Department of Accounting

Welcome to Accounting

Best Value Program in Accounting #42 (2022)

Best Value Accounting Bachelor’s Degree Schools in Tennessee #1 (2022)

Best Value Accounting Master’s Degree Schools in Tennessee #2 (2022)

The Accounting Profession and MTSU’s Programs

Accountants perform all kinds of high demand tasks including preparing and analyzing financial records, auditing internal and external reports, providing tax, financial and management advice and investigating fraud in all types of businesses – for-profit and not-for-profit. The accounting profession is frequently highlighted in today’s news media and recent events clearly indicate the importance of accounting in today’s society and financial markets. Accounting is a growing and dynamic profession that offers graduates a wide variety of career options. Our graduates are recruited by over a hundred companies in the metropolitan Nashville area. See who! Recruiters Average starting salaries are as follows:

Degree	Average Salary	% Employment Reported at Graduation
MAcc	$62,143	100%
Undergraduate	$55,250	90%

The Accounting Department offers both the BBA in Accounting and the Master in Accountancy (MAcc) degrees. The M.Acc. program courses are offered online, on campus or a combination of both. The Department has recently revised both our undergraduate and graduate curriculum to allow students more flexibility in tailoring their accounting program to meet personal career interests.

About Our Department

The Department of Accounting of the Jones College of Business at Middle Tennessee State University seeks to be the premier center for excellence in the fields of Accounting and Business Law in the Middle Tennessee region

The mission of the Department of Accounting of the Jones College of Business at Middle Tennessee State University is to:

Prepare students technically, ethically, and professionally for successful careers in accounting through affordable accounting programs at the undergraduate and graduate levels;
Cultivate a student-centric learning environment where faculty interact with students as individuals, through innovative and effective pedagogy;
Produce research and perform service that engages and positively impacts the university, the accounting profession, and the broader community; and
Offer a flexible graduate program that develops students’ decision making and communication skills and provides a path to professional accounting certifications.

Download the plan!

Want to be a Certified Public Accountant (CPA)?

Tennessee requires that students complete 150 semester hours (30 more than a traditional BBA) before receiving their CPA license. The Department encourages students to meet this requirement by earning a M.Acc. degree, though the requirement can also be met by pursuing additional coursework beyond the bachelor’s degree in other areas.

In Tennessee, you can start sitting for the 4-part CPA exam as soon as you have a bachelor’s degree, 24 hours of business and 24 hours of upper level accounting courses. Our MAcc has four CPA Review courses that help you pass the CPA exam, and prepare you to begin your accounting and financial analysis career! Our students are very successful on the CPA exam. Here are the latest scores according to NASBA:

CPA Exam Pass Rates

2019	MTSU	Comparables	Competitors	Aspirants
All Testing Events	59.0%	48.9%	53.9%	56.5%
First-Time	66.5%	53.8%	55.5%	63.3%
AUD	62.7%	57.1%	53.3%	58.8%
BEC	69.2%	55.8%	60.0%	75.6%
FAR	61.2%	45.0%	50.8%	56.4%
REG	74.4%	59.4%	57.7%	66.8%

Contact Me!

You may contact me at Sandy.Benson@mtsu.edu or (615) 898-2348 to learn more about our programs or visit the Department of Accounting located on the fourth floor of the Business and Aerospace Building, N425, during regular business hours.

—Sandy Benson, Interim Chair