UG Program - FAQs | HKUST Department of Accounting

About Curriculum

What are the essential features of the current undergraduate accounting major program curriculum?

It offers flexible options for our undergraduates with diverse aspirations. They can graduate with a major in accounting via the standard pathway. They can also enrich their study journey with us through the HKICPA QP route, and/or with academic option(s) under Accounting Analytics and Emerging Technologies in Accounting.

Can you tell me more about the HKICPA QP Route?

If students would like to choose the HKICPA QP route, they need to enroll in ACCT 4410 Taxation, ACCT 4610 Company Law, and MGMT 4210 Corporate Strategy elective courses, plus ACCT major required core courses.

The HKICPA QP route is not an academic option and will not be shown on your transcript. As all the courses you have enrolled in HKUST will be shown on the transcript, therefore as long as you have completed those courses listed HERE in Professional Accounting Program at HKUST, you can apply for exemption in the HKICPA QP route (subject to vetting from the HKICPA after your registration). You may also double-check your graduation requirements via your SIS Advisement Report.

For details of the HKICPA QP route, please refer to the following website:https://www.hkicpa.org.hk/en/Become-a-Hong-Kong-CPA/Qualification-Programme/Pre-entry-education/Module-exemption-at-Associate-Level

Should you have further questions about the HKICPA QP route, please contact the HKICPA Qualifications Assessment Team at students.reg@hkicpa.org.hk for assistance.

If students do not study ACCT 4410 “Taxation”, what is the corresponding HKICPA QP module at the “QP Associate Level” that would be affected?

No exemption will be granted for HKICPA Module 9 Principles of Taxation.

ACCT 4410 Taxation has been removed from the major required core courses list for students who were admitted from the intake cohort 2023/24 onwards.

If students do not study ACCT 4610 “Company Law” what is the corresponding HKICPA QP modules at the “QP Associate Level” that would be affected?

No exemption will be granted for HKICPA Module 10 Business and Company Law.

If students do not study MGMT 4210 “Corporate Strategy”, what is the corresponding HKICPA QP modules at the “QP Associate Level” that would be affected?

No exemption will be granted for HKICPA Module 4 Business Management.

What are the Major Selection Exercises requirements of BBA in Professional Accounting?

The basic selection criteria for First Major in Professional Accounting are C+ or above in ACCT 2010 Principles of Accounting I.

For details, please refer to the Major Selection Exercise website: https://bmundergrad.hkust.edu.hk/academics/academic-planning/major-selections/major-selection

What are the past admissions scores for Major Selection Exercises?

Please refer to the following website:

https://bmundergrad.hkust.edu.hk/academics/academic-planning/major-selections/reference-materials

For students who intend to take the HKICPA QP Route, can they extend their study to complete the required electives after they have met the ACCT Major minimum requirement?

No. Note that the University requires students to graduate as soon as they finish their Major minimum requirements. Students will have to finish three HKICPA QP route courses (i.e., ACCT 4410 Taxation, ACCT 4610 Company Law and MGMT 4210 Corporate Strategy) within the normal study period of 8 semesters. That is, if students have finished their minimum major requirements but not all the 3 required courses for the HKICPA QP route, they will not be allowed to extend their study terms to finish the HKICPA QP route.

About Additional Major / Minor

Important Notes:

For students graduating with an additional major, they must take all the requirements specified for that major, within which they must complete at least 20 single-counted credits. These 20 credits cannot be used to fulfill any other requirements for graduation except for the 120-credit degree requirement.

Please refer to the following website:
https://bmundergrad.hkust.edu.hk/academics/academic-planning/curriculum-overview

What are the requirements of ACCT as an Additional Major? How can I declare or withdrawal Additional Major?

Please refer to the following websites:

https://bmundergrad.hkust.edu.hk/academics/academic-planning/major-selections/additional-major-selection

https://ug.bm.ust.hk/ug/doublemajor/AdditionalMajor.aspx

What are the Minor Programs offered at the HKUST?

Please refer to the following website:

https://join.hkust.edu.hk/our-programs/minor-programs

Please note that you should allow buffer time for the department (at least 3 days before the deadline) to endorse and process the application.

Can a student use MGMT 4210 "Corporate Strategy" and ISOM 3400 "Python Programming for Business Analytics" to fulfill ACCT major requirements, and use the same credits to fulfill MGMT and ISOM major requirements?

No. It is essentially not applicable. MGMT 4210 and ISOM 3400 have been repealed from the ACCT Major Elective list commencing 2023/24 intake cohort. MGMT 4210 course is for students who intend to take the HKICPA QP Route. ISOM 3400 course is for students who intend to declare AA option.

ISOM 3400 has COMP 1021 and COMP 1023 as exclusion courses. So, please DO NOT take COMP 1021 and COMP 1023 if you intend to select the AA Option. What should students do if they have taken COMP 1021 before/in 2020 Fall Semester?

Please note that students who take COMP 1021 and COMP 1023 will not be able to select the AA option. There will be no exception to this rule.

Where do students find the course information such as course description, pre-requisite and exclusion about the elective courses offered by ACCT?

You can find the information on the following website:

For elective courses offered by ACCT

https://prog-crs.ust.hk/ugcourse/2025-26/ACCT

About Academic Options

What are the requirements of Accounting Analytics (AA) option and/or Emerging Technologies in Accounting (ETA) option?

The Accounting Analytics (AA) option and Emerging Technologies in Accounting (ETA) option are academic options. They will not be shown on your diploma and they only show on your transcript.

To obtain the AA option, you need to take ACCT 4710, ISOM 3400, and one more ACCT elective course (ACCT 3630/ACCT 4410/ACCT 4610/ACCT 4720/ACCT 4801/ACCT 4802/ACCT 4803).

To obtain the ETA option, you need to take ACCT 4801 and ACCT 4803 courses, and one more ACCT elective course (ACCT 3630/ACCT 4410/ACCT 4610/ACCT 4710/ACCT 4720/ACCT 4802).

To obtain both AA option and ETA option, you need to take ACCT4710, ISOM 3400, ACCT 4801, ACCT 4803, and one more ACCT elective courses (ACCT 3630/ACCT 4410/ACCT 4610/ACCT 4720/ACCT 4802).

For details of the requirements of the AA option and/or ETA option, please refer to the following website:
https://acct.hkust.edu.hk/ug-program-new-curriculum

The department will send an email to all ACCT Year 3 and Year 4 students and ask them to apply before each semester begins. If you would like to apply for this option, you may submit the application before the add/drop period for department’s further processing.

How do I declare the AA option and/or ETA option?

Students who wish to declare the AA option and/or ETA option can do so no later than the last day of add/drop period in the FINAL regular term of study by completing an online application form for the department’s review and approval. These documents have to be submitted alongside your application:

1. Completed Study Plan

2. Latest SIS unofficial transcript

For students who intend to choose the AA option and/or ETA option, can they extend their study to complete the required electives after they have met the ACCT Major minimum requirement?

No. The University requires students to graduate as soon as they finish their Major minimum requirements; students will have to finish the required courses for the AA option and/or ETA option within the normal study period. That is, if students have finished their minimum major requirements but not AA option and/or ETA option, they will not be allowed to extend their study terms to finish the AA option and/or ETA option.

About Course Enrollment

What are the undergraduate courses offered? What are the pre-requisite and exclusions of each course?

Please refer to the following websites:

https://prog-crs.hkust.edu.hk/ugcourse/2025-26/ACCT

https://acct.hkust.edu.hk/ug-program-new-curriculum

How can I submit request (such as Requisites Waiver, Credit Overload, Swapping of sections, Drop Required Course, etc.) for approval?

Students should send their requests via the online SIS platform for the department’s review and consideration.

For details, please refer to website (Instruction #7):

https://registry.hkust.edu.hk/resource-library/faq-ug-students-validation

Is there any pre-registration for all Accounting Electives?

There is NO pre-registration for any accounting electives. You should enroll in electives by yourself as early as you can during the course registration period.

Please DO NOT email individual instructor(s) for raising the course quota. Department will monitor the class quota and make any adjustment to the quota, if necessary.

I want to enroll in advanced ACCT courses, but some of them have prerequisite courses, and the prerequisite courses have course exclusions that I have taken before. Does that mean I can enroll in the advanced ACCT courses?

If you wish to enroll in courses which does not meet the prerequisite requirement, you may submit a "requisite waiver" approval request via SIS during course validation and enrollment period. The course offering department will consider your request accordingly.

ACCT is not my first major, and I wish to enroll in ACCT courses. I am already on waitlists. I was wondering if an extra seat will be opened later?

Please keep your name on the waitlist because the actual enrollment and/or final quota might change from time to time. If your name is on the waitlist, you will be enrolled once a seat is available for you.

I notice that the classroom has a capacity that can take in more students than the quota offered. Could more seats be opened for students on the waitlist to get in?

Kindly understand that different courses/instructors may have different setting/concern regarding the optimum class size in consideration of achieving the best teaching and learning environment, and conducting effective class activities, while classroom capacity may not be the only deciding factor in determining the class size/quota.

Where can I find more information about credit overloading?

A normal credit load per term is basically our recommended credit load per term (18 credits). However, to give you the flexibility of managing your own study plans, you have the option to have credit overloads, provided you meet the following conditions:

https://bmundergrad.hkust.edu.hk/academics/academic-planning/academic-regulations

About Internship

I heard that some students work on a one-year/term internship, where can I get such opportunity?

Students may refer to the SBM Job Bank which has a list of job posts related to business disciplines. The Career Center of the University also has a pool of job opportunities where you may find suitable placements.

So do pay attention to our email on internship/job referral, or check the SBM Job Bank/Career Center constantly for the latest job advertisements.

How can and when should I apply for study leave for taking up internship?

If you find a study-related internship, you should send the “Application for Leave from Study” to your major program as soon as possible and before the start of the regular term. For endorsement and verification, please submit form RR-8 (https://registry.hkust.edu.hk/resource-library/leave-study-ug), together with

1. Original copy of the employment contract (e.g., job title, job duties, duration)

2. Completed Study Plan

3. Latest SIS unofficial transcript

For study leave beyond one term, further approval from SBM is required, so please allow sufficient time to process your application before the term starts.

About Exchange & Credit Transfer

What are the different study abroad opportunities?

Please refer to the following website:

https://studyabroad.hkust.edu.hk/outbound/programs

What are the requirements of applying for exchange? What is the timeline for it?

Please refer to the following website:

https://bmundergrad.hkust.edu.hk/exchange/outbound-exchange/outbond-application-procedures

How to apply for credit transfer to HKUST after my exchange out in another university?

For information on the credit transfer policy for the exchange-out program, please visit:

https://bmundergrad.hkust.edu.hk/exchange/outbound-exchange/preparing-for-exchange

I am going on exchange in the coming term. What courses are approved for credit transfer?

Before taking a course elsewhere, you should visit the Credit Transfer website (https://registry.hkust.edu.hk/resource-library/introduction-credit-transfer-ug) and the Credit Transfer Database (https://registry.hkust.edu.hk/credit-transfer/credit-transfer-database-undergraduates-only-institutional-courses).

Check the procedures and make sure that you take approved equivalent courses at the host institution. You should check the Credit Equivalence Database (https://registry.hkust.edu.hk/useful-tools/credit-transfer/database-institution/results-institution?page=1) for information on the transfer credits approved in the past.

What should I do if the course that I plan to take is not an approved one listed in the Course Equivalence Database?

If the course cannot be found in the database, you may initiate a new credit transfer application AFTER the actual study. Please kindly note that the credit transfer application will be reviewed by the course instructor case-by-case basis and subject to the UG Coordinator’s approval.

About Credit and Grading System

Can you tell me more about Degree Classification at HKUST?

Please refer to the following website:

https://registry.hkust.edu.hk/resource-library/degree-classification-ug

I applied for graduation, and the diploma is not ready yet. What should I do?

Students may apply for the Provisional Award Certification Letter (PACL) to ARO in the following website:

https://registry.hkust.edu.hk/resource-library/award-certification-letter-graduates

Others

I want to self-declare ACCT as an additional major. Can I do so?

If you can complete all ACCT major program requirements by the time you graduate, you can declare it as your additional major in your final regular term of study. You may visit the SBM website here https://bmundergrad.hkust.edu.hk/academics/academic-planning/graduation-matters for more information on self-declaration of additional major and follow the procedures and timeline as prescribed by SBM.

Please note that there is NO exception to allow students to extend their studies in order to self-declare an additional major. You have to graduate as you fulfill all the major requirements under your respective program. Extension of study will not be approved because self-declaring an additional major is optional.

What should I do if I have exceeded 8 regular terms?

For the extension of study, ARO will inform the department of students who have exceeded 8 regular terms (4 years of UG study) before each semester starts. The department will send an email to ask those students to apply for an extension of their study application accordingly.

What is the tuition fee if I have exceeded 8 regular terms?

For the undergraduate students studying beyond the normal period of study, please find the tuition fee by referring to the following website:

https://registry.hkust.edu.hk/resource-library/tuition-rates-ug

What should I do if I would like to change from one program of study to another?

For program transfer, please refer to the following website:

https://registry.hkust.edu.hk/resource-library/leave-study-ug

UG Programs

Frequently Asked Questions