University to offer graduate degree in accounting

 The B.I. Moody III College of Business Administration at UL Lafayette will launch a master’s program in accounting in the fall.

“The curriculum will provide graduates with in-depth knowledge of auditing, ethics, income tax, and financial accounting,” said Dr. Harlan Etheridge, associate professor of accounting. “The program will offer advanced preparation for careers in public accounting, industry, government, and consulting.”

It also will provide the additional hours required to sit for the CPA exam in Louisiana, he added.

Students who complete the University’s undergraduate accounting program earn 120 credit hours. But, 150 hours earned at an accredited university are required to take the CPA exam in Louisiana, according to information on the State Board of Certified Public Accountants of Louisiana’s website.

“It gives our students an option they didn’t have before,” Etheridge said.

Individuals who enter the new graduate program will be required to complete 33 hours of coursework, including 18 hours of required accounting classes, nine hours of accounting electives and six hours of business electives.
Students who wish to enter the program must have earned a bachelor’s degree, in any discipline, from an accredited university in the United States. Students with non-accounting degrees must take several prerequisite courses, unless they have done so within the past five years.

“The program is designed to be completed in approximately one year by a full-time student, but it can be completed on a part-time basis,” Etheridge said. “Most of these courses will be offered in the evening with others online or hybrid.”

Learn more about the Master’s in Accounting Program at the University of Louisiana at Lafayette by contacting the Program Coordinator at mastersaccounting@louisiana.edu.