This degree is administered by the Office of Graduate Studies through the faculty of the School of Business.
Admission Requirements
The Master of Professional Accountancy (MPA) program admits students who have completed a baccalaureate degree in accounting, business or any other undergraduate field and students who are currently pursuing a BBA in accounting at UT Permian Basin. Admission is based on an accounting GPA of at least 3.0
*GMAT requirement may be waived for applicants with a cumulative undergraduate GPA of 3.00 and above or a GPA of 3.00 and above in the last 60 hours in the undergraduate degree from an accredited university.
Regular Admission Status
- Bachelor's Degree from an accredited college or university
- GPA of 3.00 or better on a 4.0 scale in the undergraduate degree
Conditional Admission Status
- Bachelor's Degree from an accredited college or university
- GPA between 2.99 - 2.5 on a 4.0 scale in the undergraduate degree
- 2 letters of recommendation or professional email references
- Allowed to take up to 12 credit hours as advised and must earn a B or better
- If earns below a B, GMAT is required for readmission
- No elective course may be taken by a student in conditional status
Conditional Admission with Dean's Approval Status
- Bachelor's Degree from an accredited college or university
- GPA between 2.49 - 2.25 on a 4.0 scale in the undergraduate degree
- GMAT with minimum score of 500 (based on GPA)
- Essay expressing interest may be requested
- 2 letters of recommendation or professional email references
- Allowed to take up to 12 credit hours and must earn a B or better
- No elective courses may be taken by a student in conditional status
Students granted conditional status will be changed to regular status upon successful completion of a minimum of 12 semester credit hours of MBA course coursework with a grade of B or better in each course taken.
The final decision regarding admission will be made by the Director of Graduate Programs in the College of Business.
Students lacking academic business or accounting prerequisites or with a deficiency in their accounting GPA may be granted conditional status subject to the completion of the leveling coursework and/or achievement of the required GPA in undergraduate accounting courses. Conditional admission will normally be changed to regular status upon successful completion of pre-professional leveling courses including an accounting GPA of 3.0 in the pre-professional courses.
Admission for UT Permian Basin undergraduate accounting students:
Currently enrolled undergraduate students at UT Permian Basin majoring in Accountancy may qualify for admission into the Dual Degree Program in Professional Accountancy described in the UT Permian Basin Undergraduate Catalog.
Admission for baccalaureate degree holders:
The Master of Professional Accountancy (MPA) program is open to all students holding baccalaureate degrees from accredited colleges or universities and meeting the following provisions: satisfactory performance during the last two undergraduate years (or other evidence predicting success in graduate study), and a satisfactory score on the Graduate Management Admission Test (GMAT). Students without an academic background in accounting must demonstrate their knowledge in accounting by completing 15 - 18 hours of accounting course work. Students without an academic background in business must demonstrate their knowledge of the basic fields of business by completing leveling coursework in the foundation disciplines that include statistics, economics, management, and marketing.
Non-degree Students in Graduate Accountancy
Non-degree students may take up to six credit hours of graduate business courses to meet certification requirements and continuing professional or personal development. Non-degree students must meet the general School of Business requirement of a 3.0 undergraduate GPA or demonstrate equivalent potential for success in graduate business studies. Non-degree students may register for MBA or MPA online courses only during late registration, on a space-available basis, to give priority to degree-seeking students.
Leveling Courses
Pre-Professional Courses: Business
(12-16 sch)
Statistics
Note: BUSI 2342 is classified as a related business course by the Texas State Board of Public Accountancy for students who are seeking to fulfill the requirements to be a Texas CPA candidate.
Economics
Management
Marketing
Pre-Professional Courses: Accounting
(18-21 sch)
Principles of Accounting
Intermediate Accounting
Cost Accounting
Federal Income Tax
Auditing
MPA Program Requirements
Required Courses
MNGT 6301: Students with at least 6 credits of Business Law may substitute another graduate School of Business course with the approval of the student's advisor.
Electives
| ACCT 6310 | Energy Accounting | 3 |
| ACCT 6320 | Fraud Examination and Forensic Accounting | 3 |
| ACCT 6389 | Selected Topics In Acct | 3 |
| ACCT 6392 | Internship | 3 |
| Any other graduate level School of Business course | |
Any other graduate level School of Business course: Except leveling classes, with approval of the student's advisor.
Up to 6 credits of senior-level accounting courses with approval of the student's advisor
Professional Certification Preparation
The Texas State Board of Public Accountancy includes requirements for college credits in three specific areas, which are available within the program:
An approved Business Ethics course: ACCT 6313 Professional Ethics;
Two credit hours in accounting research: 1 hour each embedded in ACCT 6305 and ACCT 6315; and
Two credit hours in business communications: Part of Pre-Professional Courses in Business.
The requirements to sit for the exam and to receive the CPA certificate are specified in the Public Accountancy Act and are administered by the Texas State Board of Public Accountancy. Interested students are directed to the Texas State Board of Public Accountancy website at www.tsbpa.state.tx.us for further information.
Dual Degree Program
The Dual Degree Program in Professional Accountancy is an accelerated program of rigorous study intended to provide students with a concurrent Bachelor of Business Administration (BBA) with a major in Accountancy and a Master of Professional Accountancy (MPA) in 150 credit hours. Admission into the Dual Degree Program in Professional Accountancy is open to all undergraduate students with a cumulative GPA of at least 3.0, a GPA in junior accounting courses of 3.25 based on at least 9 credit hours, and a satisfactory GMAT score. Students who believe that they qualify for the program should consult their undergraduate advisor to obtain program details and initiate the application process.
As an accelerated program, the Dual Degree Program allows a maximum of three 3 hours of experiential learning (ACCT 4392/ACCT 6392) taken for credit.
Students in the Dual Degree Program will begin paying graduate tuition and related fees for all courses during the first semester in which the student takes a class on the Master of Professional Accountancy degree plan. Upon completion of the 150 hours specified in the Dual Degree plan of study, students will be awarded both a BBA and an MPA. No degree will be awarded until all requirements of the Dual Degree Program have been satisfied.
Joint MPA/MBA Degree Program
The Joint Degree Program in Professional Accountancy and Business Administration is an accelerated program of broad study intended to provide students with 2 master's degrees in 60 credit hours of study. Students must meet the requirements for admission to both the MPA and MBA programs and fulfill the leveling requirements in accounting pre-professional courses and statistical and computer literacy. Students who pursue the MPA and MBA program simultaneously may complete the MPA and MBA degrees by:
- Fulfilling all leveling and pre-professional coursework.
- Fulfilling all MPA and MBA required courses.
- Completing at least 2 graduate business electives.
- Completing additional graduate business electives in the place of any waivers granted for MBA Core Courses.
- Completing all requirements for the MPA and MBA degree within 8 years of the first graduate course in the joint degree plan.
For students with no waivers of MBA core courses, the Joint MPA/MBA degree plan would be the following:
Business Leveling
(0-6 sch)
Statistical Literacy
Accounting Leveling
Accounting Core Courses
MBA Core Courses
Courses Beyond the Cores
Electives (Required - 9 sch, All electives must be graduate business hours.)
- ACCT 6301 or both ACCT 2301 and ACCT 2302 can be taken to fulfill the MBA CORE accounting requirement, which is a leveling requirement in the MPA program.
- Students with waivers of MBA core courses must take sufficient additional electives to reach an overall total of 60 credits for the joint MBA/MPA degree awarded at the same time.
Special Program Features
The MPA program is designed to serve both as a fifth year of study for continuing undergraduate students who intend to meet requirements for a CPA license and as a part-time program for individuals working in accounting and related fields. All of the classes offered in the MPA program will be offered in the evening.
Options
The MPA program includes 6 hours of electives beyond the MPA core courses that can be chosen from graduate accounting courses, other graduate courses offered by the School of Business, and senior-level accounting courses (up to 6 credit hours only).
The MPA program is designed primarily as a professional program rather than a preparation program for doctoral study. Both research and non-research options are available in the program. Students planning to pursue doctoral study or having an interest in research should select the research option. Students choosing the non-research option must complete a minimum of 36 semester credits of prescribed study, exclusive of leveling course work. Students choosing the research option must complete either 30 semester credits of prescribed study plus a thesis, or 33 semester credits of prescribed study plus a research problem.
The thesis must deal with a topic of generalized concern to the profession, be scholarly in its orientation, demonstrate the students understanding of and ability to use sophisticated research techniques, show promise of a contribution to knowledge that could be worthy of publication in a scholarly or professional journal. Students will arrange with their graduate committees to sit for an oral examination of their thesis.
The research problem should deal with a practical problem of concern to the student. It should follow recognized research procedures but does not require the level of sophistication of thesis research. The findings do not necessarily need to be of such import as to merit publication.
Energy Certificate: Students whose three elective courses are graduate courses are eligible for a Certificate in Energy in the MBA and MPA program.
Grades
MPA students will not be given graduate credit for courses taken when the letter grade earned is less than C. In addition, an MPA student may count no more than 2 C grades. A degree candidate is required to maintain an overall average of B and maintain a GPA of 3.0 in every semester throughout his or her program of study.