P O R T L A N D S TAT E U N I V E R S I T Y
2016 Spring
www.pdx.edu/sba
ACCOUNTING ALUMNI NEWSLETTER NEW MASTERS OF TAXATION PROGRAM STARTS FALL 2017 PSU RESPONDS TO COMMUNITY NEED
Since 2001, the IRS has made close to five thousand changes to the tax code, which now spans more than sixty-five thousand pages and nearly four million words. In order to confidently navigate this increasingly complex and dynamic landscape, professionals clearly need more advanced knowledge than can be fit into the curricula of most undergraduate accounting programs. At the same time, the industry is experiencing advances in technology along with the trend toward off shoring tax preparation, which previously served as an on-the-job training ground for entry level professionals. This calls for specialized education in the early career years to fill the gap. As Terri Oen, Tax Partner-in-Charge at KPMG Portland, notes: “The vast majority of employers now prefer, or even require entry level tax professionals to have an advanced degree.”
Portland State’s new MT will continue the strong technical focus of the MT program the school had been offering from the late 1970s through the late 1990s, which graduated hundreds of successful students and delivered advanced tax education for many more. Both the content and structure of the new MT program have been shaped by extensive interaction with the region’s public accounting and corporate tax community. Designed for effectiveness and accessibility, its innovative format combines online coursework and a highly flexible schedule with quarterly weekend residencies that foster community among the cohort. This hybrid approach opens the program to students outside the Portland metro area, while leveraging our downtown campus as a strong connection point with experts from the local practice community to teach in the program along with our high-caliber core faculty. Applications for fall 2017 open October 1, 2016.
But as industry leaders right here in the Portland metro area have been telling us, finding those professionals to hire is a challenge since there are few graduate taxation programs currently available in the region and none in Oregon. True to Portland State’s reputation as being responsive to the community’s needs, we are excited to launch a new Masters of Taxation program starting in the fall of 2017. In this challenge, we see an immense opportunity to offer a compelling path for entry level or early career stage professionals to accelerate their careers or pivot toward a sought-after specialization. Terri Oen observes that “Students who have completed these programs position themselves well in the marketplace for entry level jobs in the profession.”
What’s Inside
LETTER FROM THE DIRECTOR FACULTY ON THE MOVE
FACULTY UPDATES ALUMNI NEWS FRIENDS OF THE ACCOUNTING PROGRAM
AWARD WINNING BAP STUDENTS