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Stillman School of Business

Message from the Chair

These are exciting times for the Department of Accounting and Taxation of the Stillman School of Business at Seton Hall University. The Stillman School of Business is fully accredited by AACSB International—the Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business. We offer high-quality undergraduate and graduate programs in accounting, with small classes, experienced teaching-oriented faculty, a strong recruiting record, and a focus on systems technology. We are dedicated to the demands of excellence and rigor in the classroom and to ensuring our programs are accessible to those of all backgrounds.

We offer undergraduate students an outstanding bachelor's program, as well as a minor in accounting. On the graduate level, we offer an MBA degree with an accounting concentration, an MS in Accounting, an MS in Professional Accounting, an MS in Taxation as well as a separate Certificate in Graduate Taxation. Qualified students may complete our MS in Professional Accounting joint degree program, which combines an undergraduate and a graduate degree.

Our programs, part of the AACSB-accredited Stillman School of Business, are rigorous and challenging, requiring hard work and commitment by our students. Knowing our high standards, recruiters have helped us to achieve near-100% hiring rate in the accounting profession before graduation. In addition to focusing on traditional accounting topics that all accounting students are expected to learn, we focus on building students' analytic skills, helping them to understand and interpret the meaning of accounting information. More importantly, we carefully build students' writing and speaking skills, so that every course in our Department has a writing component, and many require some speech communication.

All undergraduates at Seton Hall University receive laptop computers. We take advantage of this technology by helping students to build their spreadsheet and technology skills. Furthermore, in response to recruiter input, we require undergraduate students to complete two courses in accounting information technology.

Many important aspects of our program distinguish us from our peers. Our faculty constantly innovates, continuously improving their courses using progressive learning methods and useful technological tools. We have recently added a second course in accounting information systems, redesigned our introduction to financial accounting course and expanded our international focus by adding a course dealing with accounting in the Middle East.

In addition to meeting the current New Jersey and future New York 150 credit hour requirements, we have enhanced our various courses to be closely aligned with the topics on both the New Jersey and New York CPA examinations.

A hallmark of Seton Hall and the Stillman School is its focus on ethics. All undergraduate students must complete a business ethics course, and most of our courses include components about business ethics.

Most important to this success is the quality faculty teaching in our Department. Many of our faculty have attended top PhD programs, and top law programs, such as New York University and the College of William and Mary. They regularly publish quality research, but also carefully focus their attention on quality teaching. Most of our classes have 20 to 25 students, and few have more than 30 students. Faculty make themselves available to meet with students regularly.

We are located just 14 miles from New York City. Almost all of our students have full-time jobs, in the accounting profession, well before graduation. Most join the Big-4 accounting firms, while others join Fortune 100 companies in Northern New Jersey or New York City. Our Beta Alpha Psi chapter helps students to build close relationships with national recruiters, and our geographical location helps students to find jobs easily.

The Department offers working professionals many opportunities to take online courses that accommodate their busy schedules. We have a particular interest in developing alternative delivery systems for the various degree programs to make them easily assessable and convenient programs that might meet the active schedules of working professionals. These include state-of-the-art computer-based instruction and our Instructional Television (ITV) classroom. We offer many classes on weekday evenings, Saturdays and during the summer months.

Read on. You'll find that our combination of quality teaching, world-class faculty, use of technology, emphasis on information systems and successful recruiting is unique among accounting programs. If you seek to begin a career in accounting or taxation or to build your expertise as a practicing accountant, attorney, or financial planner, it will be worth your time to learn more about our world-class programs to begin or further your career.

As of July 1, 2000, applicants for a New Jersey CPA license are required to have at least 150 credit hours of education, including a baccalaureate or higher degree from an institution of higher education accredited by AACSB, ACBSP or other accrediting agency recognized by the State Board of Accountancy and completed at least the following:

  • 24 semester hours in accounting at the undergraduate or graduate level, including courses covering the subjects of financial accounting, auditing, taxation and management accounting;
  • 24 semester hours of business courses or substantially equivalent (other than accounting) courses at the undergraduate or graduate level.

https://www.njcpa.org/become-a-cpa/requirements

Similarly, after August 1, 2009, applicants for the New York CPA license are required to have at least 150 credit hours of education, including a baccalaureate or higher degree and to have completed at least the following:

  • 33 semester hours in accounting with courses in financial accounting theory and principles (including advanced financial accounting), managerial accounting, U.S. federal tax accounting, auditing and computer auditing;
  • 36 semester hours in general business electives including business statistics, commercial law, computer science, economics, and finance and
  • The curriculum must also include the study of business/accounting communications, ethics/professional responsibility, and accounting research.

https://www.op.nysed.gov/certified-public-accountants