Recommendations for a Masters in Taxation?

[EthanMDFN]

Hello! I recently received my BS in Accounting from Missouri State and was wondering if anyone had any recommendations for MTAX/MST/MT etc. programs. My only hard requirements are online and AACSB, as I would like to start as soon as possible and admittedly have procrastinated applications a bit. Current options that seem appealing to me are Widener (for Taxation and Financial Planning specifically) and St. Johns, though St Johns seems to have "conflicting" information regarding the deadlines. So I was wondering if anyone had experience/recommendations/comments with regard to this type of program. Thanks!

[ss20ts]

Any specific reason for a master's in taxation instead of a master's in accounting? Any plans on becoming a CPA?

[EthanMDFN]

Any specific reason for a master's in taxation instead of a master's in accounting? Any plans on becoming a CPA?

This may sound really dumb but I do plan on going for a Masters in accounting as well. I do plan on going for my CPA but I am in a relatively unique situation (graduated quite a bit early through taking overloads and summer classes, at one point 34 credits in a single semester in which I got a 4.00 so I am not afraid of the load). As a result I feel that getting a "specialist" degree will help me job wise and get the experience for CPA licensure, as well as some other goals. Additionally, there are more accounting programs than taxation programs at the master's level so I am not as worried in that regard, though given how late it is and how close to the spring semester start at almost all schools I may have some trouble in general there.

[bjcheung77]

Basically, I would look into a double major or a Masters that has an accounting concentration or taxation concentration.

[freeloader]

I have attached a chart that I put together a couple of years ago when I was considering masters degrees in tax or accounting degrees with tax concentrations.  The costs have likely increased but the general information should still be good.

The Widener program is interesting, but I would be a bit nervous about it if I didn't already have a job lined up.  It is a VERY common pattern that young tax accountants work a few years and want to transition to wealth management as their focus.  That degree is also very heavy on personal tax with minimal exposure to corporate tax.  If you are interested in Big 4/major regional accounting firms, this degree could raise some red flags.

Worth noting that many accounting firms will pay part or all of the cost of your master's degree.  Some of them also have specific degree programs to which they prefer to send their new staff.  The market for new junior accountants is also pretty tight right now.  You might be better served starting to study for (and pass) the CPA exam.  If you are wanting to work in a 150-hour to sit for the exam state, obviously that is a problem for that plan.

I also think you may find that if you end up with a master's degree in tax, pass the CPA exam, and have a job in tax accounting, the master's degree in accounting will no longer have much utility for you.  If you are in a mid-sized or larger firm, your focus is going to be on tax.  If you are in a smaller firm, you will learn enough GL and auditing stuff on the job (and by studying for the CPA exam), that additional coursework focused on non-tax subjects won't do much for you professionally. 

I ended up selecting UT-Rio Grande Valley.  When I started, the Master of Accountancy program had an online concentration in tax available.  It is still available in person for students in South Texas and the courses are still available online, but the concentration isn't.  I have really enjoyed UTRGV.  Tuition is quite reasonable, courses start every 8 weeks, accounting courses are all taught by on-campus faculty.  I also have taught at the college level before and wanted my courses (including tax courses) to have an ACT/ACCT course number rather than TAX or similar to make it easier to qualify to teach accounting at the college level.  Probably not a consideration for you,  but it was for me.

One final thought: given the job market and given that (it sounds like) you don't have a job, I might lean toward a degree in your state or a nearby state.  You will likely find that the career services folks at St Johns are good at helping students get jobs in New York and perhaps NJ and CT; same for Widener in DE, PA, and perhaps NJ.  That's great if if you live in one of those places or want to move there, but if you are in Missouri or the Midwest, South, the West, etc, they probably won't do much for you.  Employers in St Louis, for instance, aren't going to go to St. Johns (or Widener) looking for new staff.  

Best of luck.  If you have any more questions about degrees or tax accounting as a career, feel free to drop them here.

[EthanMDFN]

That is a very informative screenshot. I did look more into Widener and the course offerings are not too great, to be honest I am not sure how it could even be completed in a year. That is my biggest issue with a lot of these programs, like for a MACC Emporia only seems to offer three out of at least 7 accounting classes in the entire spring semester, the tax programs are even worse with schools like Weber and Akron offering 2/3 out of the 10 each semester. Though, New Haven seems a little better in that regard so I am pivoting towards there at the moment, but I will need to do some more research into the transfer credit before I decide definitively since that may blunt scheduling difficulties some. Potential overloads are another concern as some of the Texas schools which fit quite well with my academic background like UTRGV, ETAMU, TAMUCC seem to have stricter rules on that from what I have read. Academic patience is admittedly not a virtue I have in abundance lol. Also, I feel the dual combination may help me from getting too pigeonholed and also help if/when I want to move further up into the PHD/DBA realm.

     Career wise, I am in a more rural area in MO and the nearest city hub would probably be Springfield, which only has a few corporations and one large accounting firm (Forvis) that I know of. So without commuting 2+ hours daily or moving I will likely be stuck with the small firm/personal/small business side of things. On campus recruiting will not really be an option even if I chose an in-state school and from what I can tell locally has significantly slowed; for example, there was just a simple career fair last semester and a firm had an info desk for the first 2 weeks or so which was supposed to be prime recruiting time but in the spring semester they had on campus interviews and everything. I think I am able to sit for the CPA exam now or will be once I finish another batch of classes (planning to contact the state board soon to confirm), but the work experience requirement scares me since even entry level roles at "1040-mills" like HR Block want previous experience in at least retail/fast food, which I do not have (also not a lot of volunteering opportunities locally). 


I greatly appreciate the response!

[freeloader]

That is a very informative screenshot. I did look more into Widener and the course offerings are not too great, to be honest I am not sure how it could even be completed in a year. That is my biggest issue with a lot of these programs, like for a MACC Emporia only seems to offer three out of at least 7 accounting classes in the entire spring semester, the tax programs are even worse with schools like Weber and Akron offering 2/3 out of the 10 each semester. Though, New Haven seems a little better in that regard so I am pivoting towards there at the moment, but I will need to do some more research into the transfer credit before I decide definitively since that may blunt scheduling difficulties some. Potential overloads are another concern as some of the Texas schools which fit quite well with my academic background like UTRGV, ETAMU, TAMUCC seem to have stricter rules on that from what I have read. Academic patience is admittedly not a virtue I have in abundance lol. Also, I feel the dual combination may help me from getting too pigeonholed and also help if/when I want to move further up into the PHD/DBA realm.

     Career wise, I am in a more rural area in MO and the nearest city hub would probably be Springfield, which only has a few corporations and one large accounting firm (Forvis) that I know of. So without commuting 2+ hours daily or moving I will likely be stuck with the small firm/personal/small business side of things. On campus recruiting will not really be an option even if I chose an in-state school and from what I can tell locally has significantly slowed; for example, there was just a simple career fair last semester and a firm had an info desk for the first 2 weeks or so which was supposed to be prime recruiting time but in the spring semester they had on campus interviews and everything. I think I am able to sit for the CPA exam now or will be once I finish another batch of classes (planning to contact the state board soon to confirm), but the work experience requirement scares me since even entry level roles at "1040-mills" like HR Block want previous experience in at least retail/fast food, which I do not have (also not a lot of volunteering opportunities locally). 


I greatly appreciate the response!

Of course.  Happy to help.  (Hopefully it is helpful...)

A few other thoughts, in no particular order.

You said you don't have much experience.  Have you been a VITA volunteer?  It's how I got my start in tax--more years ago than I care to admit at this point.  Training is available (for free) through the IRS's Link & Learn platform: https://apps.irs.gov/app/vita/index.jsp?level=     If nothing else (and if you haven't done them), they are an easy way to legitimately add another line worth of training to your resume.  If you aren't busy with school, you should be able to complete all of the trainings in a week or so.  It says Advanced is for people who have done returns.  That's true, but go ahead and do it.  With an accounting degree, you will be fine.

You didn't say exactly where you are in Missouri, but perhaps these folks are close by [/url]and would give you the chance to do some real tax returns.  

I haven't done these, but Intuit offers a number of free tax and bookkeeping courses online: https://academy.intuit.com/programs     Evidently they also use these for hiring purposes.  I don't work for them, don't know people who have, etc, so am passing no judgement.  Caveat emptor!

The Enrolled Agent designation doesn't require any experience, justing having a PTIN (preparer tax ID number) and passing the three sections of the Special Enrollment Examination--personal tax, entity tax, and representation and ethics.  It gives you the same representation rights in front of the IRS as a CPA and many state tax agencies allow EA's to represent clients.  Could be something you could pursue while you are working on your master's degree/waiting to start.  I think the average study time is around 250-300 hours total.  

CPA (or passage of the exam sections) and EA are valuable.  They are the type thing that will help you get a job, could be required to keep your job/get promoted, etc.  There are well over a thousand other designations in accounting and finance.  Some have value (especially CFA, CFP, CIA, and CMA) in some settings, but if your future is in tax, CPA is No. 1, EA is No. 2, nothing else really matters (unless you want to go to law school and become a tax attorney).  I wouldn't waste my money on any other certifications or designations.  Free things like the VITA, perhaps Intuit, etc, might be worth your time.

One other random aside: if you are thinking about a "conventional" PhD--meaning you work for say 2 to 5 years and then spend 3-6 years as a full-time PhD student on a university campus, serving as a teaching assistant, graduate assistant, and all the rest--you might consider doing additional coursework in math and/or economics.  While your research would be focused on accounting, many accounting PhD programs draw heavily on economics research methods.  That means you have to take graduate level economics courses as part of the Phd.  That means you need sufficient background in economics and math to be able to complete the graduate courses in economics.  Obviously, if you have a strong background in those subjects, you can disregard that advice.  Picked two of the closer PhD programs to you: University of Missouri expects their accounting PhDs to typically take 15 graduate hours of economics and finance courses:[url= https://business.missouri.edu/programs-a...ccountancy] https://business.missouri.edu/programs-a...ccountancy .   University of Arkansas requires 12:  https://walton.uark.edu/graduate-program...#academics   That's pretty typical.  There are even a few programs, like the University of Kentucky, that have so many courses in economics that their PhD students can, with just a couple of extra courses, complete a master's degree in economics as part of their doctoral studies in accounting.

(sorry for the jinky links)

[HogwartsSchool]

Hello! I recently received my BS in Accounting from Missouri State and was wondering if anyone had any recommendations for MTAX/MST/MT etc. programs. My only hard requirements are online and AACSB, as I would like to start as soon as possible and admittedly have procrastinated applications a bit. Current options that seem appealing to me are Widener (for Taxation and Financial Planning specifically) and St. Johns, though St Johns seems to have "conflicting" information regarding the deadlines. So I was wondering if anyone had experience/recommendations/comments with regard to this type of program. Thanks!

Why Tax, which part of tax do you enjoy? There's no right or wrong answer but curious. You have been probably exposed to 2-3 tax courses when you got your BS in Accounting? 

The reasons I ask. getting a MTAX/MST/MT is going to provide a deep dive into tax accounting but lack any formal tax law education. I would suggest you spend some time researching tax law to understand the differences.

[EthanMDFN]

I have not done VITA as I admittedly did not focus on the career side of things until around June/July, Springfield is about two hours away and I did commute there for a class this past semester so while not ideal, it is definitely doable so I will see about reaching out to them. I thought I mentioned it but looking back apparently I did not, I am studying for the EA at the moment, though I am not sure I will be able to complete it this testing cycle.

Definitely a good call out on the PhD stuff, admittedly I do not have a very strong math background (College algebra was all that was needed for my degree, so may need to touch up on that) and I took both macro and micro econ. Admittedly, my concern with a lot of the doctorate stuff is the admission rates tend to be quite low which scares me a bit (I was sweating when applying to a 79% acceptance rate school lol). I highly doubt I would do well on the GMAT or be able to get a lot of research experience, but since this would be at least a year or two out I can work towards those. So, if I go that route I may not be able to stay local, or have to do a hybrid program (I had a lot of professors do hybrid programs like at Oklahoma State University). I would like to have the option to go into teaching so that is another reason (because even if a doctorate is not required having the previous experience as at least an assistant...) why I would like to go for one. 

Once again thank you for the links! I will definitely be looking more into the programs and the volunteer link!

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Hello! I recently received my BS in Accounting from Missouri State and was wondering if anyone had any recommendations for MTAX/MST/MT etc. programs. My only hard requirements are online and AACSB, as I would like to start as soon as possible and admittedly have procrastinated applications a bit. Current options that seem appealing to me are Widener (for Taxation and Financial Planning specifically) and St. Johns, though St Johns seems to have "conflicting" information regarding the deadlines. So I was wondering if anyone had experience/recommendations/comments with regard to this type of program. Thanks!

Why Tax, which part of tax do you enjoy? There's no right or wrong answer but curious. You have been probably exposed to 2-3 tax courses when you got your BS in Accounting? 

The reasons I ask. getting a MTAX/MST/MT is going to provide a deep dive into tax accounting but lack any formal tax law education. I would suggest you spend some time researching tax law to understand the differences.

Admittedly, for me it is more about what there is demand for locally and also what would allow me to "make a difference", which may sound cliche but I have seen many people I know and a few local businesses get screwed due to improper tax stuff. I only had to take one tax course for my Bachelor's (though a few other classes had dedicated sections for things like payroll tax and such) and I am studying for the EA, but as I said it is not out of pure passion for tax (though I definitely prefer it to audit material) but rather what I feel would work best for me in my current locale. Good call out on the law part of things, from the curriculums I have looked at it seems like there is a decent amount of coverage but I will definitely try to keep an eye out on that end.

Messed up the formatting a little so I may have done the replies wrong in this case...whoops

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[FireMedic_Philosopher]

Ethan,

The Gies Business School at the University of Illinois has a Masters in Accounting. ( 12 months long in person or 18 months if online) Taxation is one of the available concentrations... and they also have several relevant masters level certificates (all of which transfer into the masters) in areas like Analytics, CPA prep, and Taxation.

They also have a separate 9-month in person Masters in Accounting Science, with concentrations in Tax or Finance. 

UIUC is pretty well regarded (#3 for accounting) and the alumni association is not bad for job connections.

https://giesbusiness.illinois.edu/academ...accounting

https://giesonline.illinois.edu/explore-...accounting

https://giesonline.illinois.edu/accounti...rtificates