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MS Programs: Accountancy

Introduction
Reputation for
Success
ACELAB
Curriculum

Build and sharpen your professional skills in one of the few graduate programs to earn a separate accreditation in accountancy from AACSB International. The distinction means that the Bentley Master of Accountancy (MSA) program fulfills the academic requirement to become a licensed CPA in Massachusetts and many other states, regardless of the student’s previous academic background.

The MSA prepares students to begin or advance in a variety of accounting and business-related fields, with:[read more]

• A high-quality education in all major areas of the field: financial, managerial and tax accounting; auditing; and accounting information systems;

• The latest tools and software, in the Howard A. Winer Accounting Center for Electronic Learning and Business Measurement (ACELAB);

• Strong partnerships with area employers, who participate in campus events, serve as guest speakers in courses, offer internships, and more.

Value Added
The MSA program at Bentley offers an unmatched breadth of accounting courses. Students have maximum choice to focus in the different areas of accounting and to substitute higher level courses for basic core courses as appropriate. The range of other graduate programs at Bentley allows MSA students to broaden their education with courses outside accounting. These courses, taken as electives, let students earn a graduate certificate along with the MSA, in a related area such as fraud and forensic accounting, taxation, financial planning, accounting information systems, or business ethics. For added convenience, students also have maximum choice in terms of scheduling options, which include full-time or part-time study, a summer/summer option, and several courses which can be taken online.

Reputation for Success
Bentley MSA students are heavily recruited on campus by the Big 4 CPA firms; regional and national CPA firms; and state, local and federal government agencies, as well as by leading corporations in New England and beyond. The program’s 30-plus-year and strong alumni network give graduates a built-in advantage in the job market.

In the Howard A. Winer Accounting Center for Electronic Learning and Business Measurement (ACELAB), students gain firsthand experience with sophisticated technologies that are reshaping the accounting profession. Students develop a broad understanding of how information flows though an organization, how financial decisions are made and how accounting relates to other business functions by using software such as Peachtree. Electronic research software prepares students to analyze complex reporting issues. They also gain practical experience with auditing and tax preparation software, report generating applications, data modeling and other professional tools.

Detailed MSA curriculum overview with course descriptions.

Foundation Work

Pre-Program Foundation - 6 credits

PPF 501	Statistics
PPF 502	Economic Environment of the Firm

MSA Curriculum

Core Courses - 21 credits required

AC 611*	Financial Accounting Problems I
AC 612*	Financial Accounting Problems II
AC 621*	Cost Accounting
AC 730	Business Process and Systems Assessment
AC 741	Financial Statement Auditing
AC 750	Federal Income Taxation
AC 793	Professional Accounting Research and Policy Formulation

*Students who have completed comparable coursework may be eligible to substitute electives for these courses.

Elective Courses - 9 credits required

AC 701	Internship in Accounting Practice
AC 713	Advanced Topics in Financial Accounting
AC 714	Business Reporting and Analysis
AC 722	Advanced Topics in Managerial Accounting
AC 731	Advanced AIS: Modeling Effective Accounting Information Systems
AC 742	IT Auditing
AC 744	Internal Auditing
AC 753	Tax Factors in Business Decisions
AC 766	Risk and Performance Measurement
AC 771	Governmental Accounting, Reporting and Auditing
AC 772	Principles of Fraud Investigation
AC 773	Fraud and Forensic Accounting
AC 781	International Dimensions of Accounting