New Executive Master’s of Accounting program comes to USU this summer
The Jon M. Huntsman School of Business will be launching a new Executive Master of Accounting (EMAcc) program set to begin June 2016. Similar to an Executive Masters of Business Administration, the program is tailored to complement a business professional’s career, rather than delay or interrupt it.
Dr. Nate Stephens, an associate professor of accounting, is the director of the new program. “This is a pioneering effort. I don’t know of any other programs that are just like this,” he said. Stephens says it was Larry Walther, Head of the School of Accountancy, who originally had the idea.
“We started to ask around. We had conversations with professionals in the work force and community, local businesses, and the advisory board for the School of Accountancy. All of them confirmed that there was a need,” Stephens said.
In many states, a student must have taken graduate-level accounting classes to obtain their licensure as a Certified Public Accountant (CPA). People who only have a bachelor’s degree in accounting can still work as an accountant, but many higher-level and more advanced accounting jobs require the CPA license.
Someone who accepts an accounting position with just a bachelor’s degree may reach a ceiling in their career without a master’s. This program allows people to earn their master’s degree without quitting their job to go to school full-time. Bonnie Villarreal, director of the current Master of Accounting (MAcc) program, said that for many professionals, a normal MAcc just isn’t practical.
“For those who may enter the job market, and then decide that they need (their MAcc), the EMacc will give them an efficient way to come back to school without making the sacrifice of a full-time commitment,” she said.
The program is structured so that a cohort of students all take classes online together, and meet face-to-face on campus for a total of five weeks throughout the year. “The networking opportunity is just great, because you’ve got 20-25 people that you can call upon for the rest of your career to look for job opportunities, to bounce ideas off of, and to work with,” Stephens said.
The unique structure and design of the program makes it likely to attract professionals nation-wide. “I think that it’s an opportunity for Utah State to get our brand out there across the country, and also an opportunity to deliver a top-notch, world-class education for people who … need this degree and accounting knowledge,” Stephens said.
Professors will come from around the country too. “The courses are overseen by faculty here at Utah State, but they’re not necessarily all taught by Utah State faculty. We actually have recruited some adjuncts from around the country, as well as guest speakers,” Stephens said.
Those running the program want to bring in the best in the field to teach for the program.
“In the EMacc, we’re teaching … all the stuff that people at high levels of companies need to know, stuff they’re not going to get even in a traditional MAcc. We’re kind of even going beyond the it,” Stephens said. “They’re learning from experts at the top of the profession.” The program will incorporate the professional experience of the students, the professors and the guest lectures into the curriculum.
Mitchell Bruce is a USU junior who will begin coursework for his MAcc. “I think the new EMAcc program is a fantastic idea. It’s a great opportunity to receive a master’s.” Bruce, like most USU undergraduates who study accounting, will earn his bachelor’s and master’s concurrently over five years in the Professional Accounting (PAcc) program.
Villarreal says the EMAcc program is serving a different audience than the traditional master’s program, and that the two will complement each other nicely. “I don’t think that it will dilute the efforts of the regular PAcc program, and as professionals come back, the experience they have in the workplace will make it a great program,” she said.
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