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Accounting
Dr. Paul Copley, Director, School of Accounting
Dr. Nancy Nichols, Director, M.S. in Accounting
Phone: (540) 568-3081
Web site: http://www.jmu.edu/accounting/MSA.shtml
Professors
C. Baril, P. Copley, D. Fordham, A. Gabbin, D. Riordan, M. Riordan, T. Louwers
Associate Professors
N. Nichols, R. Richardson
Assistant Professors
J. Briggs, W. Vandenberg
Admission Criteria and Degree Requirements
Admission is open to individuals with a baccalaureate degree in accounting, business or any non-business discipline.
Either the Graduate Management Admissions Test or successful completion of all four parts of the CPA exam is required for admission to the M.S. program. Prerequisites are based on the background and previous training of the student.
More information on general admission requirements is available from the College of Graduate and Outreach Programs Web site at http://www.jmu.edu/cgop/.
Prerequisites
All students must be proficient with a spreadsheet program and have the following courses (or their equivalent) prior to starting M.S. course work.
Accounting Courses
- Auditing
- Cost Accounting
- Federal Income Tax Accounting
- Intermediate Accounting I
- Intermediate Accounting II
Business Courses
- Business Law
- Macro Economics
- Managerial Finance
- Micro Economics
- Organizational Behavior
- Principles of Management
- Statistics
For students without business undergraduate courses, the completion of five courses offered by JMU over the Internet will fulfill the business course prerequisite. Each course is the equivalent of three credit hours.
MBA 501. Management and Organization Behavior
MBA 502. Statistics and Management Science
MBA 504. Managerial Finance
MBA 505. Foundations of Economics
MBA 506. Legal Environment of Business
Each course is offered three times a year and is 100 percent self-paced.
Mission
The mission of the School of Accounting’s Master of Science program is to provide a strong regional presence for advanced professional education that prepares students for success in the accounting profession by strengthening the students’ technical expertise, enhancing their understanding of professional responsibility, and improving their business skills necessary to compete in today’s complex and ever changing business environment.
The Graduate Accounting program leads to the Master of Science in Accounting (M.S.) degree. The primary goal of the M.S. program is to prepare business and non-business majors for entry into the public accounting profession. It serves as the “fifth” year in preparing students for the 150 hours of postsecondary education required for AICPA membership and required (or scheduled to be required) to become a certified public accountant in most jurisdictions.
M.S. in Accounting Program
James Madison University offers an on-campus program tailored for individuals who prefer a traditional full-time program of study. The on-campus program is also available on a part-time basis.
Master of Science Degree in Accounting
The course work for the M.S. program consists of a common core and electives with a thesis option. Thirty credit hours must be taken at the 600 level.
M.S. in Accounting
| Minimum Core Requirements1 | Credit Hours |
|---|---|
| ACTG 675. Accounting Theory or ACTG 625. Tax Research2 | 3 |
| Any 600-level finance course (approved by director) | 3 |
| Accounting electives (600 level) | 15 |
| Electives (500 or 600 level)3 | 9 |
| 30 | |
| 1 Electives are chosen with the approval of the program director. Prerequisites must be met before taking 600-level courses. 2 This course is considered the capstone in the program. Successful completion of one of the two courses with a “B” or better is required. 3 Two elective must be outside of accounting. |
|
Concentrations
The Accounting program offers two specialty concentrations, the Accounting Informations Systems (AIS) concentration and the Taxation concentration.
Accounting Information Systems
The AIS concentration requires the student to select computer or technology-related courses from the accounting and other elective courses indicated below. These courses offer the student the opportunity to gain more expertise and proficiency in areas such as network design and construction, telecommunications, systems development and programming, advanced database design, expert systems, and information security. Students completing the AIS concentration are in very high demand by employers.
AIS Concentration
| Required Courses | Credit Hours |
|---|---|
| ACTG 640. Accounting Information Technology | 3 |
| ACTG 691. Advanced Accounting Systems | 3 |
| MBA 652. Technology Enhanced Decision Making | 15 |
| 9 | |
Course Offerings
Accounting
ACTG 625. Tax Research and Strategy. 3 credits.
Provides the student with a working knowledge of tax research methodology and the technology utilized by tax professionals. Case-based to provide experience in dealing with unstructured situations encountered in professional tax practice. Both problem identification and resolution are emphasized. Because this is a capstone course, a grade of “B” or better is required in this course for successful completion of the M.S.A. program with a tax concentration. Prerequisite: Master of Science student or permission of the instructor.
ACTG 627. Advanced Taxation of Business Entities I. 3 credits.
Considers federal tax consequences across business entities, including sole proprietorships, partnerships, corporations electing “S” status and corporations. Prerequisite: Master of Science student or permission of instructor.
ACTG 628. Advanced Taxation of Business Entities II. 3 credits.
Continuation of ACTG 627 dealing with more in-depth tax issues involving partnerships, corporations and “S” corporations. Potential topics include distributions, liquidations, reorganizations and affiliations. Emphasizes problem identification, tax treatment and tax planning strategies. Prerequisite: ACTG 627.
ACTG 629. Selected Topics in Taxation. 1-3 credits.
Seminar on tax topics of current interest in specialized areas. Topics may include international taxation, deferred compensation, problems of closely-held businesses, estate planning and taxation of trusts, and new developments. May be repeated to a maximum of six credit hours for different topic areas. Prerequisite: Master of Science student or permission of the instructor.
ACTG 630. Seminar in International Accounting. 1-3 credits.
Designed to develop a fundamental knowledge of the assumptions, environmental considerations and techniques underlying the collection and reporting of financial information by entities in other countries. Prerequisite: Master of Science student or permission of instructor.
ACTG 640. Accounting Information Technology. 3 credits.
In-depth coverage of modern technology used in the accumulation, reporting and analysis of accounting data. This course covers modern computing hardware, telecommunications, networking and intermediate systems design concepts. Also provides an introduction to information security. Prerequisite: Master of Science student or permission of instructor.
ACTG 645. Advanced Accounting and Reporting. 1-3 credits.
Focuses on the development and use of financial information as it relates to business combinations, intercompany transactions and statements denominated in foreign currencies. Prerequisite: Master of Science student or permission of instructor.
