University Catalog

Accounting - Graduate Programs

Admissions Requirements

Admission Criteria

The Department has two alternative sets of conditions that allow applicants to be unconditionally admitted without review by the Graduate Studies Committee. The Departmental Graduate Advisor reviews all applications and determines if they qualify for admission under one of these two sets of criteria. Applicants who do not satisfy any of the following sets of conditions for unconditional admission are referred to the Graduate Studies Committee for consideration.

Unconditional Admission without Committee Review

Applicants qualify for unconditional admission without the need for review by the Graduate Studies Committee if they meet any one of the following two sets of unconditional admission criteria:

Unconditional Admission Set #1: GMAT Condition

Individuals who meet each of the following two conditions are given unconditional admission:

  • Applicant holds an earned bachelor's degree from an AACSB accredited college or university, with a minimum GPA of 3.0 on the last 60 hours of undergraduate work and
  • GMAT total score is at least 500 with verbal and quantitative score at the 30th percentile or higher, on both.  While the GMAT is strongly preferred, for non-business majors, an equivalent GRE score will be accepted in lieu of the GMAT.

Unconditional Admission Set #2: GMAT Waiver Condition

This unconditional admission set #2 focuses on satisfying any one of the following criteria.

  • Graduated from UTA or other AACSB accredited college or University within the three years of expected entrance into the graduate program with a minimum GPA of 3.25 in their major and overall;
  • Graduated from an AACSB accredited college or university with an earned bachelor's degree, with a minimum GPA of 3.0 in their major and overall, holds a current recognized professional accounting credential or license (e.g., Certified Public Accountant, Certified Financial Analyst, Chartered Accountant);
  • Graduated from an AACSB accredited college or university with an earned bachelor's degree, with a minimum GPA of 3.0 in their major and overall, and completed another postbaccalaureate degree (e.g., master's degree, JD degree, LLM degree, MD degree, Ph.D. degree).

Admission with Committee Review

Applicants who require committee review are considered for admission using the following factors, with no single factor used as the primary criterion for making admission decisions.

  • Undergraduate and graduate GPA (overall, major, and last 60 hours) and program accreditation status of the applicant's degree granting institution;
  • Score on the GMAT (including separate scores on the verbal and quantitative portions);
  • Applicant's professional work experience and professional certification/licensure; and
  • Letters of reference and personal statement provided by the applicant.

By considering the totality of the applicant's circumstances, including the factors listed above, the Graduate Studies Committee will evaluate an applicant's readiness to successfully complete one of the Department's graduate programs. Depending on the judgment of the committee, the decision may be to grant unconditional admission, probationary admission, provisional admission, deferred admission, or to deny admission. The decision of the committee is final.

An applicant whose native language is not English must demonstrate a sufficient level of skill with the English language to assure success in graduate studies as defined under Admissions Requirements and Procedures in the Graduate Catalog.   International applicants must submit a TOEFL score or IELTS score that meets the standards as listed in the admission requirements.

Pre-enrollment Competency (or deficiency) Requirements

If students have not satisfactorily completed all of their pre-enrollment competency (deficiency) requirements, they will, in addition to their program of work, also be required to complete those pre-enrollment competency courses. If college courses constituting the pre-enrollment competency requirements have not been completed with a grade of C or better, students must include these courses in their program of work. Deficiency courses may be completed at the undergraduate level but core courses must be completed at the graduate level.

Master of Science in Accounting

This program is designed for students who have an undergraduate degree in accounting or a degree in business administration with a major in accounting who wish to specialize in an area of accounting other than tax. The student, with the assistance and consent of the Graduate Advisor, will develop a course of study designed to meet his or her educational needs in light of previous academic work and career objectives.

The M.S. in Accounting requires the student to complete a minimum of 31 semester hours of coursework, 24 of which must be in specified courses in the accounting discipline:

ACCT 5133PROFESSIONALISM IN ACCOUNTING1
ACCT 5318STUDIES IN AUDITING3
ACCT 5319FINANCIAL ACCOUNTING III3
ACCT 5320GOVERNMENTAL AND NONPROFIT ACCOUNTING3
ACCT 5321RESEARCH IN ACCOUNTING ISSUES3
ACCT 5329CONTEMPORARY ISSUES IN ACCOUNTING INFORMATION SYSTEMS3
or ACCT 5335 DESIGN OF ACCOUNTING SYSTEMS
ACCT 5340STUDY OF FEDERAL INCOME TAX FOR ENTITIES OTHER THAN INDIVIDUALS3
ACCOUNTING ELECTIVES6
BUSINESS ELECTIVES6
Total Hours31

Master of Professional Accounting (MPA)

The MPA program is designed for individuals who hold an undergraduate degree in any major other than accounting (economics, engineering, finance, liberal arts, management, mathematics, science, etc.) . The MPA program requires the student to complete a minimum of 43 semester hours of coursework, 30 semester hours of which must be in specified courses in the accounting discipline:

ACCT 5133PROFESSIONALISM IN ACCOUNTING1
ACCT 5311FINANCIAL ACCOUNTING I3
ACCT 5312FINANCIAL ACCOUNTING II3
ACCT 5314PRINCIPLES OF FEDERAL INCOME TAX3
ACCT 5315ACCOUNTING SYSTEMS ANALYSIS3
ACCT 5316AUDITING CONCEPTS AND PRACTICES3
ACCT 5319FINANCIAL ACCOUNTING III3
ACCT 5321RESEARCH IN ACCOUNTING ISSUES3
ACCT 5317COST ANALYSIS AND DECISION MAKING3
Accounting Electives6
Business Electives12
Total Hours43

For those individuals who hold an undergraduate business degree, the MPA will normally require 43 hours of coursework. For those individuals who hold an undergraduate degree in a non-business discipline, the MPA will normally require 46 hours of coursework. Regardless of undergraduate background, the MPA degree requires a total of 30 hours of accounting plus accounting principles as a pre-enrollment requirement.

Master of Science in Taxation

The Master of Science in Taxation (MST) is designed for students who have an undergraduate degree in accounting or a degree in business administration with a major in accounting who wish to specialize in taxation. The student, with the assistance and consent of the Graduate Advisor, will develop a course of study designed to meet his or her educational needs in light of previous academic work and career objectives.

The degree requires a minimum of 31 semester hours, 28 semester hours of which must be in specified courses in the accounting discipline.  Of the required accounting semester hours, 18 of those semester hours must be in specified courses in the area of taxation beyond ACCT 5314:

ACCT 5133PROFESSIONALISM IN ACCOUNTING1
ACCT 5319FINANCIAL ACCOUNTING III3
ACCT 5339TAX PLANNING AND RESEARCH3
ACCT 5341TAXATION OF PASSTHROUGH ENTITIES3
ACCT 5342TAX PROBLEMS OF CORPORATIONS AND SHAREHOLDERS3
ACCT 5347FEDERAL TAXATION OF GIFTS AND ESTATES3
Tax Accounting Electives6
Accounting Electives6
Business Electives3
Total Hours31

Certificate in Taxation

To support The University of Texas at Arlington's mission to provide lifelong learning opportunities to the community, the Department of Accounting offers qualified applicants an opportunity to participate in a graduate Certificate in Taxation.  This is a non-degree seeking program.  The program offers graduate courses in specific areas of taxation as a means of

  • maintaining and promoting their professional development in an interactive environment;
  • acquiring continuing education hours necessary to maintain a professional certification;
  • furthering their opportunity to participate in a graduate degree program. Subject to the applicable degree requirements, up to 4 courses taken in the certificate can be applied toward a master's degree;
  • providing quality cost-efficient staff training;
  • interacting with other professionals and developing a dialogue that can improve your practice's efficiency and effectiveness. A number of our professors in the program are either currently with the Internal Revenue Service or in practice in the area of specialization associated with the course.

Admission Requirements

The Tax Certificate is a post-baccalaureate educational opportunity available to degreed applicants. It is narrower in scope and shorter in duration than any of the department's graduate degree programs. To qualify, an applicant must

  • have an undergraduate degree;
  • have a grade point average of 3.0;

A GMAT score and letters of recommendation are not required for admission to the certificate.

Information About Status as a Certificate Student

Special student status characteristics:

  • Must be approved by the Graduate Studies Committee
  • No more than twelve (12) hours of work earned as a special student may be applied to a graduate degree at UT Arlington.

A person who is admitted as a certificate student and later seeks admission to a degree program must submit a regular Graduate Admissions Application form, pay the application fee, submit all required documents, and meet all admission requirements, including admission tests and any additional requirements established by the degree program.

Application to a Graduate Program

Admission as a certificate student in no way guarantees subsequent unconditional admission into a graduate program or the Graduate Business School.  Anyone who enters a certificate program and later seeks a graduate degree at the College of Business may apply 12 hours of coursework toward that degree program if done within 6 years of completion of the certificate by petitioning Graduate Admissions through her/his prospective academic department. Only grades of A and B may be  applied toward graduate credit.

Terms of Admission

Once admitted, participants may take up to four (4) of the approved courses. The terms of admission allow participants to take only the specific courses approved for the certificate. Participants would not be allowed to take courses outside of their certificate requirements without applying for and having been accepted into the graduate program.

Current Graduate Students

Graduate students currently enrolled in a UT Arlington graduate program may also earn the certificate by notifying the Accounting Advisor of their intent to participate in the certification program and by successfully completing the prescribed number of classes in their degree program.

Available Courses

The Certificate in Taxation requires students to take and successfully complete, with a minimum GPA of 3.0, four advanced tax courses. Those students entering the Certificate of Taxation without having taken the equivalent of the undergraduate tax course will also be required to take a "foundation" course, ACCT 5314. The four advanced tax courses are limited to ACCT 5339 and three additional courses selected from the following:

ACCT 5341TAXATION OF PASSTHROUGH ENTITIES3
ACCT 5342TAX PROBLEMS OF CORPORATIONS AND SHAREHOLDERS3
ACCT 5345STATE AND LOCAL TAXATION3
ACCT 5346TAX PRACTICE AND PROCEDURE3
ACCT 5347FEDERAL TAXATION OF GIFTS AND ESTATES3

Courses appropriate for the certificate have been selected because their subject matters directly relate to materials needed by professionals engaged in tax-related activities. Full course descriptions for these advanced courses are included in The University of Texas at Arlington's Graduate Catalog.

Grade Point Average While in the Certificate Program

All participants in the certificate must meet the normal GPA requirements of Graduate Admissions, College and Department of Accounting. In particular, they must maintain an overall GPA of 3.0 in order to receive the certificate.