MSA Curriculum
11-16 Courses
31-44.5 Credits
Program Length:
Required Introductory Course (1 credit)
Must be taken on campus in first semester of program.
| SBS-700 | Unlocking Your Professional Potential | 1 |
Management Preparation Courses (4.5 credits)
May be waived.
| MBA-625 | Managerial Statistics | 1.5 |
| MBA-650 | Value Based Financial Management | 3 |
MSA Preparation Courses (9 credits)
May be waived.
MSA Core Courses (18 credits)
If a course is marked “must substitute,” select an elective following the rules outlined in the Elective Courses section.
Capstone Course (3 credits)
Should be taken as late in the program as possible.
| ACCT-861 | Leadership in the Financial Professions | 3 |
Elective Courses (9 credits)
The first elective must be an ACCT or TAX course. The second and third electives can be any courses from the Approved MSA Electives List. If a student received any "must substitute" under the MSA Core Courses section of this document, the fourth elective must be an ACCT course, the fifth elective must be a TAX course, and the sixth elective can be any course from the Approved MSA Electives List.
| ACCT-803 | Advanced Topics in Accounting | 3 |
| ACCT-806 | Fraud Examination | 3 |
| ACCT-807 | Forensic & Investigative Accounting | 3 |
| ACCT-824 | Big Data and Financial Statement Analytics | 3 |
| ACCT-825 | Management Decisions and Control | 3 |
| ACCT-827 | Special Topics in Accounting: Business Law & Taxation | 3 |
| ACCT-828 | Special Topics in Financial Accounting | 3 |
| ACCT-871 | Not-For-Profit and Governmental Accounting | 3 |
| ACCT-910 | Directed Individual Study in Accounting | 3 |
| ACCT-920 | Accounting Graduate Internship | 3 |
| TAX-802 | Taxation of Property Transactions | 3 |
| TAX-861 | Tax Research | 3 |
| TAX-862 | Taxation of Corporations | 3 |
| TAX-863 | Taxation of Pass-Through Entities | 3 |
| TAX-864 | Tax Practice and Procedures | 3 |
| TAX-865 | International Taxation Outbound | 3 |
| TAX-866 | State & Local Taxation | 3 |
| TAX-867 | Mergers & Acquisitions Taxation | 3 |
| TAX-871 | Taxation of Estates, Trusts and Gifts | 3 |
| TAX-878 | Tax Compliance | 3 |
| TAX-880 | Companies & Financial Products | 3 |
| TAX-881 | Accounting for Income Taxes | 3 |
| TAX-882 | Criminal Tax Investigations | 3 |
| TAX-883 | Introduction to International Taxation | 3 |
| MBA-730 | Innovative Thinking | 3 |
| BLLS-830 | Managing in the International Legal, Environment | 3 |
| BLLS-871 | Corporate Crime and Financial Fraud | 3 |
| ISOM-730 | Python for Business Analytics | 3 |
| ISOM-801 | Solving Business Problems Using Advanced Excel | 3 |
| ISOM-821 | Data Management and Modeling | 3 |
| ISOM-825 | Enterprise Data Management | 3 |
| ISOM-827 | Data Warehouse and Business Intelligence | 3 |
| ISOM-835 | Predictive Analytics | 3 |
| ISOM-837 | From Data Mining to Business Insights | 3 |
| ISOM-840 | Security and Privacy | 3 |
| ISOM-845 | Business Intelligence, Data Visualization, and Storytelling | 3 |
| ISOM-851 | Supply Chain Management | 3 |
| ISOM-861 | Project Management: Gaining Competitive Advantage | 3 |
| FIN-800 | Financial Statement Analysis and Valuation | 3 |
| FIN-801 | Money & Capital Markets | 3 |
| FIN-808 | General Theory in Corporate Finance | 3 |
| FIN-810 | Investment Analysis | 3 |
| FIN-812 | Capital Budgeting | 3 |
| FIN-814 | Options and Futures | 3 |
| FIN-816 | Risk Management in Banking and Finance | 3 |
| FIN-818 | Financial Econometrics | 3 |
| FIN-825 | International Finance | 3 |
| FIN-830 | Introduction to FinTech | 3 |
| FIN-831 | Portfolio Management | 3 |
| FIN-835 | Behavioral Finance | 3 |
| FIN-845 | Private Capital Markets | 3 |
| FIN-880 | Investment Banking | 3 |
| FIN-881 | Real Estate Finance | 3 |
| FIN-882 | Applied Risk Management | 3 |
| FIN-884 | Fixed Income Securities | 3 |
| FIN-885 | Enterprise Risk Management | 3 |
| FIN-887 | Fundamental Equity Analysis | 3 |
| MGES-802 | Corporate Entrepreneurship | 3 |
| MGES-803 | Think Like a Leader | 3 |
| MGOB-725 | Managerial Skills | 3 |
| MGOB-810 | Emotional Intelligence | 3 |
| MGOB-835 | Managing Difficult People at Work | 3 |
| MGOB-855 | Conflict & Negotiation | 3 |
| MGOB-860 | Leadership and Team Building | 3 |
| MGOB-866 | Managing Failure for Success | 3 |
| P.AD-815 | Nonprofit Management | 3 |
| P.AD-822 | Public Management Information Systems | 3 |
| P.AD-827 | Financing State & Local Government | 3 |
| P.AD-840 | Comparative Public Policy | 3 |
| P.AD-847 | Nonprofit Financial Management | 3 |
| P.AD-849 | Revenue Strategies for Nonprofits | 3 |
| MGSM-833 | Corporate Innovation | 3 |
| MGSM-834 | Mergers and Acquisitions | 3 |
| MBA-740 | Immerse- Travel Seminar | 3 |
| MGIB-835 | International Strategy | 3 |
| SBS-920 | Graduate Internship | 0 |
Approved Electives for the CPA Exam
Financial Accounting and Reporting (FAR) CPA Exam Section
| ACCT-803 | Advanced Topics in Accounting | 3 |
| ACCT-828 | Special Topics in Financial Accounting | 3 |
| ACCT-871 | Not-For-Profit and Governmental Accounting | 3 |
Regulation (REG) CPA Exam Section
| TAX-802 | Taxation of Property Transactions | 3 |
| TAX-862 | Taxation of Corporations | 3 |
| TAX-863 | Taxation of Pass-Through Entities | 3 |
| ACCT-827 | Special Topics in Accounting: Business Law & Taxation | 3 |
| TAX-881 | Accounting for Income Taxes | 3 |
Business Environment and Concepts (BEC) CPA Exam Section
Approved Electives for CMA Exam Preparation
| ACCT-803 | Advanced Topics in Accounting | 3 |
| ACCT-824 | Big Data and Financial Statement Analytics | 3 |
| ACCT-825 | Management Decisions and Control | 3 |
| FIN-808 | General Theory in Corporate Finance | 3 |
| FIN-812 | Capital Budgeting | 3 |
Concentrations
The MSA program requires three (3) electives as part of the degree program. Students may declare a concentration in Corporate Finance & Accounting, Business Intelligence, Forensic Accounting, or Governmental & Not-for-Profit Accounting. If a concentration is declared, three electives must be in one concentration area. The schedule of when courses within a concentration are offered vary by semester.
Students who declare a concentration must submit an SBS Graduate Program Concentration Request Form. Students are encouraged to meet with their advisor before they declare a concentration.
The concentration appears on the transcript, not the diploma.
Business Intelligence Concentration
Required Courses (6 credits)
| ACCT-824 | Big Data and Financial Statement Analytics | 3 |
| ISOM-821 | Data Management and Modeling | 3 |
Elective course (1 course, 3 credits)
Choose 1 course from the following list:
| ISOM-801 | Solving Business Problems Using Advanced Excel | 3 |
| ISOM-825 | Enterprise Data Management | 3 |
| ISOM-827 | Data Warehouse and Business Intelligence | 3 |
| ISOM-845 | Business Intelligence, Data Visualization, and Storytelling | 3 |
Corporate Accounting and Finance Concentration
Required Course (3 credits)
| ACCT-824 | Big Data and Financial Statement Analytics | 3 |
Elective Courses (2 courses, 6 credits)
Choose 2 electives from the following list:
Forensic Accounting Concentration
Required Course (3 credits)
Elective courses (2 courses, 6 credits)
Choose 2 courses from the following list:
| ACCT-807 | Forensic & Investigative Accounting | 3 |
| BLLS-871 | Corporate Crime and Financial Fraud | 3 |
| ISOM-840 | Security and Privacy | 3 |
| CJ-704 | Legal Issues in Criminal Justice System | 3 |
| ISOM-801 | Solving Business Problems Using Advanced Excel | 3 |
Government and Not-for-Profit Accounting Concentration
Required Course (3 credits)
| ACCT-871 | Not-For-Profit and Governmental Accounting | 3 |
Elective Courses (2 courses, 6 credits)
Choose 2 course from the following list:
| P.AD-827 | Financing State & Local Government | 3 |
| P.AD-847 | Nonprofit Financial Management | 3 |
| P.AD-849 | Revenue Strategies for Nonprofits | 3 |
Waiver Policy
Management Preparation and MSA Preparation Courses may be waived. MSA Core Courses may need to be substituted with approved electives. To waive a Management Preparation Course, a student must have successfully completed equivalent academic coursework at the undergraduate/graduate level in the seven (7) years prior to MSA matriculation, with a "B" or better. To waive an MSA Preparation Course, a student must have successfully completed equivalent academic coursework at the undergraduate/graduate level in the five (5) years prior to MSA matriculation, with a "B" or better. Exception: ACCT 800 will only be waived if a student has completed prior coursework at a U.S. university. To substitute an approved elective for an MSA Core Course, a student must have successfully completed equivalent academic coursework at the undergraduate/graduate level in the five (5) years prior to MSA matriculation, with a "B" or better. Exception ACIB 872 and TAX 801 will only be substituted if a student has completed prior coursework at a U.S. university.
Students must provide official transcripts (with English translation, if applicable). All waiver requests are evaluated upon a student's acceptance into the MSA Program. Students may also elect to take a proficiency exam for a fee, to gain a waiver for management preparation courses. Proficiency exams must be taken in the first semester and are administered on the Boston campus.
All MSA students must complete a minimum of 31 graduate credits (10 courses and SBS 700) in the Sawyer Business School.
Transfer Policy
Any candidate seeking transfer credits, taken at the graduate level from an AACSB-accredited MBA, MSA, MSF, or MST program, will be reviewed on a case-by-case basis. These credits may be considered for transfer if the credits do not apply to a previously completed degree.
Transfer credits must have an earned grade of with a "B" or better and have been taken within five (5) years prior to entering the Suffolk MSA program. However, at the discretion of the program director, MSA Core Courses may not be transferred if the subject material has changed significantly since completion. A maximum of six (6) credits of Elective or MSA Core Courses may be considered for transfer.
Transfer Credits from the Moakley Center for Public Management’s Certificate Programs
Students who have completed a certificate program through the Suffolk University Moakley Center for Public Management may have an opportunity to reduce credit requirements to an SBS graduate degree program (MBA, MMOL, MSA, MST, MHA, MSBA, or MSM). All course waivers and/or transfers vary by program and are reviewed on a case-by-case basis by the respective SBS Graduate Programs Office.
In order for a course to be considered, it must have an SBS graduate program course equivalent, the student must have earned a grade B or better, and the student must have successfully completed the certificate prior to enrolling in the SBS graduate degree program.
Applicants must also meet the admission standards for the SBS Graduate degree program to which they are applying.
Students Who Leave Boston Before Their Degree is Complete
Occasionally, Suffolk MSA students must leave the Boston area having not yet completed their degree. You may be able to transfer in six (6) credits of elective courses from an AACSB-accredited MSA close to your new place of residence. Courses must be pre-approved by Suffolk’s assistant dean of graduate programs and have a grade of "B" or better.
Students who leave the area may also complete all or a portion of their Suffolk MSA online on a part-time basis.