Bryant University. The Character of Success

MPAC COURSE INFORMATION

The Bryant MPAc is a 10-course, full-time, day program. To be admitted to the Bryant MPAc program you must be (or about to become) a graduate of an accredited undergraduate accounting program.

The following are prerequisites for consideration into the program:

  • Two semesters of intermediate accounting
  • Advanced financial accounting (consolidations)
  • Taxation
  • Accounting Information Systems
  • Auditing
  • Cost management/accounting

If you have questions about the undergraduate requirements, or if you need to make up a prerequisite at the undergraduate level, Bryant can accommodate your request. Please contact the Graduate School of Business at gradprog@bryant.edu or call 401-232-6230.


MPAc Course Descriptions

MPAc515 Introduction to Management Concepts and Skills (Bootcamp)

During an intensive multi-day course, MPAc students will be exposed to and participate in instructional sessions addressing technology, research resources, team-building, leadership, communication skills, and case analysis exercises.

MPAc600 Advanced Assurance and Professional Oversight

This course is designed to provide students with more in-depth knowledge of advanced audit and assurance topics. Emphasis will be placed on the varying roles the AICPA, SEC, and PCAOB play in the governance and oversight structure of the public accounting profession. The application of judgment in various auditing contexts will also be stressed through case analysis. Prerequisite: Auditing Concepts, or equivalent

MPAc605 Corporate Governance in the 21st Century

Corporate governance of a large company is complex, involves many stakeholders, and often subject to laws and regulations of many jurisdictions. In 2002, the U.S. Congress passed Sarbanes-Oxley Act - a substantial change in laws governing the capital markets since 1934. This law plays a mitigating role between laws and ethics of corporate governance. The corporate governance issues are also impacted by globalization of business (e.g., International Financial Reporting Standards, IFRS and globalization of capital markets) and applications of information technology in the corporate reporting supply chain such as XBRL. The course addresses these topics and their roles in shaping compliance with corporate governance rules and regulations in the global economy.

MPAc610 Tax Consequences of Property Transactions

This course deals with tax consequences of acquiring, holding, operating, and disposing of property. Tax consequences vary depending on whether the asset in question is personal-use property, dealer property (inventory), business property, or income-producing property. When property is disposed of, there are issues of realization, recognition, and character. When there is a sale or other disposition of property, gains and losses are realized. As a general rule, such gains and losses are recognized currently (appear on a current tax return). There are situations, however, when gains and losses are deferred (appear on a future tax return). Once gains and losses appear on a tax return, they are characterized as ordinary income/loss or capital gain/loss.

MPAc615 Project Management for Accounting Leadership

Successful and long-term career advancement in any profession will require the transition from this operational-level perspective to a management-oriented focus. At some point, organizational initiatives are implemented by assembling the various technical tasks required to complete the project’s deliverable. However, an important facet of the “assembly” is to arrange the tasks in the proper sequence coupled with the necessary time and resource requirements.

The focus of this course will be to leverage the technical skills gained through the various undergraduate accounting and business courses and the development of a new, project-level approach. Using an analogy, the goal of this course will transform the student’s perspective of a project from 1,000 feet to 30,000 feet.

MPAc620 Advanced Accounting Information Systems

This course focuses on competencies required to effectively and efficiently manage a complex business entity; using the technology as an enabler. AIS is a multi-disciplinary field of knowledge that engages accounting professionals, IT professionals, regulators, and others. The course challenges you to define or redefine AIS in light of new technological developments and the historic Sarbanes-Oxley Act that are changing the environment of financial reporting and assessing internal controls. The course also addresses some challenges of assurance services in an IT environment (IT auditing) and the technology that makes continuous reporting (CR) a possibility.

MPAc625 Government and Not-for-Profit Accounting

This course studies accounting problems and procedures pertaining to federal, state, and local governments as well as other funded entities (hospitals, universities, and non-profit organizations). Common financial and fund accounting principles, including those peculiar to funded activities will be compared.

MPAc630 Accounting Theory

To fully understand the process and products of financial accounting, one needs to understand the underlying concepts and choices that were made in arriving at currently accepted standards. The purpose of this course is to understand the role of accounting theory in setting accounting standards and to explore possible alternatives and the implications of those alternatives on policy and decision makers.

In this course we will examine the nuances of the commonly used terms, along with the choices available to standard setters and the rationale for the existing accounting standards. Topics of discussion will include the development of accounting theory and international accounting theory. We will also look closely at the recognition of income, and the balance sheet accounts. The course will have a research component using FARS.

MPAc635 Multinational Accounting

In this course, students examine the external and internal reporting problems associated with multinational business entities. This course includes an overview of the institutional structures that have evolved in response to international accounting problems; a review of relevant literature in the field; and the development of analytical skills for addressing international accounting policy issues.

MPAc640 Research and Communication

This course introduces students to accounting, audit, tax and other financial databases used for professional research. Students will begin developing the skills necessary to conduct appropriate professional research and translate this research into an organized and effective piece of oral or written communication. This course also analyzes the unique characteristics of business communication. Students use their knowledge to create several pieces of standard written business correspondence using appropriate supporting technology. Oral communication is studied with an emphasis on planning and presentation in different business settings.

MPAc645 Management Control Systems

This course examines the establishment of control systems in the modern organization that consider organizational goals and objectives, strategy, policy, control, and systems. Students go beyond the accounting system into the realm of management decision making.