The integrated Bachelor of Science and Master of Science degrees in Professional Accounting are designed for focused entering undergraduate students who know they want to meet the requirements to sit for the CPA examination and pursue a professional career in accounting.
The objective of the integrated plan is to provide students with the required background to sit for the CPA examination and to provide a basis for exercising judgment in accounting-related and business decisions within administrative, managerial and professional positions as well as enhance rapid career development.
Students must apply to the graduate program, take the GMAT exam (unless a waiver is met) and meet all graduate accounting entrance requirements by the first semester of their senior year. Professional Accounting M.S. applicants meeting all the following criteria will qualify for the waiver of the GMAT exam:
- 3.0 Cumulative GPA on upper division business courses at UHCL (minimum of 18 hours required).
In addition, students in the integrated degree program will be required to have a cumulative UHCL GPA of at least 3.000 for admission to the M.S. in Professional Accounting. The B.S. in Professional Accounting will not be awarded until all requirements for the M.S. are completed. Students failing to be admitted into the graduate Professional Accounting program will revert to the B.S. in Accounting degree program and proceed in the normal manner to graduation. Students planning on taking the CPA examination are required to have a 3-semester credit hour ethics course, which has been approved by the Texas State Board of Public Accountancy (TSBPA). ACCT 4346 Ethics for Accountants has been approved by TSBPA and satisfies the ethic course requirement.
The integrated B.S. and M.S. in Professional Accounting degree program will include 120 hours of undergraduate and 30 hours of graduate course work.
Students in the integrated Professional Accounting degree program may complete a Concentration in Management Information Systems by completing a set combination of undergraduate and graduate course work.