Hello!
I am currently working towards my BS in accounting at Binghamton University. I really do like the school and I’ve had positive interactions with recruiters - I am as positive as I reasonably can be that I will get offers from Big 4 firms upon graduation.
However, I am unsure what I should do for my MS. Binghamton offers a five-year “accelerated” program for MS in Accounting, which was my initial plan (complete in 4 years total). My goal is to go Big 4, but I am certain that I want to go into taxation (as opposed to audit or advisory). Would it be in my best interest to pursue an MS in Taxation at another school (e.g. Albany, Baruch) instead, or do the benefits of staying at the same school (same recruiters, etc.) outweigh the benefits of a more specialized program? Also, do you know any specific schools that have good / reasonably priced MS in Taxation programs?
Thank you for your time!
Do some legwork at Binghamton first. Can you take enough tax electives to make the MS in Accounting there into a tax oriented program? Ask career placement if people get hired into tax departments out of the MS Accounting program. When you interview for internships, ask advice for getting into their tax department as well.
I know Notre Dame has a great MS Accounting program with a tax track (my S went there). It is expensive but they give some scholarships.
Thank you for taking the time to reply!
Seconding above advice. A huge part of recruitment is based on GPA and for tax, I used to talk about or mention to tax recruiters or interviewers what tax course I was taking. My university let me take an advanced tax course as sn undergrad, usually most of the students were grad students, but it showed me how their MST would be like. Assuming you’ve taken audit course(s) required and prefer tax, look into the MST or integration of tax electives into the master of accounting. School brand, where you want to work after graduation, are all factors in the decision for where to attend grad school.