a small business or charity, or complete a practical training program with real cases, so your resume shows work, not just courses.
Then decide your route: if you want the CPA, map your remaining prerequisites and apply to CPA PREP or PEP; if you want a practical accounting job, focus on experience, software fluency, and interview preparation.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I become an accountant without a degree?
You can work in accounting without a degree — as a bookkeeper, accounting technician, or accounting clerk — and build up from there. But the CPA designation requires a degree (or equivalent) plus PEP, the CFE, and 30 months of practical experience. Be clear about which destination you are aiming for before choosing courses.
Is a finance degree enough to become an accountant?
Partly. A finance degree covers much of the analytical side, but you will still need dedicated courses in financial accounting, Canadian tax, and auditing to be hired as an accountant. See our finance-degree-to-accounting guide for the full gap analysis.
How long does it take to become an accountant in Canada?
A practical accounting job can be within reach in months if you already have a related background and take focused training. The CPA route is longer: a degree, then PEP (typically about two years part-time while working), the CFE, and 30 months of experience. Plan for several years, not several weeks.
Which course should I take first?
Financial accounting. It is the foundation for management accounting, cost accounting, audit, and tax. Pair it with QuickBooks or Excel practice from the start.
Do I need to learn American tax rules?
No, unless you plan to work on United States clients. Canadian employers need Canadian tax: T1 and T2 returns, GST/HST, and payroll source deductions under CRA rules. A course teaching “federal and state” tax is teaching the wrong country.
Are online accounting courses accepted by employers?
Employers care about skills and proof of work, not whether you sat in a classroom. An online course with instructor feedback, real cases, and software practice is respected; a course that is only recorded videos with no assessment is not. Ask how your work will be assessed before you enrol.
