[Sarah]

I am set to graduate from my undergraduate Accounting program in May ’15. I’m beginning my GMAT studies during Winter break and aiming to graduate with a GPA in the range of 3.4-3.6. Can anyone enlighten me on the potential benefits of earning an AACSB (or other business/accounting related accreditation) accredited MAcc versus earning a degree that is just regionally accredited? I am really leaning towards regionally accredited to save money and time, but of course I want to make the right choice. If it matters, I am looking at UMUC for my MAcc.

AUD - 8/3/16
FAR - 11/17/16
BEC - January 2017
REG - March 2017

North Carolina

[soyanks]

In the short run, you should only worry about the following:

1) Would the MAcc program help you meet your state's 150 credit requirement, and

2) (Unless you have a job offer lined up) How is the school's OCR recruiting for public accounting and other opportunities.

In the long run, most employers and most people are not aware whether a school is AACSB certified or not. They will reply more on the school's brand reputation. Overall, CPA Certification > Whether a school is AACSB certified or not.

FAR - 86
REG - 85
BEC - 90
AUD - 84

[juuustin]

I have no idea about the MAcc program, but I went to UMUC online to get my Bachelor's in Accounting (2nd degree) and I thought it was a pretty good program. You definitely have to be willing to learn by reading a lot, but the professors are pretty good and willing to help. There is very little on-campus recruiting to speak of, unfortunately, but the fact that it is regionally accredited vs. AACSB didn't mean anything to the Big 4 firm that hired me shortly after graduating.

MD Candidate: 10/1/14

FAR - 87 (11/23/14)
REG - 87 (1/30/15)
BEC - 89 (4/19/15)
AUD - 98 (5/30/15)

Ethics - 100

Experience - In Progress!

[Anonymous]

I think that part of the AACSB accredation is that the program requirements fit CPA requirements. If you have an AACSB undergrad, you should be able to take 30 credits in glassblowing. You could make yourself a nice little water pipe or something instead of taking more accounting.

If you majored in accounting for your undergrad, a masters in accounting really doesn't add much value to your employablility. You'd be better off in the job market if you got an MST (if you want to do tax). You'd be better off financially (less student loans) if you take your last thirty at a community college. You could walk away with that previously mentioned water pipe as well.

These Masters in Financial Accounting programs are a cash grab by universities.

I agree with soyanks about the “brand” and all, but generally speaking, the AACSB accredited schools have better brands (at least where I am). Regionally accredited schools near me are like Phoenix and Strayer. Those resumes go right in the trash can.

Disclaimer: Ivy League education plays by its own rules. The Ivys “business” undergrad is in economics (I think they give undergrads a BA vs a BS) and is meant to be followed by a MBA (again, a real MBA- not University of Phoenix Online).

[Sarah]

Thanks everyone. I am not sure if the state I will certify in will have the 150 credit rule for testing. My husband is a Marine, and we still have another year and a half until he separates from the military. We will move wherever the job offers lie for him. I just want to make sure I am prepared to test with the 150 credits, if needed.

I am currently going to UMUC for my undergrad, too. Absolutely no OCR as far as I know- I am living in Okinawa and taking online classes, anyway.

Thanks for all of your advice. I will probably take the GMAT and just go from there.

AUD - 8/3/16
FAR - 11/17/16
BEC - January 2017
REG - March 2017

North Carolina

[Dog pounder1977]

Hi Sarah. Just thought I would throw my $.02 in. I was in a similar predicament as you, concerned about which graduate program to pursue, but honestly, it really does not matter because accreditation is just ONE of MANY factors that contribute to getting hired. I got hired with my online undergraduate accounting degree from Post University and will get my MAcc from them as well to meet the 150 cr hr req. (I am 23 yrs old). My CPA license is the only thing I am concerned about. It is good to seek other opinions from the internet. However, be mindful of the fact the internet can be your best and worst friend because you may read something that may motivate you, but then you may also read something else someone writes that will quickly discourage you like someone saying, “As an employer, I would throw a regionally accredited MAcc degree in the trash,”.

I say to them that is what YOU would do but not the same opinion hundreds of other employers possess. And if anyone wants to disagree, I contacted the Big 4 firm out here out of curiosity, and personally spoke with the CPA responsible for hiring. She clearly stated how GPA's, school recognition and accreditation, are only contributing factors to assess a candidate NOT determining factors to guarantee employment. Moreover, she discussed with me for almost a half hour how in the past, the firm has hired a variety of candidates from those with absolutely no background in accounting, worked as cooks in restaraunts, and attended local community colleges with GPA's between (2.9-3.1). But they possessed room for potential growth, desired to become CPA's, and worked hard to get that degree while working a full time job. Those are the more desired candidates, not just someone who has an AACSB degree or Harvard degree. Not only knowing your accounting material to pass a test but MASTERING it to the point where you damn near memorized the entire book is what truly matters.

Being in Navy recruiting, I had a young guy come in the office who was a recent accounting grad from North Dakota State University. His current occupation was doing taxes in which he stated he hated it. Just being funny, I whipped out one of my ACC 100 accounting books and simply tested him on basic accounting principles. To my surprise, the guy remembered absolutely nothing and only knew to debit an asset and credit O/E and liabilities. Well Duh?!?! But online forums and blogs are telling me THAT guy is more marketable than I am because his accounting degree is AACSB accredited and mine is only regionally but he doesn't even know a damn thing about simple depreciation methods, contra asset accounts, purchasing inventory, A/R, A/P, or what a current ratio is or even how to calculate gross profit percentage? Again, basic stuff any accounting student should know especially if you have JUST graduated from a famous AACSB accredited school!

My advice to you is do whatever you feel will satisfy the 150 cr req and get that CPA license. Put it this way, would you rather waste time studying for a GMAT/GRE test very similar in concepts and arithematics to the ACT/SAT that will not help you on your CPA exam and is only to assist you in getting accepted by the university and then have to turn around and study even more for the MAcc program while racking up tons of debt, or would you rather take that precious would be GMAT studying time and direct that towards your CPA exam? Knowing Microsoft Excel formulas is also important as my accounting manager has asked me numerous times to create a spreadsheet for her using formulas that calculate payroll.

In my humble opinion,

CPA & Regionally Accredited MAcc all day, any day >>> GMAT/GRE & AACSB.

One day I will face that exam.

[Dog pounder1977]

Simply put, an AACSB degree vs regionally accredited is like this:

A new 2013 Mercedes Benz is an AACSB degree. It is an expensive, popular brand of a car that will represent state schools & big name universities in this example. A used 2005 Nissan Altima with 80,000 miles is the regionally accredited degree. It is more affordable, but less popular and will represent community colleges, online universities, and regionally accredited schools in this example. From the buyer's perspective (student/employer), either of these vehicles will accomplish traveling needs (satisfying 150 cr. hrs/getting CPA eligible), but which has a higher possibility of breaking down (less marketable/competitive)? Well the Mercedes is expensive (tuition), popular (brand recognition), and is known to last longer (greater CHANCE of getting hired). But does not guarantee it will not break down (guarantee employment/getting hired) and will still require routine maintenance but is more expensive (paying back loans).

The Nissan Altima (regionally accredited/online school) is more affordable (low tuition), less popular (brand recognition), but has a greater chance of breaking down (less competitive). If someone (employers) needed a ride to work in a snow storm and see you driving in the Benz (your resume with AACSB degree) they may be more open to request a ride (give you an interview) and ASSUME your car is reliable in the storm because of the brand (the student who knew nothing in my Navy office, but had an AACSB degree). If they see you driving in the Altima missing a headlight (regionally accredited/online school) they may be more reluctant to ask for a ride in the storm (offer you an interview). But if given a chance, either vehicle will still get you to meet the end traveling goal to get to work (getting CPA eligible). I hate to put a harsh illustration on the Altima as it is a good car and make the Benz appear like the best vehicle, but that is exactly how people label regionally accredited schools vs AACSB. I hope that helps you in your decision.

One day I will face that exam.

[SinCityAuditor]

I'm sorry, but this analogy is way off. Ivy League = Benz, state schools = Nissan, and for-profit online schools = DeLorean.

It's great that you got a Big 4 job with an online degree, but that makes you the exception rather than the rule. I would bet most of your classmates weren't able to land a job in public accounting, unless you have statistics to show otherwise. You can do it, but you will need work twice as hard since you miss out on a huge amount of recruiting resources in addition to the stigma associated with online degrees.

[Anonymous]

I enjoyed reading the Mercedes/Altima analogy and tend to agree with it, @lilperk09. 🙂 That being said, I can offer somewhat of a unique perspective in that I was initially enrolled in a MAcc program at an AACSB university but later transferred to an online, regionally accredited MSA program. To be honest, while the MAcc classes were on campus and were taught exclusively by PhD/CPA professors, I was far from impressed with the quality of the material being presented as well as the effectiveness of the teaching methods of the professors. I like a class that challenges me and the MAcc classes I took didn't even require regular attendance to achieve a decent score.

However, my online MSA program turned out to be much more difficult than I had anticipated and by far exceeded both my expectations and what I was learning in the MAcc program. I admit I transferred to the program with the primary motivation of it being “easier” in terms of the number of hours put in for each class every day (I was totaling 5+ hours each day just between the commute and class length itself with the MAcc classes and went 4 evenings a week). And for the most part it was because I had the ability to do all of my coursework and studying at home or during lunch at work and didn't have to worry about a scheduled time for each class anymore. But the material was significantly more challenging than the material in my MAcc classes and required projects with extensive research as opposed to just MCQ tests.

It's for that reason that when we're interviewing and I see a resume with an online university I treat it the same as I would an AACSB university. For my firm, relevant experience and a CPA license are the first things we look at and the only schools we're leery of are the for-profit schools.

[jaredo155]

I feel the other posters have done a good job of covering the different opinions that exist on this topic, but important to remember is the fact that there are “rules” and “exceptions”. If you are exceptional then you don't have to follow the rule, but the general rule is that AACSB institutions are viewed as superior to solely Regionally accredited institutions. Are there professors and students who are better or worse at both, of course there are, but again there are exceptions and the rule.

Something that no one else has really touched on here, is the fact that Regional accreditation is a completely separate concept and not in place of AACSB. All AACSB accredited institutions in the United States are also Regionally accredited, but not all Regionally accredited institutions are AACSB accredited. The accreditation that is typically looked down upon is National accreditation not Regional, and I am relatively certain that all states accept any applicable credits from any regionally accredited institution in regards to the CPA exam.

AUD - 2/2013 - Passed!
BEC - 5/2013 - Passed!
FAR - 8/2013 - Passed!
REG - 11/2013 - Passed!
"Do or do not, there is no try." - Yoda

[Dog pounder1977]

@SinCityAuditor) I agree that maybe I may have been the exception but the hiring decision was not primarily based off my degree. As I stated in my previous post, regarding the conversation with CPA hiring manager, there were a number of factors that contributed to employment. I believe that my age was also in my favor as retirement and pensions are becoming more expensive for businesses with older employees. Additionally, as technological advances increase, accounting systems and programs become more complex simultaneously and require additional training (additional costs to businesses) for older employees. Students this day in age are growing up in this technologically advanced era and are leaving school equipped with those IT skills giving them a competitive advantage over the more senior adults.

By myself having minimal actual experience in public accounting, but minoring in computer science and my previous occupation in the military being somewhat similar to managerial accounting, that gave me very little room to negotiate salary when that topic came up. Therefore, I knew I had the job, but salary was a battle I could not win and resulted in myself submitting to entry level pay (which is fine for now). However, once I obtain my CPA (regardless of what school I choose), it will give me that much needed leverage to determine what my salary will be which is why I stated that is more important than being concerned about accreditation. You are right that I lack statistical facts to prove that accreditation does not matter to employers but I believe you missed the entire point of my post which was merely to take whichever route that would result in Sarah reaching the end objective; satisfying the 150 cr. hr. req. to become CPA eligible. I appreciate your feedback.

One day I will face that exam.

[Dog pounder1977]

@Amandilee) thanks for your feedback. All I am saying is that the CPA is more important than accreditation, similar to how you stated CPA license and experience are the first things your firm looks for. If one lacks both of these, then that is where more emphasis will be placed upon the school attended and accreditation. However, if you apply to the position already equipped with the CPA cert and experience, then there is little to no reason to be denied an opportunity of employment because of your “Nissan Altima” degree. Also, good luck on your upcoming FAR exam. I love when you guys post your results because it motivates me to keep pushing everyday and one day (hopefully 2017) be able to post mine.

One day I will face that exam.

[Anonymous]

Sarah – Both my undergrad finance (Marquette) and MBA (Marist) are from AACSB schools, but my 24 hours of accounting are from Post University since they give veterans 50% off (I think spouses too!). There are many more distance learning options that are AACSB since I completed my MBA in 2003. Even back then UMUC was one of the best options for military overseas. When I started my MBA I was stationed in Germany, and I chose an east coast brick and mortar school with an online program, since I planned on heading back to the east coast after Germany. My MBA doesn't look like an online school, since I was living in NJ at graduation from a NY school. I wouldn't bother with the Macc, as if you want to leave accounting someday you will still need the MBA.

[Sarah]

I thought I'd update my post and where I am now, 5 months later….

In April, with exactly 12 months left on his contract, my husband received orders to North Carolina. We have since moved there, and I followed through with my plans of graduating in May. I have applied to Auburn University's online Graduate Certificate in Accounting to gain an extra 18 credit hours towards a 150-credit hour requirement. I should receive an answer on my application by the end of this week. I chose this program for several reasons:

1. It has the AACSB accreditation.
2. No GMAT required.
3. The program allows students to matriculate into the MAcc program with 4 classes remaining and, again, with no GMAT requirement.
4. I was impressed (from the information I was able to gather/see online) with the instruction methods and program curriculum. Classes offered through the certification program are also offered through the MAcc, and in-class lectures can be recorded and watched later.

The program itself doesn't fulfill the entire 150-credit hour requirement for me, so I will have to take additional classes later. I may or may not matriculate into the MAcc depending on my financial ability in the future. I am unable to use FAFSA since the program is non-degree seeking, which is a bummer.

I am also able to sit for the CPA exam while in NC since I meet the state's 120-credit hour requirement for testing. I have applied for a few jobs with no luck so far, but would not be dissatisfied if I could leave NC with my CPA test credits and most of the 150-credit hours completed. I will work on employment requirement later.

I really appreciate all the feedback from before. I realized there isn't an absolute answer to my original question (AACSB vs. non-AACBS), but I believe I am doing what I can to accomplish the ultimate goal.

-Sarah

AUD - 8/3/16
FAR - 11/17/16
BEC - January 2017
REG - March 2017

North Carolina

[ZCPA2]

I'm not sure people here seem to understand what regional accreditation is. There are six major regional accrediting bodies in the US. Regional accreditation is a must have for all “real” colleges and universities. When you hear of a college being “unaccredited”, it's because they lack regional accreditation.

AACSB accreditation is a business and/or accounting accreditation. It means that a certain percentage of the business school's faculty graduated from other AACSB accredited schools and are actively engaged in business research. All AACSB accredited schools in the US also have regional accreditation, but not all regionally accredited schools have AACSB accreditation. AACSB is like a seal of approval for business programs, and the large firms tend to recruit alumni of these particular schools first.

I don't think there is a single state accountancy board that requires AACSB accreditation to meet the state's education requirements to become licensed. Regional accreditation is fine in this regard. However, if you want the best recruiting opportunities, stick with AACSB accreditation.

[Sarah]

AUD - 8/3/16
FAR - 11/17/16
BEC - January 2017
REG - March 2017

North Carolina

[Author]

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