Whitman School launches pioneering iMS in accounting program

Whitman School launches pioneering iMS in accounting programFebruary 26, 2007Amy Schmitzaemehrin@syr.edu

Responding to the needs of accounting professionals who want to earn a master’s degree in a timely manner without jumping off the career track, the Whitman School of Management at Syracuse University has launched the iMS in accounting, the only program of its kind in New York state. Built on the same model as the school’s highly respected iMBA, the 30-credit program blends three weeks of residency per year on the SU campus with extended periods of distance learning.

“The career opportunities in accounting today are tremendous,” says associate professor Randal Elder, director of Whitman’s Joseph I. Lubin School of Accounting. “But so are the demands to perform and contribute, and the M.S. in accounting is seen as highly desirable preparation for the sophistication and complexities in the profession today. For many practicing accountants, it’s also the most efficient route to earning the additional hours typically needed beyond the undergraduate degree in order to be eligible for CPA certification.”

In most states, CPA certification requires 150 credit hours of collegiate training — 30 hours beyond the typical undergraduate program. This requirement will become effective in New York in 2009.

“The timing for the launch of the iMS couldn’t be better,” notes Donald Favre of PricewaterhouseCoopers. Favre leads PwC’s International Banking Tax Practice and is a partner in its Metro New York Banking and Capital Markets Tax Practice. He also chairs the Lubin School of Accounting’s Advisory Board. “The flexibility of the program will make it an attractive option for associates in accounting firms in the greater Northeast and beyond.”

Indeed, if Whitman’s iMBA enrollment demographics are any indication, the program will attract professionals from across the country and around the globe. More than 200 working professionals have voted with their feet for this unique limited-residency, distance-learning delivery option. Participants appreciate having the freedom of independent learning without having to sacrifice the social and networking benefits that come with face-to-face learning at a world-class university campus.

“At Whitman, we’re proud to be in the forefront in delivering rigorous, accredited graduate programs in a format that meets the needs of learners today,” observes Dean Melvin T. Stith. “And we’re excited to welcome our first iMS class. Our iMBA and iMS students bring great professional experience to their studies and enrich our student body in enormous ways.”

Learn more about the iMS in accounting curriculum and other program specifics at http://www.whitman.syr.edu/prospective/mba/imsacc.