Accountancy (Professional Accountancy -M.P.A.)

Print Degree Planner (opens a new window) |

Each applicant will be expected to have satisfactorily completed the undergraduate/foundation requirements for study in the School of Business, as listed above. An additional minimum of 18 hours of upper-division accounting classes are required as prerequisites for the M.P.A. program above the business foundation courses, including Intermediate Accounting I and II, Cost Accounting, Income Tax, Accounting Systems, and Auditing.

The M.P.A. degree requires a minimum of 30 graduate hours: an 18-hour graduate accounting core and a group of restricted electives. Plan A (thesis program), Plan B (non–thesis program), and Plan C (internship program) are available options. The Director of the program must approve the remaining restricted elective hours at the graduate level. Elective hours are offered to provide breadth, and nine credit hours should be outside the area of accounting regardless of the specific plan selected.

All plan options require a written comprehensive exam to be completed in the semester in which the student expects to graduate. Oral exams are determined on an individual basis and the M.P.A. Director may waive the final oral exam based upon satisfactory performance on the written comprehensive exam.

M.P.A. Plan A (thesis): Total 31 credit hours

M.P.A. Graduate Accounting Core 18 credit hours
Thesis 4 credit hours
Restricted Electives 9 credit hours

M.P.A. Plan B (non–thesis): Total 30 credit hours

M.P.A. Graduate Accounting Core 18 credit hours
Restricted Electives 12 credit hours

M.P.A. Plan C (internship): Total 30 credit hours

M.P.A. Graduate Accounting Core 18 credit hours
Accounting Internship 3 credit hours
Restricted Electives 9 credit hours

M.P.A. Graduate Accounting Core: 18 credit hours

Note

**Effective 2008, pending Board of Regents approval:
The M.P.A. Graduate Accounting Core will be increased to 21 credit hours (from 18 credit hours), with the addition of a new required accounting course. The M.P.A. Program will continue to require a minimum of 30 credit hours. Under Plans A (thesis) and C (internship) described above, the “Restricted Electives” will be reduced from 9 credit hours to 6 credit hours. Under Plan B (non-thesis), “Restricted Electives” will be reduced from 12 credit hours to 9 credit hours.

Joint M.P.A. / J.D. Program

It is possible to concurrently pursue an M.P.A. and a J.D. in the School of Law. Nine hours of accounting may be counted toward the J.D. degree and nine hours of law may be counted toward the M.P.A. degree. For further information on this joint program, contact either the Dean of the Law School or the M.P.A. Director. For more detailed information about any graduate program in business, including the program of study and detailed descriptions and objectives of the required courses, please contact the appropriate program coordinator. For an application packet, please write: Graduate Business Programs Office, University of South Dakota, 123 Patterson Hall, Vermillion, South Dakota 57069 or phone 605-677-5232 or e-mail mba@usd.edu.