 TU
+ UB = M.S.
Partnership
to benefit students, region
Forty-two graduate students
are shuttling between campuses in Baltimore County and Baltimore
City as part of a newly launched dual Master of Science degree program
in Accounting and Business Advisory Services.
The TU-University of Baltimore
collaboration will enable graduates to attain the 150 hours of coursework
required to sit for the CPA examination.
"Most bachelor's
degree programs require 120 credit hours, so alumni have had to
look elsewhere for the additional 30 hours of coursework,"
says Martin Freedman, the TU professor of accounting who directs
the program.
"TU and UB decided
to pool their academic resources to address this specific need,"
he says. Subcommittees at both USM institutions developed the program
in response to Accounting Education Change Commission recommendations
and the new computerized CPA exam.
Freedman says students
may enroll in courses at either institution, but must take no fewer
than 12 credit hours sponsored by TU or UB out of the 30 required
to earn the new degree. "The USM has strict rules about
what constitutes a joint program," he adds. "It has to
be a 50-50 partnership."
Both TU and UB offer classes
in the evenings to accommodate students' work and family schedules.
Freedman estimates that those taking two courses per semester can
complete their degree requirments in about two-and-a-half years,
perhaps sooner if they attend during the summer.
Although it was designed
for those who had earned bachelor's degrees in acccounting, the
new M.S. program has attracted students from other disciplines as
well, says Freedman. "We've enrolled people from other
colleges and universities, and we have some with non-business degrees
who are taking all the accounting prerequisites as a prelude to
graduate-level work. That was surprising."
But whatever their motivations,
Freedman says graduate students will derive enormous benefits from
the TU-UB partnership. "Our faculties' combined expertise make
it possible to deliver a much richer experience than either could
individually," he says. "It's good for students, for TU
and UB, and for the region our universities serve."
Story
by Jan Lucas
Logo courtesy of University
of Baltimore
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