[ItPaysTheBills]

Hey all,

First post here.

Long story made short, I have a BBA in Finance and a BBA in Accounting. I have worked for a couple years in industry as an accountant. I’ve decided it is time to get on the ball and move forward if I ever want to live in that deluxe apartment in the sky. I’m planning on picking up the CMA (studying now) and CPA (one I get the required 150 hours…. I’m a lil short).

I’m asking mainly about graduate programs.

What does everyone think of a Master of Accountancy? Does it seem to add value to a potential employee if he already has a BBA in Accting and a couple good certifications?

I’m drawn to the Master of Science in Finance because frankly, finance is much more interesting to me than accounting. Again, does it add value to a potential employee if he already has a BBA in finance? Does a CMA, CPA, work experience as an accountant, and then an MSF potentially make it difficult for a hiring manager to see that I am the shape of the peg that is needed to fill the hole? Would an MSF be valued if I were to look to work in public accting or accting in industry?

Finally, the MBA….

The MBA seems to be the default grad degree to get for those in business. Just before graduation, I had a professor urge me not to get an MBA. He said it is silly for someone with a specialization at the undergrad level to get an MBA. Does this hold true? Is it changed at all if I were to specialize in say finance for the MBA? Is there any value to demonstrating a grasp of another skill set by getting an MBA with a specialization in something like Operations Management, Economics, or Supply Chain Management?

Lastly, how much does accreditation matter? I was told by professors not to look a grad school unless it was AACSB accredited. I wonder, however, if they said this because my school was AACSB accredited. I also know that some academics can be a bit snobby with those sorts of things. Do recruiters care as long as it’s not a University of Basket Weaving Online type school?

Sorry for the long read. Thanks for the help.

[Minimorty]

I've included a few threads below that seem to relevant to your question. My position has been pretty consistent in that I think work experience and professional designations trump academic degrees.

https://www.another71.com/cpa-exam-forum/topic/is-an-mba-worth-it#post-140955

https://www.another71.com/cpa-exam-forum/topic/masters-program-accounting-vs-forensic-accounting

https://www.another71.com/cpa-exam-forum/topic/masters-in-accounting-or-mba#post-140441

[Anonymous]

Don't go for an MBA unless

* you go to a top Business school OR

* you get a scholarship/fellowship/tuition waiver/teaching assistantship/research assistantship OR

* Your employer pays for tuition

Don't take out student loans. If you can't pay for it with above, then go cheap – go to the cheapest program you can.

Remember the rule: Top school or cheap (defined as someone else paid for it or lowest out of pocket cost to you)

And yes, if you have a choice, go to a AACSB accredited school.

[Mayo]

What are your goals? Each degree has different pros ad cons.

Also, like Minimorty metioned, experience > certifications or degrees. Only exception is when the certificate is needed to do certain things ( e.g. Sign off on f/s and the CPA) or when the degree is from a top 10 university.

Mayo, BBA, Macc

[Anonymous]

IMHO, since you have two degrees, one in Finance and one in Accounting, you should go for an MBA….especially if you are going to have your CPA.

IMHO, the two degrees, an MBA with a specialization in Finance, and a CPA is the bomb. We don't get CPA's and MBA's in order to get a job, we get them to extend our range in our careers. Think about it this way, A Masters in Accounting is great but what if your organization is looking for someone who is strategic in thought process….what would you do? Probably, you would choose the MBA because it is a broader range of education than one specializing in Accounting.

If I don't die trying, I will add the CPA to my other credential and then will have MBA, EA, CPA behind my name and then I am DONE.

[ItPaysTheBills]

Thanks for the replies gents.

My goals:

I really don't know. I love finance, and I kind of like accounting. For the next few years I don't plan to live in a big city, so I feel as though the job opportunities are better for me on the accounting side than the finance side — at least in the near term. Maybe my view is a little skewed on this though because I planned for a career in banking as I approached the completion of my finance degree, but was still working at an auto parts store 6 months after graduation until I landed my accounting job.

I feel as though an accounting background would help me ascend to a position such as CFO, so I am plugging away at certs for that. Since I am more or less happy doing either finance or accounting, I just want to best position myself to move up in my career. Even though I like finance better than accounting, I'd much rather make 125k some day working as a controller or manager of accounting for a big company than making 100k as a senior financial analyst for the same said company.

I think you give wise advice on the MBA indicating a more strategic thinking capability, but I am worried that that degree is so played out in that some doctors, lawyers, accountants, financial types, contractors, nurses, entrepreneurs, etc, all end up with MBAs and can shout “I KNOW BUSINESS!” as loud as I could, while a MAcc or MSF differentiates me to the point that all I have to do is whisper, “No really, I know finance.” Am I wrong or misguided here?

Thanks again.

[Mayo]

Well…it depends. Most people get an MBA to help them switch careers. Be it accounting to finance, biology to marketing, etc.

It includes tons of the same subjects as aN undergrad in business, albeit with slightly different context due to the experience of most MBA students. Some let you pick a specialization and some are generic.

Others get an MBA because they only have a bachelir's, their company requires a master's for a promotion, and the MBA Is a valued and recognized designation. Enter the executive MBA.

However, both situations are different. In the second, only the actual degree matters and there's almost no thought to the rank or what have you of the school.

The first type of candidate on the ther hand, derives most of his/her value from the rank or prestige of the university and thevast network of alumni and fellow students. Why? Because getting into a top MBA program is as tough a vetting process as there is. Herego, the hiring manager can be assured that they're getting a well qualified person who has a growing network he/she can utilize in the future for the benefit of the firm.

So to answer your question…don't go MBA Unless you can get into a good program. It doesn't have to be top 10, but top 25 should be your minimum goal due to the crappiness of the economy and the finance job market.

Other desgnations to look at are CFA or ASA – business valuation.

Mayo, BBA, Macc

[ItPaysTheBills]

Mayo recommends not getting an MBA unless I can get a good one, while others recommend going cheap.

Well…. I found CHEAP. Wayne State College is in Nebraska, it's ranked #98 out of maybe 160 among Midwest Regional Universities, is regionally accredited, and has a 30 hour online MBA program. It costs SEVEN THOUSAND FIVE HUNDRED DOLLARS. Yes, 7500, plus books, for the entire program. It seems to be by no means a good school, but geez it is CHEAP if all I want to do is put a master's on my resume / get a couple other classes I need for the CPA requirement.

For anyone that's curious, I looked at a lot of schools and found that the University of North Dakota and Mississippi State are both AACSB accredited and can be had for 12 or 13k. These seem like better “cheap” options.

I've also across the MAcc and a Master of Science in Applied Economics with a concentration in Financial Economics at Georgia Southern. Georgia Southern is AACSB accredited and I could get both degrees in 51 hours (taking one set of electives in the core for the other) and could have both for a little over 20 grand. I figure the MAcc couldn't hurt for help with the CPA and demonstrating some more accounting proficiency, and the Applied Econ in Financial Econ would maybe display some good analysis skills.

Thoughts?

Also… for anyone that is interested… Harvard (yes, THE Harvard) has a Strategic Management Graduate Certificate that can be earned online with 20 credit hours and 10 thousand dollars. I'm a little curious what “Graduate Certificate: Strategic Management / Harvard University” would do for my resume.

[katiekanton]

@ItPaysTheBills

Are all of these options online?

AUD - 88
FAR - 90
REG - 85
BEC - 88

[ItPaysTheBills]

Yes….. They are all online. That's the only option I have at the moment. I've been pretty happy with what I've come across in just online schools.

[kmwgrace]

I'm a live student at Mississippi State. I don't know about the online program but the in-person MTX (Master of Taxation) program is top-notch. The instructors *really* know their stuff and the grading is no joke – you either learn or you don't pass, no one skates by. I had switched disciplines into Education when I first moved here and the grading over there was very different – I had a 4.0 with not a whole lot of effort. My first semester back into Accounting, I got my first B at MSU. 😛

If you end up down here, let me know!

~ Kate... MTX!
CPA exam on hold while I homeschool my 6 year old!

[ItPaysTheBills]

Thanks for the personal experience perspective Grace.

I thought I'd add for everyone:

I've been researching HARD CORE the last week on business schools.

Whatever I do, I'm going to have to do online. I looked into American B-schools, and I found what was expected — top B-schools are EXPENSIVE. I was getting pretty excited about some of the super cheap programs like Wayne State because I was going to be able to put some cash from my pocket from the GI Bill while getting the degree.

…..and then I stumbled across distance learning programs in the UK.

The Imperial College of London is ranked by US News as the #6 university in the world , tucked just behind Oxford at #5 but above UPenn, Columbia, Stanford, Princeton, Cornell, etc. Basically, only Cambridge, MIT, Harvard, Yale, and Oxford beat it. Their Global MBA can be had for about $38,000 USD and about 3 weeks of total residency.

Manchester is also up there: $30k MBA plus some trips to one of their international centers (Miami in the US). The overall University is ranking 29 in the world by US News. It's B-school is up there too.

Heriot – Watt's Edinburgh Biz-School, Warwick, Reading, and Durham are all high quality schools. Some of those will only charge you less than $25k.

I may be brushing up on my writing in the Queen's English, especially if I could get accepted to Manchester.

[Anonymous]

Go and live your passion. Choose what you like the most, which is finance, right?

[nebraska]

@itpaysthebills Wayne state is good for certain degrees, but an MBA is not one of them. Don't waste your money…it's only $7500 for a reason.

REG (08/2011) - 73 (2/2012) - 72
AUD (08/2011) - 73 (1/2012) - 86
FAR (11/2011) - 79
BEC (11/2011) - 79

[jjm1181]

You could go to an online school that has a good reputation. Indiana, Florida, Arizona State, etc. This will allow you to work and still get that MBA or whatever. I went to Indiana University and got my MBA and MSF in 2.5 years while online. It's considered a top 20 MBA school and I was able to work and advance while getting these degrees. Of course my employer paid for the tuition so the cost was not an issue.

I like your idea of Georgia Southern.

I am also intrigued by the Harvard certificate. Just having Harvard on the resume should mean something.

B 79
A 75
R 78
F 85

[heatmiser]

Short and simple-

I have a MAcc and will soon go for my MBA once I get done with the CFE Exam (already finished the CPA).

My opinion = get the MAcc to be a Controller in the finance division and CPA; get the MBA to be the Controller's boss once you CFO/CEO leaves!

2011 CPA Exam Graduate

[Author]

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