According toThe Utah Statesman, Utah State University's student newspaper, the Jon M. Huntsman School of Business at the University will be launching a new Executive Master of Accounting (EMAcc) program, set to debut this upcoming June. Similar in nature to an Executive Masters of Business Administration, the program is designed to help a professional work and study for CPA status simultaneously.
The program is a response to many state policies that require a student to have taken graduate-level accounting classes to obtain their licensure as CPA. The EMAcc program will allow students to earn their master’s degree without quitting their job or going to school full-time.
“This is a pioneering effort. I don’t know of any other programs that are just like this,” Dr. Nate Stephens, an associate professor of accounting at USU and director of the new program, told theStatesman. “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."
Bonnie Villarreal, director of the current Master of Accounting (MAcc) program, went on to say that she doesn't believe the MAcc is practical for students anymore.
“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 told the Statesman.
The EMacc program is will have students take classes online together, as well as meet face-to-face on campus for five weeks throughout the year. UHU faculty, as well as guest speakers from across the country, will teach the courses.
“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 it,” Stephens told theStatesman. “They’re learning from experts at the top of the profession.”
For more on the program and the University, head to the student newspaper's
