This educational option was developed to meet the changing state requirements
for becoming a CPA. In recent years many states have begun to alter their
requirements for becoming a CPA. More specifically, there has been a trend
toward requiring 150 credit hours of university study to sit for the CPA
exam. These requirements are usually set by individual state legislatures.
Updated information on individual state passage of 150 hour legislature
should be available at the following website:
http://www.aicpa.org/states/uaa/150chart.htm
The most important aspects of the University's "Combined" degree option are: 1) the possibility of enrolling in graduate courses during your Junior and Senior years, and 2) the modification of the MBA accounting curriculum. Information about the "five year program" can be found on page 188 of the Undergraduate Catalog.
If you are interested in pursuing "early" admission into graduate courses, it is important for you to note that such admission requires a minimum grade point average and satisfaction of the normal MBA admission requirements. The Graduate School policy on minimum grade point averages for early admission to graduate courses can be found in Graduate Catalog.
The modification of the MBA accounting curriculum has increased the choices available to graduate accounting students. The MBA accounting curriculum can be found in the Graduate Catalog.
It should be noted that this early admission to graduate school courses still requires prospective students to follow the normal graduate school application procedure. Information on graduate school application procedures and MBA admission requirements can be found in the graduate catalog. Perhaps the most important aspect of this application process is the requirement that you submit Graduate Management Admission Test (GMAT) results. Accordingly, undergraduate students interested in pursuing this educational option should plan to take the GMAT examination. Application forms for the GMAT examination may be obtained from the University's Graduate School Office (2nd floor of the Estate [behind Loyola Hall]), or by writing to the Educational Testing Service, Box 966, Princeton, NJ 08540, or by visiting the ETS website .
Given all the references to the Graduate Catalog, your first step should probably be obtaining this catalog. A copy of the University of Scranton Graduate Catalog can be obtained from the graduate school. If you are on campus, they are located on the second floor of the ESTATE. If you are currently off campus, the school's address and telephone number is:
The Graduate School University of Scranton 800 Linden Street Scranton, PA 18510-4632 570-941-7600 or 1-800-FON-GRAD
Please note that you can download copies of the University's
undergraduate and graduate catalogs.
(click here
to download a copy of the University's undergraduate and/or graduate catalogs)
If you need assistance along the way, you may find it helpful to talk to either the MBA Director or the MBA Accounting Mentor. The Director of the MBA program is Dr. Wayne Cunningham. Dr. Cunningham is an especially important person in this process, since he can guide you through all of the aforementioned steps and can provide you with all of the appropriate paperwork. His address and telephone number is:
Dr. Wayne Cunningham The University of Scranton 401-C O'Hara Hall Scranton, PA 18510-4602 (570) 941-4043
The MBA Accounting Mentor is Dr. Laura Ellis. Her address and telephone number is:
Dr. Laura Ellis The University of Scranton 408H O'Hara Hall Scranton, PA 18510-4602 (570) 941-7576
I realize that for some students the prospect of adding graduate studies to their current plans may seem daunting. However, for many students the pursuit of this educational option may is an excellent choice. More general information about accounting careers can be found in the links at my homepage. The address is:
http://academic.uofs.edu/faculty/BWC352