Doctoral Program: Admissions
OverviewEvaluation Criteria
Visits and Admissions
OVERVIEW
The size of the accounting program is limited by faculty size and resource constraints, given the Department's policy to provide financial aid to all resident Ph.D. students in good standing. The Department is committed to close student-faculty relationships, with quality teaching and expert guidance for each individual student. Thus, Ph.D. course sizes are deliberately kept small. The total program size typically ranges between 15 and 20 doctoral students.
Admission to the Ph.D. program in accounting is based upon a holistic review by the Ph.D. Admissions Committee of several factors, including the applicant's motivations for doctoral study as evidenced on the Statement of Purpose, academic and work experience as evidenced on the resume, academic credentials as evidenced on transcripts and GMAT reports, and impressions as evidenced on letters of reference.
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A typical profile of a successful Ph.D. applicant would include the following:
- Well-motivated statement of purpose, explaining why the applicant wants to pursue Ph.D. study and how the applicant's background relates to particular interests in facets of accounting (e.g., financial accounting, management accounting, audit / assurance, or taxation) and research methods (e.g., empirical / archival research, experimentation, or analytic modeling).
- Solid academic background and grades, evidencing a meaningful exposure to accounting as well as training in communication skills and mathematics.
- Solid performance on the GMAT, with reasonable balance between the quantitative and verbal dimensions. Successful applicants generally score above 650 on the GMAT, and often score 700 or higher. However, the Admissions Committee does not impose any GMAT cutoff score, and considers the GMAT as only one of many credentials evaluated in the context of the applicant's academic, career, and socio-economic background.
- Letters of recommendation that provide credible evidence of the applicant's potential as an effective teacher and researcher.
- Some meaningful work experience in accounting, while not a requirement, is a plus at the margin when comparing applicants of similar credentials in other dimensions. Successful applicants generally have at least one and often two or more years of full-time work experience in some facet of external or internal financial reporting, auditing / assurance services, or taxation.
VISITS AND ADMISSIONS
If the applicant's location permits, promising prospective applicants are often invited to campus at University expense. Meetings can be arranged with the Ph.D. Advisor, faculty members, and current Ph.D. students.
The Department admits applicants on a "rolling" basis until the entering class is filled, typically consisting of three to five new Ph.D. students each year.
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