MAcc Program Overview

MAcc Students

The program includes a mix of technical accounting courses, soft skill development, and the integration of knowledge in strategy courses. The MAcc program will prepare you for a career in professional accounting where you must have technical accounting expertise and the ability to apply this knowledge in complex accounting and organizational programs. At the end of the MAcc program, you'll be ready to tackle the Common Final Exam.

What to Expect

While the technical material will be delivered primarily in a lecture format, the majority of the learning will be through the application of knowledge and in-class discussion. Team-based learning will be encouraged in most courses. Classes are kept small, with ~30 students admitted each year, allowing you to work closely and build strong relationships with your classmates. Case studies will be used extensively and guest speakers will be brought in to enhance the learning experience.

The MAcc covers all the material of the Professional Education Program as well as supporting courses in Strategy, Negotiations, and Project Management. These courses help round out your overall knowledge base and are areas identified by employers as key skills. This gives you an advantage and helps you stand out amongst your peers. Since the MAcc program is completely accredited by CPA, students are eligible to write the Common Final Exam (CFE) immediately following the completion of the MAcc program.

2022 Year One Schedule

2022 Year Two Schedule

CPA Accredited

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 MAcc Course Descriptions

ACCTG 601: Case Studies in Accounting

This course examines financial statements from the perspective of both preparers and users of financial information. Firstly a firm understanding of accounting methods under each of IFRS and ASPE is developed as a basis for analysis. Ratio and trend analysis is then applied to the financial statements to establish functional relations between the accrual process and the economic position of an incorporated entity. Consequently, the course provides a framework for using accounting information to evaluate a firm.

The course starts with a review of financial accounting concepts, principles, processes, and financial statements. Then it introduces ratio and trend analysis to evaluate the current financial health of an entity. The course then turns to in-depth analysis of the accounting treatment of various income statement, balance sheet and off-balance sheet items to evaluate the appropriateness of such treatment and the effects of chosen accounting methods on the financial statements of the entity.

ACCTG 625: Performance Management
The objective of performance management is to equip students with the ability to contribute to strategic decision-making, support effective governance, manage and mitigate risk, and assess overall performance. Candidates will apply conceptual frameworks for strategy, governance, risk, and performance in more complex settings than dealt with previously, developing competencies used to focus an entity on improving performance and delivering sustainable value. The course will look at the process of performance management from the establishment of vision, mission and goals; the strategic methods used to achieve these goals; the management of costs and revenues; measurement of individual and organizational performance; evaluation of performance and reporting of performance.
ACCTG 657: Advanced Auditing
Covers advanced topics in internal control/audit, external assurance engagements, audit and assurance service planning, and preparation of financial reports. Analysis of accounting policies and transactions and the role of audit committees and other corporate governance mechanisms will be discussed.
ACCTG 662: Strategic Tax Planning
The course provides a general economic background to embed the consideration of tax provisions in organizational decision-making. The concepts learned should be applicable and transferable to different tax regimes. Applications include showing how better decisions can be made by applying tax planning concepts and knowledge of specific tax regimes to investment decisions, compensation planning, choice of organizational form, and mergers and acquisitions. International tax planning is also covered.
FIN 625: Finance in Professional Accounting

Finance in Professional Accounting is designed to build on a student's previous knowledge developed through their pre-requisite accounting and finance courses. The course will focus on expanding a student's current finance knowledge and developing their competence in applying this knowledge to problems and cases.

Professional accountants advise entities in the process of making finance-related decisions to support them in achieving key business objectives. FIN 625 will build the knowledge that a student requires to assess complex finance issues and advise businesses appropriately. The major course topics will include: treasury management, evaluating sources of financing, financial management, capital budgeting, corporate financial transactions, earnings distribution, derivatives, fixed income, and financial risk management.

OM 604: Bargaining and Negotiation
This course is a blend of both experiential learning and theory with the objective of making the student more effective in all types of bargaining. A study of positive theories on how to improve negotiation skills will be combined with analytical models of the game theoretic structure of bargaining. Through this mix of theories and several case studies and bargaining exercises, students will see both the opportunities for joint gain (win-win) and the constraints which can lead to inferior outcomes.
OM 624: Project Management
OM 624 will be offered as an exclusive course for MAcc students to provide an overview of how to successfully manage projects. As projects are the way in which organizations implement their strategic objectives, the course will include a look at topics such as the links between strategy and projects, business case evaluations, managing project and product scope, project scheduling, cost management, risk management, stakeholder engagement, project communication and project team management.
ACCTG 605: Accounting and Business Strategy
Using a combination of theoretical frameworks and case study examples, the course is designed to provide students with the knowledge and tools necessary to assess an organization's purpose and values; formulate and evaluate an organization's strategies; translate strategies into specific business objectives and action plans; analyze the effectiveness and alignment of an organization's strategy implementation process; assess the role of the organization's corporate governance policies and processes in achieving strategic objectives, and ensure the management and governance of an organization's economic, environmental and social sustainability.
ACCTG 688: CPA Capstone 1
This course prepares students for the CFE, particularly Day 1. Capstone 1 will continue the development of students' enabling competencies, with a strong focus on leadership and teamwork, professional and ethical behaviour, problem-solving, decision-making and communication competencies. It will also continue the development of students' integration of technical competency areas. This will be achieved through the simulation of an authentic business problem, including gathering and evaluating relevant information, developing a written report and preparing an oral presentation suitable for delivery to a board of directors or senior management team.
ACCTG 689: CPA Capstone 2
This course continues to prepare students for the CFE. It is designed to allow students to apply the skills and competencies learned throughout the Master of Accounting program to highly integrated cases, by way of reviewing, writing, and debriefing cases. Students will practice writing the three types of cases they will face on the CFE. In addition to the technical competencies, students will continue to develop enabling competencies during this course.