Accounting (Graduate Program)

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 For information regarding the UNDERGRADUATE PROGRAM, click here. 

Program Overview

The Master of Science in Accounting program at LSU (MS) is designed to provide students with a greater understanding of accounting and business than is possible in an undergraduate program. The MS student will develop superior technical accounting knowledge, strong analytical skills, strong written and oral communication skills, and highly developed interpersonal skills. The program prepares students for careers as professional accountants in public practice, industry, financial institutions, government, and nonprofit organizations. The MS requires 30 hours of non-thesis course work. The program is primarily designed for those with undergraduate preparation in accounting; however, exceptional candidates from other disciplines may be considered. Upon completion of the program, you should have completed Louisiana’s 150-hour educational requirement for the CPA examination.

The accounting doctoral program is designed to prepare doctoral students for successful careers at peer universities or better and to provide them with the skills needed to publish independent research in high quality research journals in accounting. The Department of Accounting is committed to excellence in teaching. Teaching is an integral part of an academic position in accounting and students acquire teaching experience as a part of the doctoral program.

Administration

Admission

Applications and supporting materials for all graduate study must be submitted through the online application site for the LSU Graduate School: www.lsu.edu/gradapply. Official transcripts, official test scores, and other materials which come from third-party sources must be mailed to: Graduate Student Services, 114 West David Boyd Hall, Baton Rouge, LA 70803. These paper documents are stored electronically and departments have access to all materials submitted by and/or on behalf of a student applying to graduate study. For doctoral program applicants, a copy of application materials (including a summary sheet) should be sent (through email or snail mail) to the PhD advisor. Three recommendation letters are required and the applicants should mail the sealed recommendation letters directly to the PhD advisor.

Master’s program

Applications for admission are received and evaluated by the department. Students can be admitted in the fall, spring, or summer semesters. The deadline for submitting an application for consideration into the MS program is March 15 for summer and fall entry and October 15 for spring entry. Students seeking admission must submit satisfactory credentials from previous study, acceptable GMAT scores, and three letters of recommendation. International students whose native language is not English must also submit an acceptable TOEFL or IELTS score.

Admission will be considered by the faculty application committee only after the respective deadlines. If a student does not meet all requirements, he or she may be admitted provisionally. For example, a student may be admitted provisionally to the master’s program if he or she lacks one or two pre-requisites and is working to complete them.

Doctoral program

Applications for admission are received and evaluated by the department; the department PhD committee will start to evaluate all applications around mid-February. Applicants must adhere to the application deadlines established by The Graduate School. Students seeking admission must submit satisfactory credentials from previous study, acceptable GMAT scores, three letters of recommendation, a resume and a personal statement. On the personal statement,  students should provide an assessment of their writing ability and quantitative skills including any training in economics, calculus, statistics and computer programming as well as a personal background and his or her purpose in pursuing a doctorate degree. International students whose native language is not English and who do not have a diploma from a U.S. school when entering into the PhD program must also submit an acceptable TOEFL or IELTS score.

Financial Assistance

Master’s program

Financial support is available for selected graduate students in the form of assistantships. Currently, these assistantships are $5,400 for selected Masters of Accounting students. Students interested in applying for graduate assistantships should contact the MS Program Advisor. To ensure consideration for financial aid, all application materials should be submitted in accordance with deadlines established by the LSU Graduate School.

Doctoral program

Financial support is available for selected graduate students in the form of assistantships. These awards may include tuition exemption. Exceptionally qualified doctoral applicants may be considered for a Board of Regents Graduate Fellowship. These fellowships carry a stipend of $17,000 and full tuition exemption. Students must pay applicable fees.

Graduate Faculty

(check current listings by department by clicking this link)

C. S. Agnes Cheng (M) • Financial reporting, valuation, international
Christine Crawford Cheng (6A) • Tax
D. Larry Crumbley (M) • Taxation, forensic accounting, oil and gas accounting
Dana Hollie (6A) • Financial reporting
Joseph Legoria (M) • Financial reporting, Securities and Exchange Commission and regulatory accounting issues
Carol Liu (6A) • Corporate Governance, Financial Reporting, Disclosure Issues, Capital Markets
Jacquelyn S. Moffitt (M) • Financial accounting, stakeholders
Kenneth J. Reichelt (M) • Financial accounting
Jared Soileau (6A) • Accounting Information Systems
Glenn E. Sumners (M) • Internal auditing
Samuel L. Tiras (M) • Financial reporting, valuation

Degree Programs

Programs

• Accounting, M.S.

• Accounting, Ph.D.

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