Accelerated Bachelor's to Master's in Accounting and Business Advisory Services
Requirements to be a CPA in Maryland (and in all but two of the other states) include 150 hours of post-secondary education. To provide a seamless process for students to achieve the 150 hours, Towson University offers an accelerated bachelor’s-master’s degree program.
Students may apply to the program at the same time that they apply for admission to the Accounting major. Students then apply to the Accounting and Business Advisory Services (M.S.) program in the first term of their senior year, and are admitted to the graduate program in the second term of their senior year. Admission to the graduate portion of the accelerated program is not guaranteed.
In order to be admitted to the bachelor’s-master’s accounting program, students must:
- Be an accounting major with at least one term of residency at Towson University,
- Have a GPA of at least 3.00,
- Have a GMAT score of at least 400. (GMAT will be waived with a GPA of 3.50 or higher.)
Up to nine units of 500- and 600-level courses can be counted toward both the undergraduate and graduate programs. A bachelor’s degree is awarded after all the bachelor’s degree requirements are met which is normally the fourth year.
For more information, visit the accelerated program's web page.
Admission Requirements
As an alternative to admission to the Accounting major, TU students may instead opt for the accelerated B.S./M.S. in Accounting with Business Advisory Services. The Masters degree portion is a joint program with the University of Baltimore.
In order to be admitted to the accelerated B.S./M.S. in Accounting with Business Advisory Services, students must have:
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Junior standing and at least one academic term completed at Towson University.
- Minimum GPA of 3.25 for the six CBE lower-level core courses: (ACCT 201 , ACCT 202 , ECON 201 (or ECON 203), ECON 202 (or ECON 204), ECON 205 (or MATH 231 or MATH 233), LEGL 225. Grade equivalent of 2.00 or higher in each lower level required course.
- Minimum GPA of 3.25 for at least three of the upper-level accounting screener courses required for admission to the major. Grade equivalent of 2.00 or higher in each screener course. Please see the Accounting major requirements page in the catalog for information about restrictions in applicability of transfer credit toward courses required for admission. The specific requirements are completion of:
- Minimum overall GPA of 3.00.
- Have a GMAT score of at least 400. (If a student has an overall GPA of 3.50 or higher, the GMAT requirement will be waived.)
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During the second term of the senior year, the student must also complete a graduate application with the Admissions Office.
Degree Requirements
Up to nine units of 500- to 700-level courses can be counted toward both the undergraduate and graduate programs. A minimum GPA of 3.00 is required for all graduate courses taken as an undergraduate. If you lose your eligibility to remain in the ACBS-MS, any graduate units earned will only apply to the B.S. in Accounting. A bachelor’s degree is awarded after all of the bachelor’s degree requirements are met which is normally after the fourth year.
Students graduating from the program earn the 150 units needed to be eligible to become licensed as a Certified Public Accountant (CPA) after passing the CPA exam.
The graduate courses below are taken in lieu of the two Accounting electives and the one free elective that are part of the requirements for the Accounting major. See Accounting major for the balance of requirements.
| Code | Title | Units |
|---|---|---|
| Select three of the following: | 9 | |
| CONTEMPORARY ISSUES IN FINANCIAL ACCOUNTING | ||
| TAXATION OF ENTITIES | ||
| INTERNATIONAL FINANCIAL REPORTING | ||
| DESIGN OF MANAGERIAL COST AND CONTROL SYSTEMS | ||
| FINANCIAL STATEMENT ANALYTICS AND VALUATION | ||
| ADVANCED TOPICS IN ASSURANCE SERVICES | ||
| FORENSIC ACCOUNTING | ||
| ADVANCED TOPICS IN ACCOUNTING SYSTEMS | ||
| SUSTAINABILITY ACCOUNTING | ||
| Total Units | 9 | |
Withdrawal and Ineligibility
Students who are ineligible to participate in or who withdraw from the accelerated degree program cannot double count any courses for both bachelor’s and master’s degrees.