Starting from 1999, the Hong Kong Society of Accountants (HKSA) requires all prospective students to hold a recognized accounting undergraduate degree or its equivalent for direct entry into the new professional programme. The Society has provided alternative routes for holders of non-accounting degrees through a conversion programme.

The new Postgraduate Diploma in Professional Accounting (PDPA) and Master of Professional Accounting (MPA) programmes, to be launched by the OUHK's School of Business and Administration this coming October, have recently been accredited by the HKSA as the Society's conversion programmes.

The two new programmes are designed to meet the demand for top accounting professionals, especially from international audit firms. Students who have completed 40 credits of specified courses can choose to exit with the PDPA award or study 20 more credits to get the MPA degree.

Only those whose undergraduate degree is recognized by the HKSA and those who have completed the PDPA or the compulsory courses within the MPA will satisfy the pre-entry educational requirement for registration as students of the HKSA. It will be the students' responsibility to confirm their undergraduate degree qualification with the HKSA.