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Department of Accounting


Mission Statement

The mission of the Department of Accounting is to advance accounting knowledge and practice through excellence in accounting education, high-impact research, and relevant continuing education and professional outreach activities that serve the constituents of the department in the state, nation, and globally.

All graduate programs in Accounting are separately accredited by AACSB International—The Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business—and conform to recommended guidelines.

Five-Year (150-Hour) Professional Accounting Program

The Five-Year Professional Accounting Program is a 3/2 degree program. Undergraduate accounting majors should apply for admission to the program during the second semester of their junior year (the semester in which they are taking Intermediate Accounting II). Once admitted, these students are allowed to take graduate courses while, technically, undergraduate students. Students admitted to the 150-hour program will be reclassified from undergraduate to graduate student status when they have completed 120 semester credit hours of coursework toward their degree. In this program, the degree plan for the Bachelor of Business Administration (B.B.A.) in Accounting is combined with that of the Master of Accountancy (MACY). The advantage of the program is that it allows accounting majors to spread the graduate courses required for the MACY degree over the fourth and fifth years of the 150-hour program. Upon successful completion of the 150-hour program, students will be simultaneously awarded the B.B.A. in Accounting and the Master of Accountancy degrees.

Admission Criteria: To be admitted to the Five-Year (150-Hour) Professional Accounting Program, students must meet the following criteria:

  1. be a declared accounting major
  2. have an overall grade point average of 3.0, a grade point average of 3.0 in accounting courses taken, and an acceptable score on the Graduate Management Admission Test (GMAT)
  3. have completed a minimum of 6 semester credit hours of upper-level undergraduate accounting courses including ACC 3023 Intermediate Accounting I.

In addition, the student must have completed at least 12 semester credit hours of upper-level undergraduate accounting courses by the end of the first semester following admission into the program.

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Master of Accountancy Degree

The Master of Accountancy (MACY) degree is designed to accommodate applicants with a degree in any field. Applicants must complete the equivalent of a B.B.A. degree in accounting from an accredited institution or must enroll in the MACY core courses plus certain accounting courses set out by the Coordinator of Graduate Programs in Accounting. Students whose background is in business but who have completed MACY core courses or their equivalents seven or more years before entering the program may be required by the MACY Admissions Committee to successfully complete or test out of the MACY core courses. MACY core courses may be taken simultaneously with the MACY requirements, subject to course prerequisites and approval of the Coordinator of Graduate Programs in Accounting.

Program Admission Requirements. In order to be unconditionally admitted to the MACY program, applicants must meet University-wide graduate admission requirements. In addition, applicants are considered on the basis of demonstrated potential for success in graduate study in accounting and/or taxation as indicated by a combination of prior academic achievement, Graduate Management Admission Test (GMAT) scores, a personal statement, and other relevant factors.

A completed set of application material will include the following:

  • completed application form
  • transcripts from all universities attended
  • official Graduate Management Admission Test (GMAT) scores
  • a personal statement
  • a current résumé with data regarding employment and other relevant experience (optional)
  • letters of reference (optional).

Applicants are evaluated by the MACY Admissions Committee based on the above set of application materials. Those who do not meet the requirements for unconditional admission may be considered for admission on a conditional basis. Admission deficiencies, which do not count toward degree requirements, must be removed before enrolling for the last semester before graduation.

The following MACY core courses or their equivalents are required for students with undergraduate curriculum deficiencies; however, no credit for these courses will count toward the MACY degree requirements:

ACC   2013   Principles of Accounting I
ACC   2033   Principles of Accounting II
ACC   3023   Intermediate Accounting I
ACC   3033   Intermediate Accounting II
ACC   3043   Federal Income Taxation
ACC   3113   Accounting Information Systems
ACC   4013   Principles of Auditing
BLW   5003   Legal Environment of Business
ECO   5003   Economic Theory and Policy
FIN    3014   Principles of Business Finance
IS      5003   Introduction to Information Systems
MGT  5003   Conceptual Foundations of Management
MKT  5003   Introduction to Marketing
MS    5003   Quantitative Methods for Business Analysis

Degree Requirements. The minimum number of semester credit hours required for this degree, exclusive of coursework or other study required to remove admission deficiencies, is 30.

All candidates must complete the following:

  1. Theoretical Foundations (6 semester credit hours):

    ACC  6003  Managerial Accounting Theory
    ACC  6013  Financial Accounting Theory

  2. Disciplinary Focus. 12 semester credit hours of graduate electives in accounting or taxation, approved by the Coordinator of Graduate Programs in Accounting. Students may choose to focus their graduate study in one of four different areas through their choice of these 12 hours. Focus areas include taxation, audit services, financial accounting and managerial accounting. See the graduate advisors or the Coordinator of Graduate Programs in Accounting to discuss these options.

  3. Electives:

    9 semester credit hours of graduate electives in accounting, taxation, finance, or information systems approved by the Coordinator of Graduate Programs in Accounting.

  4. Accounting Capstone (3 semester credit hours):

    ACC  6993  Integrative Seminar in Accounting
    (Students who earn a grade of “B” or better in this course will satisfy the comprehensive examination requirement.)

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Doctor of Philosophy Degree in Business Administration with an Emphasis in Accounting

The College of Business offers opportunities for advanced study and research leading to the Doctor of Philosophy degree in Business Administration with an emphasis in Accounting. See page xx of this catalog for a detailed description of the general requirements for the Ph.D. degree. The Doctoral Studies Committee of the Department of Accounting will advise students admitted to the program who pursue a Ph.D. in Business Administration with an emphasis in Accounting.

To satisfy the Major Area Coursework for the accounting emphasis, a student must complete 12 semester credit hours chosen from Ph.D. level courses and 6 hours of directed electives.

  1. Ph.D. level courses (12 semester credit hours chosen from the following):

    ACC  7013  Seminar in Empirical Research in Accounting
    ACC  7023  Seminar in Behavioral Research in Accounting
    ACC  7053  Current Topics in Accounting Research
    ACC  7113  Seminar in Financial Accounting Theory
    ACC  7123  Seminar in Managerial Accounting Theory

  2. Directed Electives (6 semester credit hours):

    ACC  7043  Archival-Based Research Methods in Accounting
    Graduate-level course in major area as approved by the Doctoral Studies Committee.

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