Master of Science in Accountancy (M.A.C.C.)
The M.A.C.C. degree program offers a curriculum that focuses on interactively developing the skills needed by accountants and financial managers. This is a specialized masters degree program designed to provide accountants the skills needed in mid- to upper-level accounting positions and skills needed in professional positions where finance, information systems, and related financial skills are as essential as accounting skills. Further, the program provides students with ethics, leadership, communications and interpersonal skills necessary for supervisory level positions.
In general, students applying for this program should already have completed an undergraduate degree in accountancy or its equivalent. Individuals without this background may still apply for the program, but will need to complete extended program requirements as discussed below. Since all courses are offered at night over five week terms, this program will be of primary interest to those students desiring to complete an accounting masters program on a part-time basis while remaining employed.
Students currently enrolled in the B.Acc. program at USD should review the requirements of the B.Acc. or M.A.C.C. combined program that are shown below this stand-alone M.A.C.C. program.
M.A.C.C. Program Requirements for Students With an Undergraduate Accountancy Degree
The M.A.C.C. degree is a 30-semester-unit program for those with an undergraduate accountancy degree. Additional prerequisite requirements for those without an undergraduate accounting degree are detailed at the end of this section.
Required Courses
The following three courses (9 semester-units) of ethics, leadership, communications, and interpersonal skills are all required:
MACC 501 – Communications and Ethics for Financial Professionals (3)
MACC 502 – Leadership in a Financial Team Environment (3)
MACC 503 – Negotiations: Strategy, Practice, and Ethics (3)
Elective Courses
The remaining seven courses (21 units) are electives and may be selected by the student in consultation with their faculty mentor. Three recommended specialization tracks have been developed to help students make their elective selections. The tracks, and the courses in the tracks, are recommendations only.
Students must complete a “program plan” indicating their elective selections prior to beginning the M.A.C.C. program. However, course substitutions may be made at later points of time upon approval of their faculty mentor and the director of the M.A.C.C. or M.Tax. programs.
The seven electives may be selected from the following M.A.C.C. graduate courses:
MACC 510 – Applied Corporate Finance (3)
MACC 520 – Fundamentals of Personal Financial Planning (3)
MACC 521 – Insurance Planning (3)
MACC 522 – Investment Planning and Risk Management (3)
MACC 523 – Retirement Planning (3)
MACC 530 – International Financial Analysis and Reporting (3)
MACC 531 – Applied Research for Financial Accountants and Auditors (3)
MACC 540 – Controllership and Cost Management (3)
MACC 550 – Database Applications for Financial Professionals (3)
MACC 551 – Accounting Software Selection and Implementation (3)
MACC 552 – Security and Control in an ERP Environment (3)
MACC 560 – Tax Research (3)
MACC 561 – Partnership Taxation (3)
MACC 562 – Estate and Gift Taxation and Planning (3)
MACC 563 – State and Local Taxation (3)
MACC 532 – Fraud Examination and Forensic Accounting (3)
The following courses are offered on an individual student basis only:
MACC 598 – Professional Accountancy Internship (3)
MACC 599 – Independent Studies (3)
All M.A.C.C. courses will be offered only once per calendar year. Therefore, students should review the class schedule of M.A.C.C. course offerings prior to the completion of their program plan. Students should also examine course prerequisites before selecting their electives and preparing their program plan. Faculty mentors should be consulted during this process. As detailed in the next section, M.A.C.C. students may elect to take some GSBA prefixed M.B.A. courses as part of their 21 units of electives.
Availability of GSBA-prefixed M.B.A. Courses as M.A.C.C. Program Electives.
A maximum of 9 units of M.B.A. courses (i.e., GSBA prefixed courses) are allowed as part of the M.A.C.C. program electives. The remaining 12 units of electives must be from M.A.C.C. prefixed courses. Students must meet all the prerequisites of the desired GSBA course, must justify the relevance of the course, and must gain the approval of their faculty mentor to include the GSBA course as an M.A.C.C. elective.
Students should be aware that M.B.A. courses are generally offered during the Graduate School of Business Administration’s regular 15-week fall and spring semesters, during the 3-week January intersession, and during the summer sessions. Students should determine the availability of a desired M.B.A. course before including it in their M.A.C.C. program plan.
Alternatively, students in the M.B.A. program may select individual M.A.C.C. courses for their elective courses. Students must meet the appropriate prerequisites noted for the individual M.A.C.C. courses prior to enrollment and must gain approval of their M.B.A. program adviser.
Specialization Tracks
Three specialization tracks have been developed to help guide M.A.C.C. students in their selections of their 21 units of electives. These tracks, and the courses within the tracks, are recommendations only and are not required. Students are encouraged to use these tracks when preparing their program plan.
A. Corporate Reporting and Financial Management
MACC 510 – Applied Corporate Finance (3)
MACC 522 – Investment Planning and Risk Management (3)
MACC 530 – International Financial Analysis and Reporting (3)
MACC 531 – Applied Research for Financial Accountants and Auditors (3)
MACC 551 – Accounting Software Selection and Implementation (3)
Elective (3)
Elective (3)
B. Controllership and Accounting Information System Development
MACC 510 – Applied Corporate Finance (3)
MACC 522 – Investment Planning and Risk Management (3)
MACC 540 – Controllership and Cost Management (3)
MACC 551 – Accounting Software Selection and Implementation (3)
Elective (6)
MACC 532 – Forensic Accounting and Fraud Examination (3)
C. Personal Financial Planning
MACC 520 – Fundamentals of Personal Financial Planning (3)
MACC 521 – Insurance Planning (3)
MACC 522 – Investment Planning and Risk Management (3)
MACC 523 – Retirement Planning (3)
MACC 562 – Estate and Gift Taxation and Planning (3)
Elective (3)
Elective (3)
Program Requirements for students Without an Under-graduate Accountancy Degree
Requirements for Students with a Non-Accounting, Business Undergraduate Degree
Students with a non-accounting, business undergraduate degree may apply for the M.A.C.C. program, but will be required to complete prerequisite accounting coursework. In this situation, their M.A.C.C. program would consist of a maximum of 54 semester-units. Specifically, the 24 semester-unit requirements of the Undergraduate Certificate Program in Accountancy would need to be completed as prerequisites to completing the 30 semester-unit M.A.C.C. program described above. Students having already completed some of the Undergraduate Certificate requirements will have the courses and the units considered for waiver.
The Undergraduate Certificate in Accountancy Program currently consists of the following 24 semester-units:
ACCT 200 – Principles of Financial Accounting (3)
ACCT 201 – Principles of Managerial Accounting (3)
ACCT 300 – Intermediate Accounting I (3)
ACCT 301 – Intermediate Accounting II (3)
ACCT 302 – Cost Accounting (3)
ACCT 303 – Accounting Information Systems (3)
ACCT 306 – Federal Income Tax I (3)
Select one course from the following:
ACCT 401 – Advanced Accounting (3)
ACCT 407 – Federal Tax Accounting II (3)
ACCT 408 – Auditing (3)
Requirements for Students with a Non-Accounting, Non-Business Undergraduate Degree
Students without a undergraduate accountancy or business degree may be considered for admission to the M.A.C.C. program, but will need to complete substantial prerequisite coursework in both accounting and business.
The M.A.C.C. program would consist of a maximum of 75 semester-units. Students would need to complete 20 prerequisite-units in business, in addition to the 54-unit M.A.C.C. program described above for the non-accounting, business undergraduate degree holders. Students having already completed any of the prerequisite business course requirements noted below will have the course and the units considered for waiver.
The prerequisite 20 semester-unit business course requirements consist of the following:
GSBA 502 – Statistics for Managers (2)
GSBA 503 – Fundamentals of Business Economics (2)
GSBA 504 – Marketing for Managers (3)
GSBA 505 – Financial Management and Analysis (3)
GSBA 506 – Operations and the Global Supply Chain (3)
GSBA 507 – Peace Through Commerce (2)
GSBA 508 – Legal and Social Environment of Business (2)
GSBA 509 – Managerial Economics and Decision Making (3)
Admission Process for the M.A.C.C. Program
Students must complete the following for admission to the M.A.C.C. degree program:
- Complete the Master of Science in Accountancy or Master of Science in Taxation admission application, including the payment of any applicable application fees.
Note that the above application materials will require students to take the GMAT exam and receive a minimum score of 550 and to submit official transcripts for all prior undergraduate and graduate work. A 3.0 accounting course GPA and 3.0 overall GPA is the normal cutoff for admission. However, applicants with lower prior GPAs will be considered for admission with additional evidence of strong professional accounting or financial management credentials.
