Professional Accountancy (MPAC)

Objectives and Outcomes

The MPA program will:

• Provide students with the knowledge and tools needed to obtain meaningful employment and to have successful careers;
• Prepare students for management positions;
• Provide the educational background for students to meet the educational requirements of various accounting certifications;
• Prepare students for a career in accounting.
  Additionally, the MPA program has been designed to enable students to achieve the following learning objectives:
• Improve students’ ability to focus on appropriate issues and develop solutions to problems where needed;
• Further refine students’ oral and written communication skills;
• Broaden students’ understanding of global issues;
• Expand students’ understanding of professional and ethical issues faced by accountants;
• Improve students’ ability to use essential technology in the accounting field.

Admission (Accounting Background)

Admission to the graduate phase of the MPA program is based upon the combination of an applicant’s academic record and score on the Graduate Management Admission Test (GMAT). In some cases, at the discretion of the Associate Dean of Graduate Studies, the GRE may be accepted in place of the GMAT. In this case, the GRE score will be converted to a “GMAT equivalent” using the tool provided at the following link: www.ets.org/gre/institutions/about/mba/comparison_tool.

Applicants with a composite score (equal to 200 x UGPA + GMAT score) of at least 1,100 (1,150 when calculated using the GPA from the applicant’s last 60 credit hours) and who have an undergraduate GPA of at least 2.75 and a GMAT score of at least 450 are eligible for unconditional admission to the MPA program. Applicants meeting the minimum composite score but who are not able to meet the minimum GPA or GMAT requirements may be considered for conditional to the MPA program. Students may enter the program a quarter and each student is assigned an advisor to help plan his/her program of study.

Transcripts of students entering the MPA program at the graduate level are evaluated and proper courses prescribed to satisfy the degree requirements. The undergraduate phase of the MPA program is given in the Accounting section of the undergraduate portion of this Catalog.

The graduate phase of the MPA program is given below. The graduate phase may normally be completed in one year by Accounting undergraduates who have performed satisfactorily in appropriate preparatory work. Upon approval of the Associate Dean for Graduate Programs and Research, students may transfer up to six hours of graduate credit toward the MPA degree. For transfer courses to be accepted for graduate credit, courses must have been taken at a college of business accredited by the AACSB.

Total Semester Hours 30

*Total must include at least 15 hours of 500-level Accounting taken at Louisiana Tech.

**ACCT 505  cannot be taken as an elective. May include 400-level accounting courses approved for graduate credit.

Those without a background in accounting may also pursue the MPA. Students lacking the necessary undergraduate background may be required to complete deficiency undergraduate courses.