My college has a one-year MBA program in accounting. The program openly accepts all undergrad accounting majors from their school. From what I know, federal and state aid are usually not able to be used toward a graduate degree. I will not be graduating with much debt after my bachelor’s, less than $10,000. I eventually plan on becoming a CPA, but the educational credits are not a problem for me. I plan on getting an associate’s degree in a second major.Is a master’s degree worth the extra $25,000? Would an employer pay for an employee’s graduate tuition?
What state are you from? Many states require 150 credits for a CPA and an associate degree for someone who already has a bachelor’s degree won’t count.
New York.
New York State requires 150 credits to become a CPA (my S recently got certified in NYS). Look online and you can get the exact educational requirements. If you have a lot of AP credits etc. you may be able to get away without a masters degree. But more and more accountants are going on for the one year masters to get the credits to get certified.
I emailed a local CPA firm and this is what they said:
“It all depends on where you plan to work once your education is completed. If you want to work as a Certified Public accountant then you absolutely will need your masters. If you want to work in government then it’s probably not necessary. If you want to work in private industry then it could probably go either way depending on which industry and what your career goals are.”
I’m a CPA and my S recently got his CPA license (I was a manager at a Big 8 firm (pre-mergers) and my S is currently at a Big 4 firm). Based on my experience, I can say with certainty that you don’t need a masters degree to work as a CPA. You just need to take the classes required by the state (available online) and earn 150 college credits. My S did get a masters degree as do a great many of students entering the profession at this point However, my S does have one friend who was able to get the 150 credits in four years with summer classes, overloading his schedule, and APs and he has another friend who took one extra semester of undergraduate classes to get to 150 credits – both of these people are working at a Big 4 accounting firm without a masters in accounting. 150 credits is required to be a CPA, and while a masters is common itis not “absolutely” required at this point.
This is from a small CPA firm, which is identical to the type of firm I would like to work at. I’m not interested in working at a Big 4. Do you know what it is like at a small, local firm?
The only thing I can say with certainty is that you don’t need a masters to become a CPA in NYS at this point in time. I can’t imagine a small CPA firm would be more difficult to get a job at as compared to a Big 4 firm, but who knows? I guess any given firm could have its own criteria for employment which could include a masters in accounting, but I just haven’t heard of that being the case.
Here is a slightly different perspective:
Yes, as noted above, a master’s degree is NOT necessary anywhere to my knowledge. You just need, in most states, 150 credits. HOWEVER, I would recommend a masters. Why?
- It provides more credibility to clients than having an extra 150 credits. Why not get a masters which requires the same amount of credits?
- It can provide you with a specialization in a field such as forensic studies, taxation etc. This also improves your attractiveness to clients and to prospective employers. I would, however, only get a masters in a specific specialty such as taxation, forensic work, internal controls/computer science, financial planning etc. assuming that you majored in accounting as an undergrad.
I’m a CPA and father of a current MSA candidate. While I’m not an expert on the NY State rules, it is not just getting to 150 hours that you need to be concerned about.
Many states now require more than the typical 24 accounting hours that you receive in the standard bachelors program; 30-33 seems to be the new common minimum of accounting hours. On top of that many states have special requirements related to either professional ethics, business law, accounting research, business communication etc. Depending upon where you went to school and which state you are looking to get licensed in, the accounting program at your school may or may not have covered everything. So its not just getting to 150, but rather getting to 150 and meeting the accounting hours requirement in your state as well as addressing any other unique requirements! However, as others have noted above, a masters is not absolutely required if you plan appropriately.
For my son, it would have taken one extra semester just to get to 150 and meet all of the new unique requirements in Illinois. So for him the answer was pretty easy, if he has to go one more semester, why not go two semesters and get a masters? The other big thing to consider is the extra year gives you another shot at on-campus recruiting, which can be a big advantage!
Also, please compare programs! Believe it or not there can be significant variations in the masters programs beyond just accounting vs tax concerntrations. Some MAcc/MSAs are run entirely as cohorts - no electives allowed. Others programs allow only one or two electives, while other programs allow for almost half the credits to be electives which can be outside of accounting - such as finance or other MBA topics. Try to find a program that meets your objectives and fits your pocketbook!
Good luck!
It’s becoming more and more necessary to get the masters degree. It may not be necessary now for you but over the course of a 20-30 year career, you should have the maximum credentials possible or you will be at high risk of being replaced in your 40s by a younger, more educated and cheaper person.
Masters over an associates in another subject is an easy call. Masters.