Accounting - Master of Accountancy
The Master of Accountancy program (MAcc) is recommended for students wishing to fulfill the Certified Public Accountant (CPA) 150-hour education requirement which most states, including New Mexico, have adopted.
Admission Requirements
Admission requirements of the NMSU Graduate School must be met before the applicant may be admitted to the MAcc program.
Consideration for admission to the MAcc program is dependent on an applicant's undergraduate record. The Graduate Management Admissions Test (GMAT) is also required, unless the student meets one of the GMAT waiver conditions listed below:
- The student graduated with an undergraduate degree in accounting from a US AACSB accredited business school with at least a 3.25 GPA overall and a 3.25 GPA in their upper division accounting courses; or
- The student is a graduate of NMSU's undergraduate accounting program with at least a 3.25 GPA overall and a 3.0 GPA in core upper division accounting classes; or
- The student holds a recognized professional accounting credential (such as a CPA, CMA, CIA, CFE); or
- The student holds a post baccalaureate degree (such as an MBA, MS, MA, JD) from an approved, US AACSB-accredited university with a minimum 3.0 GPA in graduate course work.
In addition to the aforementioned entrance requirements, an applicant's GPA in accounting prerequisites must be at least 3.0. For those students not receiving their undergraduate accounting degree at NMSU, it is expected that substantially all of the accounting prerequisite classes be from a US AACSB accredited business school or the application will need to be approved by the MAcc Admissions Committee. In this case the Admissions Committee may require that some of these prerequisite courses be retaken at an US AACSB institution such as NMSU.
Accounting Prerequisites (18 Credits)
Each applicant must complete, at a minimum, the following 18 credits of accounting courses from a US AACSB accredited business school prior to being considered as a candidate for the Master of Accountancy degree:
| Prefix | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| ACCT 2110 | Principles of Accounting I | 3 |
| ACCT 2120 | Principles of Accounting II | 3 |
| ACCT 301 | Financial Accounting I | 3 |
| ACCT 302 | Financial Accounting II | 3 |
| ACCT 403 | Federal Taxation I | 3 |
| ACCT 451 | Auditing Theory and Practices | 3 |
| Total Credits | 18 | |
No coursework applied toward the MAcc degree, including the prerequisite requirements, may be taken on an S/U basis.
Master of Accountancy Requirements
Candidates with an undergraduate degree in accounting must successfully complete a minimum of 30 graduate credits. Candidates with an undergraduate degree in a field other than accounting must complete additional prerequisites upon previous courses taken.
| Prefix | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| Required Courses (9 credits) | ||
| ACCT 555 | Federal Tax Research 1 | 3 |
| or ACCT 564 | Financial Accounting Research | |
| ACCT 559 | Ethics and Professionalism in Accounting | 3 |
| ACCT 510 | Technical and Professional Communication for Accountants | 3 |
| Electives in ACCT from the following for a total of 5 courses (1 course may be from upper division Accounting courses numbered 450-498) (15 credits) | ||
| ACCT 530 | Advanced Accounting | 3 |
| ACCT 544 | Financial Statement Analysis and Valuation | 3 |
| ACCT 551 | Advanced Auditing Theory and Practice | 3 |
| ACCT 560 | Taxation of Corporations and Shareholders Advanced | 3 |
| ACCT 580 | Professional Accountancy | 3 |
| Other Courses for a total of 2 courses (6 credits approved by MAcc Program Director) | ||
| Elective 1 | 3 | |
| Elective 2 | 3 | |
| Total Credits | 30 | |
- 1
If an accounting research course is not used to fulfill the research requirement, a student may take the course to fulfill an elective requirement.
MAcc Courses
Each student must complete 21 credits in accounting courses numbered above 520. These courses must include a research class (either ACCT 555 Federal Tax Research or ACCT 564 Financial Accounting Research) and Ethics in Accounting (ACCT 559 Ethics and Professionalism in Accounting). In addition, three of the credits may be in upper division undergraduate elective accounting courses numbered 450 or higher. Other specific courses to be completed by each candidate will be determined in the advisement process.
Other Courses
All students must also complete a total of 9 credits in other courses. Three of the credits must be ACCT 510 Technical and Professional Communication for Accountants, and the rest must be approved electives. Neither ACCT 503 Accounting for Managers nor any course fulfilling the foundation requirement may be included. Any student wishing to be waived from any of the above requirements may submit a petition in writing to the MAcc Director. Each request will be considered individually by the MAcc Committee.
Comprehensive Examination
There is no comprehensive examination requirement. However, satisfactory performance on a graduate portfolio assignment is a requirement for completing the MAcc degree.
Thesis: No thesis is required; however, under special approval, a candidate may elect to write a thesis under ACCT 599 Master's Thesis. Up to 6 credits may be earned for the thesis.
General
Graduate degrees require a cumulative graduate GPA of 3.0 or higher. The Department of Accounting and Information Systems requires, in addition, that every candidate for the MAcc degree maintain at least a 3.0 grade-point average in all accounting courses used to satisfy the core and elective course requirement. MAcc students may not retake 500-level accounting courses for which they have previously received a grade without the approval of the MAcc Admissions Committee.