There are several choices among accredited accounting degree programs in Missouri at the Master’s level. Both private and public schools of all sizes from the very small to the quite large in terms of total student population offer high quality Master’s programs in accounting. Most of the schools listed below are accredited by the Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business International (AACSB), indicating that they exist at the highest level of quality among university business schools.

Avila University

School of Business

The Sisters of St. Joseph of Carondelet founded the forerunner of Avila University, the College of Saint Teresa, in Kansas City in 1916. It was a junior college for women only. It expanded its scope in 1939 when it began offering four year degrees but still only to women. The school purchased additional land in 1961 and announced that it would change its name to Avila College, a name that still honored Saint Teresa of Avila for whom it originally was named. The college began admitting men in 1969 and began offering business programs in 1978. In 2002, Avila College changed its name to Avila University.

A private Catholic university, U.S. News and World Report ranks Avila University at 102 among regional Midwest universities. The Washington Monthly ranks the school at 190 of 684 universities offering master’s degrees. The program is available only in Kansas City where students have access to local business leaders. Individuals with non-business backgrounds are invited to apply to Avila University’s MBA program but may need to take some additional courses. The schedule is flexible and consists of four sessions annually. Three 11-week trimesters allow most classes to meet only one night each week during the school year but still have a long break between Thanksgiving and New Year’s. Students also have the option of sitting out a trimester and still stay on track for finishing in only slightly more than the year required of other students.

Master of Business Administration (MBA), Accounting Emphasis

The MBA in Accounting Concentration focuses on students seeking to further their accounting education and existing accounting careers. Class work addresses theory, auditing and tax and cost accounting. With the assistance of an advisor, individual students are able to design personal programs to include class work that will qualify them for sitting for the CPA exam. There are eleven core courses required for the general MBA and another eight courses required to gain the accounting concentration designation. There are ten undergraduate course prerequisites, many of which can be waived with evidence of prior course work or practical knowledge.

Accreditation

  • The International Assembly for Collegiate Business Education (IACBE)

Contact

11901 Wornall Road
Kansas City, MO 64145
Phone: (816) 501-3601
Email: MBA@avila.edu
Website: https://www.avila.edu/mba/

DeVry University

Keller Graduate School of Business and Management

DeVry University is a national university that is well known for its extensive online programs. DeVry University maintains three physical campuses in Missouri. There are two campuses in Kansas City and one that is convenient for students in the St. Louis area. Each campus offers the Master of Science in Accounting degree and provides a physical location for class time or testing in conjunction with the online program. U.S. News and World Report ranks DeVry University as 93rd among all national universities.

Master of Science in Accounting (MSAC)

Demand for accounting professionals continues to increase even in the face of slower job growth in other fields, and DeVry’s accelerated Master’s in Accounting program strives to allow individuals to take advantage of that trend. The program integrates the content of the CPA Exam Review as presented by Becker Professional Education. The university reports that students who prepare according to the Becker program pass the CPA exam at a rate of twice that of non-Becker candidates. The result for students is that they can prepare for the CPA exam while simultaneously earning a master’s degree, saving both time and tuition cost. This program also allows students to earn the additional academic credits that most states require before licensing. DeVry requires that applicants have strong backgrounds in accounting. A bachelor degree in accounting or a bachelor degree with a specialization in finance or accounting is acceptable, as are either a current CPA license or successful completion of all sections of the CPA exam.

Master of Accounting & Financial Management (MAFM)

DeVry’s Master of Accounting & Financial Management (MAFM) curriculum is taught from the practitioner’s perspective. Though the curriculum includes general management course work, it focuses on the practitioner concerns in areas such as financial analysis, managerial accounting, taxation, and external and operational auditing. All students in this program have the ability to choose one of three areas of emphasis: Certified Public Accountant (CPA), Finance, or Certified Fraud Examiner (CFE). This program also integrates information from the CPA Exam Review provided by Becker Professional Education.

Master of Business Administration (MBA): Accounting Concentration

Keller’s MBA in Accounting focuses more on management and management theory while also retaining the practitioner view of accounting and various accounting functions. The program is particularly attractive to working professionals already working in accounting and seeking a way to advance. The curriculum provides students with a solid background in both theory and application of auditing, budgeting and taxes within a business environment. The program provides opportunity to practice presentation and communication skills at the corporate level as well as business analysis training, team building and collaboration. The Becker Professional Education CPA Exam Review material is integrated into this Keller graduate program.

Accreditation

  • The Higher Learning Commission of the North Central Association of Colleges and Schools (NCA HLC)
  • The Accreditation Council for Business Schools and Programs (ACBSP)

Contact

Kansas City:
11224 Holmes Rd.
Kansas City, MO 64131
Phone: (816) 943-7300

Downtown Kansas City:
1100 Main St., Ste. 118
Kansas City, MO 64105
Phone: (816) 221-1300

St. Louis:
11830 Westline Industrial Dr., Ste.100
St. Louis, MO 63146
Phone: (866) 831-3882

Websites:

Fontbonne University

Eckelkamp College of Global Business and Professional Studies

As was the case with Avila University in Kansas City, the Sisters of St. Joseph of Carondelet also founded the forerunner of Fontbonne University in St. Louis only a few years later. Today, Fontbonne University is a coed, private Catholic university but it began as an academy for girls in 1920. Fontbonne and Avila are separate schools but maintain their original relationship. U.S. News and World Report places both at number 102 among regional universities in the Midwest. The school’s Eckelkamp College of Global Business and Professional Studies maintains small class sizes and uses a mix of instructors to include practicing industry professionals, giving students a sound academic foundation as well as real world perspective.

Master of Accountancy

Fontbonne University admits students who hold bachelor degrees in accounting. Most students are working adults so classes are offered in the evening to accommodate students’ work schedules. The program requires 30 credit hours and can be completed in one year through a series of eight week courses. The primary focus of the program is emphasis on identifying, analyzing and solving complex management problems. Forensic accounting also is an emphasis of the program to assist those students seeking licensure as a Certified Fraud Examiner. The hours required for the program also satisfy the additional hours necessary to qualify to sit for the CPA examination.

Accreditation

  • The Accreditation Council for Business Schools and Programs (ACBSP)

Contact

6800 Wydown Blvd.
St. Louis, MO 63105
Phone: (314) 862-3456 or (800) 205-5862
Email: MBA@avila.edu
Website: http://www.fontbonne.edu/academics/evening_online/programs/master_of_accountancy/

Lincoln University

Office of Graduate Studies

Lincoln University was founded in 1866 specifically for African American students. Founders were the veterans of two regiments of the United States Colored Troops (USCT) Infantry who modeled the structure of the school after Tuskegee Institute. Missouri designated Lincoln University as a land grant college. The school has been a university since 1921 and has admitted students of all races since 1954. In 2007, U.S. News and World Report ranked the school third in the Midwest for economic diversity, fifth for ethnic diversity, and ninth for the greatest number of international students at the Master’s level.

Master of Business Administration (MBA), Accounting Emphasis

The MBA program with accounting emphasis at Lincoln University strives to correlate sound management decisions with today’s complexities of accounting. The program assumes that entering students are continuing acquiring knowledge of business and accounting studies. The school admits students who have undergraduate degrees in other areas but those students will need to complete significant additional course work. Students with undergraduate degrees can complete the program with 36 hours. Those whose undergraduate degrees are in other areas will have to take 67 hours to complete the program. Students completing this program will be better prepared to sit for an array of professional certification examinations including the CPA, CMA, and CIA examinations.

Accreditation

  • The Association of Collegiate Business Schools and Programs (ACBSP)

Contact

820 Chestnut St.
Jefferson City, MO 65101
Phone: (573) 681-5247
Email: gradschool@lincolnu.edu
Website: http://www.lincolnu.edu/web/dept.-of-business/graduate-mba-program

Lindenwood University

School of Business and Entrepreneurship

The forerunner of today’s Lindenwood University came to be when Mary Easton Sibley began teaching children at Fort Osage in western Missouri in 1815. Today, the private university associated with the Presbyterian Church is the second oldest institution of higher education West of the Mississippi. Best-Business-Colleges.com ranks Lindenwood University’s School of Business and Entrepreneurship as number six in Missouri, number 20 in the Midwest, and number 67 in the entire country.

Master of Accountancy

The Master of Accountancy program at Lindenwood University’s School of Business and Entrepreneurship is a 30 hour program for qualified students. The school admits students who do not have undergraduate accounting degrees but will require those students to take up to an additional 30 hours to ensure that they have a master’s level foundation at completion. Further, students must have completed undergraduate foundation courses with a grade of “B” or better for those courses to count toward admission requirements. The 30 hour minimum will provide the balance of the 150 credit hours required to sit for the uniform CPA examination.

Master of Business Administration (MBA), Accounting Emphasis

Lindenwood University’s MBA program with accounting emphasis balances focus on accounting issues in business with the theory and practice of sound management. Students who complete this program and who enter with an undergraduate degree in accounting may finish with the 150 hour requirement to sit for the uniform CPA examination. That depends on undergraduate courses and those students in danger of falling shy of the 150 hour requirement can take additional courses within the MBA program. The accounting emphasis includes study in financial accounting, cost accounting, individual tax planning, business tax planning, government and nonprofit accounting, international accounting, financial statement analysis, and auditing.

Accreditation

  • The Accreditation Council for Business Schools and Programs (ACBSP)

Contact

209 S. Kingshighway
St. Charles, MO 63301
Phone: (636) 949-4933
Email: jmack@lindenwood.edu
Websites:

Maryville University of Saint Louis

John E. Simon School of Business

Founded in 1872, Maryville University of Saint Louis is one of the oldest private universities in the greater St. Louis area. It began as an academy for women and began offering four year degrees in 1923. It did not become coeducational until 1968. The school launched its Weekend College in 1981 and transitioned to university status in 1991. An uncommon feature about Maryville University of Saint Louis is its ratio of undergraduate to graduate students. Unlike nearly all other universities offering graduate degrees, Maryville University’s graduate student population of 2,200 is significantly higher than its undergraduate population of 1,977. U.S. News and World Report includes Maryville University of Saint Louis in its list of top national universities and Forbes places it at number 119 in the Midwest.

Master of Business Administration (MBA), Accounting Concentration

Maryville University presents an array of program delivery choices for students. The school offers a one year MBA available wholly online or in combination of online and classroom courses. Students also may choose to complete the Maryville University MBA completely on campus in classes that meet one evening each week. Maryville University also offers its MBA program at Scott Air Force Base. This program admits civilians and military dependents as well as military personnel. If military students are deployed during the course of the program they can continue by transitioning to the online format. Current undergraduate students at Maryville University of Saint Louis also can take part in the Early Access Program which allows undergraduate students to take up to 12 credit hours of courses required in the MBA program.

Accreditation

  • The Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business (AACSB)

Contact

650 Maryville University Drive
St. Louis, MO 63141
Phone: (314) 529-9300 or (800) 627-9855
Email: gradprograms@maryville.edu
Website: http://www.maryville.edu/bu/business-administration-masters/

Missouri State University

College of Business, School of Accountancy

Formerly known as Missouri State University, Missouri State University is a public university located in Springfield. Founded in 1905, today it is a large school with more than 22,000 students originating in all 50 states and 83 countries. U.S. News and World Report ranks the school at number 68 among Midwest regional universities. The school offers both traditional and accelerated forms of its Master of Accountancy program. The accelerated form allows students to gain both a bachelor and master degree in five years.

Master of Accountancy

Missouri State University’s School of Accountancy offers a traditional Master’s program consisting of 33 hours of study in advanced courses in financial and managerial accounting, auditing and tax planning. Full time students can complete the program in two years by maintaining 12 credit hours each semester. Most students are working professionals, however, and the School recommends that those students take only six hours each semester. It offers the program through online and evening classes. An accelerated Master’s option allows qualified undergraduate accounting students to take graduate courses during the senior year and finish both degrees within five years. The accelerated program requires 152 credit hours, qualifying graduates to sit for the uniform CPA exam upon completion with no additional study.

Accreditation

  • The Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business (AACSB)

Contact

Missouri State University, Accounting
901 S. National Ave.
Springfield, MO 65897
Phone: (417) 836-6914
Email: KerriTassin@MissouriState.edu
Website: http://www.missouristate.edu/soa/Graduate/

The institutions listed above represent only a cross section of what Missouri schools and universities offer. There are several accredited accounting degree programs in Missouri that are of the highest quality available in any state throughout the country.

Related Resource: What’s the Difference between a Master’s Degree in Accounting and an MBA?