McCombs School of Business
Master in Professional Accounting (MPA)
MPA : Traditional MPA : Information for Current Students

Information for Current Students in the MPA Program

The following are MPA Program policies, procedures, and requirements for current students:
 
Late Registration Fee
Full-time Status
Adding or Dropping Courses or Withdrawing
Incompletes in Courses
Degree (Graduation) Requirements
GPA Requirements and Calculations
Sitting for the CPA Exam in Texas

Late Registration Fee

The fee for registering late during a long-session semester is as follows:  through the 4th class day—$25, 5th-12th class days—$50, and after 12th class day—$200.   The University receives no funding for students who register after the 12th class day.  Policies concerning adds & drops are not affected by the late registration fee.

Full-time Status

The MPA Program requires all students to register for and remain registered for no less than nine credit hours during a long-session semester, excluding the final semester.  No minimum course load is required in the summer, except under certain circumstances.  Please see the Graduate Catalog for more information.

Adding/Dropping Courses or Withdrawing

  • Before classes begin and during the first four class days of a long-session semester, a student may add or drop a course through ROSE as described in the course schedule. From the fifth through the twelfth class day, he or she may add or drop a course with the approval of the MPA Academic Advisor and of the department in which the course is given. After the twelfth class day, the student may add a course only under rare and extenuating circumstances approved by the MPA Program Director.
     
  • In each summer-session term, the student may add or drop a course through ROSE during the first two class days. On the third and fourth class days he or she may add or drop a course with the approval of the MPA Academic Advisor and of the department in which the course is given. After the fourth class day, the student may add a course only under rare and extenuating circumstances approved by the MPA Program Director.
     
  • A student may drop a course with the required approvals through the last class day. From the thirteenth through the twentieth class day of a long-session semester, and from the fifth through the tenth class day of a summer term, the student may drop a course with no academic penalty; the symbol Q is recorded. If the student drops a course after that time, the instructor determines whether a Q or an F should be recorded.
     
  • If the student is on scholastic probation, he or she may not drop a course without approval from the MPA Academic Advisor.
     
  • The student should note that dropping a course may cause his or her course load to drop below that required for full-time status.
     
  • Dropping an entire course load constitutes withdrawal from the University for that semester. To withdraw, the student must file with the MPA Academic Advisor a withdrawal petition, a form that also explains refund policies. The student may withdraw through the last class day. If the student abandons his or her courses without withdrawing, the instructor in each course determines the grade to record.
     
  • Students on scholastic probation may not withdraw without approval from the MPA Academic Advisor.

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Incompletes

Students who receive an incomplete (symbol X) in a course have one long semester to resolve that incomplete.  Failure to resolve an incomplete within its required time frame (the end of the grade reporting period for your next long semester of enrollment after getting the X) results in the conversion of the symbol X to the symbol I (permanent incomplete).  The symbol I cannot be converted into a grade.  When the symbol I has been recorded, the symbol X also remains on your permanent record.  Please refer to the Graduate Catalog for rules about the symbol X if you are not enrolled in a long semester due to a leave of absence.

Degree (Graduation) Requirements

  • Students may count a maximum of nine upper-division undergraduate hours toward their MPA degree but must receive prior approval from the MPA Academic Advisor to do so. The form for requesting approval of an undergraduate course is available in the MPA Program Office or is downloadable here: Form-Undergrad_Class_Approval.doc. If a graduate equivalent of a class is offered during the same semester, students must enroll in the graduate class. All courses that satisfy MPA degree requirements must be taken subsequent to entering the MPA program at UT.
     
  • A student who is granted a waiver or substitution for a core course will not receive degree credit, even as an elective, for this core course unless the student receives permission to do so from MPA Academic Advisor.
     
  • Students may complete a maximum of six hours of electives outside the Business School but must obtain permission in advance from the MPA Academic Advisor.  In the request for approval, students will be expected to explain how the proposed outside elective ties in with their career objectives and include a copy of the syllabus.  The form for requesting approval of a course outside the Business School is available in the MPA Program Office or is downloadable here: Form-Non-Bus_Class_Approv.doc.
     
  • One independent study (in addition to the internship course, ACC 391C-CR/NC) may be counted for credit toward the MPA degree.   An independent study that is completed in an accounting topic (ACC 391C) will count as a graduate accounting elective.  Before the semester starts, both the instructor and the MPA Academic Advisor must approve the independent study course to be completed that semester.  The approval form is available in the MPA Program Office or is downloadable here: Request_for_ACC391C_691C_Registration.doc  The basis for determining the course grade must be included on the form.
     
  • An internship course (ACC 391C-CR/NC) will be counted as a graduate business elective toward the MPA degree, NOT as a graduate accounting elective.  However, for eligibility to sit for the CPA exam in Texas, three hours of internship credit WILL count toward the requirement of 30 hours in accounting.  Please see the CPA Exam section below for more information.  All internship courses are offered on a credit/no credit basis, and only one internship course may count toward the MPA degree. Academic credit is not available for any internship opportunity during a student's final semester.  For more information about internships, please visit our internship information website.
     
  • With the exception of the internship course (ACC 391C-CR/NC), students must complete all courses counted toward the MPA degree on the letter-grade basis.  Additional courses that are not required for the MPA degree may be taken on the credit/no credit-basis (CR/NC) only if the professor gives consent.
     
  • Only courses in which the student earns a grade of C or better may be included in the Program of Work for the MPA degree.
     
  • A student may not repeat for credit a course in which he or she has earned a grade of C or better
     
  • Students who are unable to complete all MPA degree requirements in the semester for which they applied for graduation should check with the MPA Academic Advisor about the implications of a later graduation date.

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GPA Calculations and Requirements

Three separate GPA's are calculated while a student is in the MPA program. In order to graduate from the program, a student must obtain a GPA of 3.0 or better in all three categories. Please note that effective fall 2005, a plus/minus grading system was approved for graduate students enrolled in graduate-level courses. For more information, please visit the Office of Graduate Studies website.

  • Graduate GPA: Beginning Fall 1999, the University will calculate the Graduate GPA on the basis of ALL graduate-level courses taken as a graduate student at UT-Austin in which a student has earned a letter grade.  (If graduate-level courses were completed at UT prior to enrolling in the MPA program, these courses will be included in the calculation of the Graduate GPA.)
     
    Prior to the Fall 1999 semester, all undergraduate upper-division courses taken during the course of a student's graduate studies were also included in the Graduate GPA.  Those undergraduate upper-division courses taken during a student's graduate studies prior to Fall 1999 will continue to count in the calculation of the Graduate GPA.  Those undergraduate upper-division courses taken during a student's graduate studies from Fall 1999 on will no longer count in the calculation of the Graduate GPA.  (Upper-division courses have as their middle digit the numbers 2 through 7.)
     
  • MPA GPA: The MPA GPA is calculated on the basis of all undergraduate upper-division courses and all graduate-level courses taken during the MPA program of work.  The MPA GPA excludes other UT graduate-level courses taken prior to enrollment in the MPA program.
     
  • Accounting GPA: The Accounting GPA is calculated on the basis of all accounting classes taken during the MPA program of work.  This GPA includes both undergraduate upper-division accounting courses and graduate-level accounting courses.  BA 384T and an independent study completed in an accounting topic (ACC 391C) also count in the Accounting GPA.
     
  • Any lower-division course grades (e.g. ACC 311) do NOT count in the Graduate GPA, the MPA GPA or the Accounting GPA.  (Lower-division courses have as their middle digit the number 0 or 1.)

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Sitting for the CPA Exam in the State of Texas

(For CPA exam requirements in the state of Texas, please see our website related to CPA Exam Eligibility.  For CPA exam requirements in states other than Texas, please refer to the State Board of the state in which you plan to sit for the exam.)

  • All course requirements for sitting for the CPA exam must be completed BEFORE the time a candidate registers to take the exam.
     
  • Up to three hours of an internship course may be counted in the 30 hours of accounting (beyond elementary) required for taking the CPA exam, provided the internship complies with a number of detailed requirements specified by the Texas State Board of Public Accountancy.  If the internship is in taxation, the hours are viewed as part of the taxation component of the accounting requirement.  The maximum number of tax hours that can count in the 30 hours of accounting is 12.  Likewise, a maximum of 12 hours of accounting systems courses, including management info systems, can count in the 30 required accounting hours.
     
  • If the internship course is counted toward the accounting or business hours for the CPA exam educational requirement, the internship hours cannot count towards the work experience requirement for obtaining the CPA license in Texas.
     
  • The MPA program has received an interpretation from the Texas State Board that BA 384T, ACC 381 and ACC 387.1 at The University of Texas at Austin are NOT viewed as elementary accounting and, thus, do count in the 30 hours of accounting.
     
  • As of July 1, 2005, requirements to sit for the CPA exam in Texas will be changing.  Please visit the Texas State Board of Public Accountancy web site for more details.  If you have any questions about qualifying to sit for the CPA exam under these new requirements, please contact the MPA Academic Advisor.

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