Graduate Catalog

2012-2013

ACCOUNTING AND INFORMATION SYSTEMS

Department website: http://business.nmsu.edu/accounting-is

(575) 646-4901

escribne@nmsu.edu

E. A. Scribner, department head, Ph.D. (Oklahoma State) – C.P.A.- financial accounting and accounting systems; M. J. Billiot, D.B.A. (Mississippi State) – C.P.A.-managerial and financial accounting; R. Calk, Ph.D. (Oklahoma State) – C.P.A.-managerial accounting and professional ethics; K. McNelis, Ph.D.(Texas-Arlington) – C.P.A.-managerial and financial accounting; K. Melendrez, Ph.D. (University of Arizona) – financial accounting; S. K. Mills, Ph.D. (Texas Tech) – C.P.A.-managerial accounting and fraud examination; C. Seipel, Ph.D. (Oklahoma State) – C.P.A., C.F.E.-financial accounting and auditing; W. Smith, Ph.D. (New Mexico State) – C.P.A.- financial accounting and taxation; P. L. Tunnell, Ph.D. (Oklahoma State) – C.P.A.- taxation.

DEGREE: Master of Accountancy

MINORS: Accounting
Information Systems

Master of Accountancy

The last decade has witnessed a tremendous expansion in the knowledge base required for accounting professionals. The business environment has become increasingly complex, as evidenced by the growth in the body of national and international accounting and auditing standards, taxation, SEC, and other regulatory requirements. The accountant must also be well versed in communications and analytical skills, computer-based information systems, professional ethics, and global issues.

Neither the traditional four-year accounting program nor the M.B.A. provides the educational breadth and depth necessary to fully prepare students for the demands now imposed by many accounting careers. The major objective of the Master of Accountancy (M.Acc.) program is to provide for these increased educational needs and to prepare students more adequately for careers as professional accountants in financial institutions, government, non-for-profit organizations, and public practice. The program is designed to provide a technical and theoretical foundation in accountancy at the advanced level and yet allow the student to take courses to accommodate individual needs.

The M.Acc. program is recommended for those students wishing to fulfill the 150-hour education requirement which most states, including New Mexico, have legislated as a requirement for taking the Uniform CPA Examination.

Graduate assistantships are available for a limited number of qualified students. Interested persons are urged to apply well within the deadlines set by the Graduate School. Inquiries should be addressed to the Master of Accountancy Director.

Admission requirements of the Graduate School must be met before the applicant may be admitted to the Master of Accountancy program. Consideration for admissions to the Master of Accountancy program is dependent on an applicant's undergraduate record and score on the Graduate Management Admissions Test (GMAT). Specifically, an applicant's undergraduate GPA is multiplied by a factor of 200 and the result is added to his/her GMAT score. The required total is 1100. Applicants scoring between 1000 and 1100 will be admitted to the program only with approval of the M.Acc. Admissions Committee. The minimum acceptable GMAT score is 400. An acceptable score on the GMAT must be submitted at least one month prior to the student's first enrollment unless the student meets one of the GMAT waivers listed below.

In addition to the aforementioned entrance requirements, an applicant's GPA in 7 upper division accounting prerequisites must be at least 3.0. For those students not receiving their undergraduate accounting degree at NMSU, it is expected that substantially all of the accounting prerequisite classes be from an AACSB accredited business school or the application will need to be approved by the M.Acc Admissions Committee. In this case the Admissions Committee may require that some of these prerequisite courses be retaken at an AACSB institution such as NMSU.

All grades, including those from the first attempt at repeated classes, will be used to compute upper division accounting prerequisite grade point averages to determine admission to the graduate program. At the suggestion of any faculty member, the M.Acc. Admissions Committee will review the application of a student whose potential might not be accurately reflected by this calculation.

GMAT waivers:

The GMAT requirement is waived for those who:

Are graduates of NMSU's Bachelor of Accountancy program with at least a 3.25 GPA overall and a 3.25 GPA in their eight upper division accounting courses; or
Hold a recognized professional accounting credential (such as CPA, CMA, CIA, CFE); or
Hold a post baccalaureate degree (such as MBA, MS, MA, JD) from an approved, AACSB-accredited U.S. university with a minimum of 3.0 in graduate course work.

Candidates for the Master of Accountancy degree who have an undergraduate degree in accounting must successfully complete a minimum of 30 graduate credits. Qualifying NMSU undergraduate accounting students can apply to have two graduate courses count for their undergraduate program as well as their graduate program. Candidates with an undergraduate degree in a field other than accounting must complete additional prerequisite work dependent upon previous courses taken. In any case, all candidates must present or fulfill the following requirements:

Foundation Courses

These courses are required of every student unless they can be waived. As a general policy, the courses upon which waivers are claimed must have been taken within seven years of enrollment in the program with a grade of B or better. A final decision regarding a waiver is based on an evaluation of each student's total educational and professional background. The following is a list of these courses (for a description of these courses, see the New Mexico State University Undergraduate Catalog):

ACCT 251, Management Accounting
ACCT 252, Financial Accounting
BCIS 338, Business Information Systems I
BLAW 316, Legal Environment of Business
ECON 251G, Principles of Macroeconomics
ECON 252G, Principles of Microeconomics
FIN 341, Financial Analysis and Markets
MGT 309, Human Behavior in Organizations
MKTG 303, Principles of Marketing
BCIS 485, Enterprise Resource Planning; MGT 344, Production and Operations Management; or MGT 470, Project Management in Organizations

Accounting and Related Prerequisites (21 credits)

In addition to the foundation requirements, each student must present or complete the equivalent of an undergraduate major in accounting. This requires, at a minimum, 21 credits of accounting above the elementary level.

No coursework applied toward the M.Acc. degree, including the foundation requirements and the undergraduate accounting prerequisites, may be taken on an S/U basis.

Core and Elective Courses (30 Credits)

Core Courses: Each student must complete 18 credits in accounting courses numbered above 503. These courses must include a research class (either ACCT 555 or 564) and ethics (ACCT 559) unless a student has already taken an equivalent course. In addition, three of the credits may be in upper division undergraduate elective accounting courses numbered 450 or higher. Other specific courses to be completed by each candidate will be determined in the advisement process.

Elective Courses: All students must complete a total of 12 additional credits in elective courses. Electives will be determined individually for each student and will include no more than 3 credits in accounting. At least 3 of the elective credits must be in courses reserved exclusively for graduate students and numbered 510 or higher. Neither ACCT 503 nor any course fulfilling the foundation requirement may be included.

The Graduate School requires that students maintain a grade-point average of at least 3.0 in all courses taken as a graduate student, as well as a 3.0 grade-point average in all graduate courses taken as a graduate student at NMSU. The Department of Accounting and Information Systems requires, in addition, that every candidate for the M.Acc. degree maintain at least a 3.0 grade-point average in all accounting courses used to satisfy the core and elective course requirement. M.Acc. students may not retake 500-level accounting courses for which they have previously received a grade without approval of the M.Acc. Admissions Committee.

Comprehensive Examination

Satisfactory performance on a comprehensive examination is required for the degree.

Thesis: No thesis is required; however, under special approval, a candidate may elect to write a thesis under ACCT 599. Up to 6 credits may be earned for the thesis.

Admission to Master of Accountancy

Class registration in any Accounting course numbered above ACCT 503 requires

prior full admission to the M.Acc. program, or
prior consent of the Director of the M.Acc. program.

Minor: Information Systems

This minor is for master's-level students who are not in the Masters of Business Administration (MBA) program. Students in the MBA program may choose a specialization in Information Systems (see the Business Administration section below).

To obtain a graduate minor in Information Systems (IS) students must satisfy the requirements as stated in the Graduate Catalog for a minor at the master's level. For it to appear on the transcript, the student must list the minor on the "Program of Study and Committee for Master's Student" (Application for Admission to Candidacy) and have it signed by the head of the department offering the minor. The minor requires a minimum of 9 credits of graduate work. Two courses are required: BCIS 540 and BCIS 595. The third course is chosen from: BCIS 558, BCIS 560, BCIS 565, BCIS 575, BCIS 584, or BCIS 590.

ACCOUNTING

ACCT 451. Auditing Theory and Practices 3 cr.: Auditing standards, audit evidence, auditors reports and opinions, and professional responsibilities. Prerequisite(s): ACCT 351 and C or better in ACCT 302.

ACCT 455. Federal Taxation II 3 cr.: Federal income tax laws applicable to partnerships, corporations, fiduciaries, tax research, tax planning. Prerequisite(s): C or better in ACCT 403 or consent of instructor.

ACCT 456. Accounting for Nonprofit Organizations 3 cr.: Control and reporting problems unique to governmental units and other nonprofit organizations. Fund accounting principles, procedures, and reports. Prerequisite(s): C or better in ACCT 302.

ACCT 457. Mergers, Acquisitions, and Partnerships 3 cr.: Consolidated financial statements, accounting for partnership formation and liquidation. Prerequisite(s): C or better in ACCT 302.

ACCT 459. Ethics and Professionalism in Accounting 3 cr.: Introduction to ethical reasoning, integrity, objectivity, independence, and professional accounting issues. Students will apply the concepts and theories to accounting-specific cases. Prerequisite: grade of C or better in ACCT 451 or concurrent enrollment or consent of instructor. Same as ACCT 559.

ACCT 460. Fraud Examination and Prevention 3 cr.: Covers business fraud as it is occurring in American society. Emphasis is on occupational fraud and financial statement fraud. Examines various types of fraud, its symptoms and effective investigation techniques. Effective fraud prevention measures are discussed throughout the course. Emphasizes case studies and the application of principles to actual fraud cases. Prerequisites: a C or better in ACCT 451 or concurrent enrollment.

ACCT 490. Selected Topics 1-3 cr.: Current topics in accounting. Prerequisites vary according to the seminar offered. May be repeated for a maximum of 12 credits under different subtitles.

ACCT 498. Independent Study 1-3 cr.: Individual studies directed by consenting faculty with the prior approval of the department head. Prerequisites: junior or senior standing and consent of instructor. A maximum of 3 credits may be earned.

ACCT 503. Accounting for Managers 3 cr.: Concepts and principles of financial and managerial accounting. Presents techniques used to measure business transactions, prepare financial statements, techniques for management decision-making, planning, and control. Not open to MAcc students. Prerequisite(s): B or better in ACCT 251 and ACCT 252.

ACCT 525. Advanced Cost-Managerial Accounting 3 cr.: Advanced cost-managerial concepts with a quantitative emphasis. Integrates cost-managerial concepts, quantitative tools, organization theory, behavioral concepts and computer methodology. Prerequisite: ACCT 353.

ACCT 544. Financial Statement Analysis and Valuation 3 cr.: Valuation of firms using financial information, financial statement analysis, and the valuation of individual assets and liabilities. Prerequisite(s): ACCT 302; Graduate students only.

ACCT 550. Special Topics 3 cr.: Seminars in current topics in various areas of accounting including financial, managerial, auditing, taxation, systems, and fund accounting. Prerequisites vary according to topic being offered.

ACCT 551. Advanced Auditing Theory and Practice 3 cr.: Understanding and evaluating internal control in an EDP environment. Statistical sampling applications and current issues in auditing. Prerequisites: ACCT 451 and ACCT 452.

ACCT 554. Advanced Accounting Theory 3 cr.: Contemporary theoretical basis of accounting. An in-depth study of generally accepted accounting principles and current issues in accounting. Prerequisite: ACCT 302 or consent of instructor.

ACCT 555. Federal Tax Research 3 cr.: Tax research methodology including case materials, critical judicial decisions, journal articles, and research services. Emphasis on tax planning. Prerequisite: ACCT 403 or consent of instructor.

ACCT 559. Ethics and Professionalism in Accounting 3 cr.: Introduction to ethical reasoning, integrity, objectivity, independence , and professional accounting issues Students will apply the concepts and theories to accounting-specific cases. Prerequisites: C or better in ACCT 451 or concurrent enrollment. Same as ACCT 459.

ACCT 560. Taxation of Corporations and Shareholders Advanced 3 cr.: Effects of taxation on the organization, operation, and reorganization of corporations and on their shareholders. Prerequisite(s): ACCT 455 or consent of instructor.

ACCT 564. Financial Accounting Research 3 cr.: Interpretation and application of accounting principles to financial reporting issues of business and nonbusiness organizations. Consent of instructor required. Prerequisite(s): Undergraduate degree in accounting or equivalent. Restricted to Master of Accountancy majors.

ACCT 565. Estate Planning and Taxation 3 cr.: Effects of income, gift, and estate taxation on accumulation and preservation of an estate. Prerequisite: ACCT 455 or consent of instructor.

ACCT 570. Taxation of Partnerships 3 cr.: Taxation of partnership contributions and distributions, transfer of partnership interests, and allocations of partnership income. Also includes taxation of S corporations. Prerequisites: graduate students only; ACCT 403 or consent of instructor.

ACCT 580. Professional Accountancy 3 cr.: Prepares students for the accounting profession and professional certification through study of a wide range of topics similar to those a student might encounter in their first year of employment. Counts for elective credit only. Prerequisite(s): Graduate students only.

ACCT 598. Independent Study 1-3 cr.: Individual studies directed by consenting faculty with prior approval of the department head. A maximum of 3 credits may be earned. Prerequisite: consent of instructor.

ACCT 599. Master's Thesis 0-88 cr.: Thesis.