WMU grad tops 54,000 others nationally in CPA exam
Nov. 13, 2000
KALAMAZOO -- An April graduate who earned a master's degree from Western Michigan University's Haworth College of Business recently bested some 54,000 other hopeful accountants on the Uniform Certified Public Accountant Examination.
Paul Cameron Walker, who received his master of science degree in accountancy from WMU last spring, earned the nation's highest scores on the four-part CPA exam. His scores on the four parts were 98, 98, 99 and 99. That top ranking on the May exam earned him the Elijah Watt Sells Gold Medal from the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants and the William A. Paton Award from the Michigan Association of Certified Public Accountants.
"The CPA exam is very difficult," says Dr. Jack Ruhl, chairperson of WMU's Department of Accountancy. "Attorneys who are also CPAs tell me that the bar exam is easier than the CPA exam. I recently saw a statistic that only about 30% of all test-takers actually pass all sections of the CPA exam during their first attempt. Our graduates tend to do quite well on this test, but we are extraordinarily pleased with Paul's performance."
Currently a doctoral student in accounting at Ohio State University, Walker is the son of Gary and Liz Walker of Portage, Mich.
Media contact: Jessica English, 616 387-8400, jessica.english@wmich.edu