How We Rank Masters in Taxation Programs in 2027

Tax Specialization, 15%

How much of the degree is courses mainly about tax or tax law, judged from a summary of the school's own pages (its courses, plan of study and hands-on work). Accounting, business and general law courses don't count, and neither does the degree's title. A language model rates that summary on a fixed five-step scale, one program at a time, the same way for every program; each step is 2.5 on the 0 to 10 bar.

• Tax is a small part: three or fewer dedicated tax courses
• A tax concentration inside a broader degree: four or five tax courses
• About half the degree is tax: six or seven tax courses
• Mostly tax: eight or nine tax or tax law courses
• A full tax degree: ten or more tax courses, or nearly every course is tax
• A program whose school lists fewer than four courses scores at the peer median

Tax Subject Coverage, 15%

How many of eight core subjects the courses cover: research and procedure, corporate, pass-through, individual, estate and gift, international, state and local, and tax accounting or technology. Judged from a summary of the school's own pages (its courses, plan of study and hands-on work). A language model rates that summary on a fixed five-step scale, one program at a time, the same way for every program; each step is 2.5 on the 0 to 10 bar.

• Two or fewer subjects
• Three or four subjects
• Five subjects
• Six or seven subjects
• All eight subjects
• A program whose school lists fewer than four courses scores at the peer median

Hands-On Tax Practice, 10%

The hands-on tax work the school describes: tax clinics, internships and externships, real-case capstones, competitions, and practicing tax professionals on the faculty. Judged from a summary of the school's own pages (its courses, plan of study and hands-on work). A language model rates that summary on a fixed five-step scale, one program at a time, the same way for every program; each step is 2.5 on the 0 to 10 bar.

• No applied tax work stated beyond regular courses
• One general applied element, such as an internship option or a capstone
• A tax-specific applied element, such as a tax clinic, a tax internship or a real-case capstone
• Two or more applied elements
• Extensive applied work, such as several of the above plus competitions, firm or IRS partnerships, or a faculty made up mainly of practicing tax professionals

Cost, 20%

Total tuition: the published per-credit rate a non-resident student pays times the credits the degree requires, on a log scale between the 5th and 95th percentile of the level, lowest scoring highest. Master's programs run from 24 to 54 credits, so the whole degree is compared, not just the rate, and small price gaps don't swing a score.

• Uses the published per-credit rate, the non-resident one when a school charges two, times the program's credits; in-state rates are shown but not scored
• When a school publishes no per-credit rate, the out-of-state per-credit charge it reports to the Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS) is used instead
• A program with a rate but no credit count uses its published total tuition, if it has one
• Programs with no price score as if they cost more than most of their peers (the 25th percentile of the cost factor)
• Fees are noted on each review but not added to tuition

Graduate Earnings, 10%

Median earnings of the school's graduates in this field and at this degree level, four years after completion (or one year after, where that is the figure Scorecard publishes), from the U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard. Scored on a dollar scale between the 5th and 95th percentile of the degree level.

• Measured for this field at this school, not school-wide
• Scorecard withholds small graduating classes; those programs score at the peer median

Credential Alignment, 10%

Accreditation that fits the degree plus a stated path to a tax or accounting credential. For business-school degrees, accreditation from the Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business (AACSB) with stated Certified Public Accountant (CPA) or Enrolled Agent preparation scores highest, then AACSB alone, then International Accreditation Council for Business Education (IACBE) or Accreditation Council for Business Schools and Programs (ACBSP) accreditation, then a stated credential path alone. Law schools cannot hold business accreditation, so a Master of Laws or Master of Studies in Law from a law school on the American Bar Association's approved list scores the same as AACSB alone.

• AACSB accredited with stated CPA or Enrolled Agent preparation: 10
• AACSB accredited: 9
• Law degree from a law school on the American Bar Association's approved list (not on a teach-out plan): 9
• ACBSP or IACBE accredited with stated CPA or Enrolled Agent preparation: 8
• ACBSP or IACBE accredited: 7
• Stated CPA or Enrolled Agent preparation: 6
• Other certification preparation stated: 4
• None stated: 3

Track Record, 10%

IPEDS completions per year in this field and degree level, on a log scale between the 5th and 95th percentile of the level. Schools with no completions data score at the peer median.

• Completions are summed across the in-scope CIP codes at the level
• A log scale keeps very large programs from swamping small ones

Program Reputation, 10%

A reputation rating for each program on a five-step scale, from little-known to among the most recognized in the field. It is produced by a language model that reads the program's facts (degree, business or field accreditation, what the program page says) and what is publicly known about the school's standing in the field, one program at a time, the same way for every program. Percentile inside the degree level.

• Rated program by program, in the field, not for the school as a whole
• Each program is rated on its own, so the rating never depends on which programs it was compared with
• Programs that have not been rated score at the peer median

Each factor is scored on a 0 to 10 bar. The weighted total of those bars, times 10, is the Program Score out of 100, built from eight factors: tax specialization, tax subject coverage, hands-on tax practice, cost, graduate earnings, credential alignment, track record, and program reputation. It isn't scaled to the top program, so no program reads 100 unless it's the best on every factor.

Programs are scored against other programs at the same level: master's.

The Missing-Input Rule

A factor with no published data for a program is scored at the peer median at full weight and is not displayed, so a program cannot rise in the ranking because a number is unpublished. Cost is stricter: an unpublished price scores at the 25th percentile, as if the program costs more than most.

The No-Price Rule

A program with no published price cannot outscore the best program that does publish one.

Tie-Breakers

Ties are broken by the overall score, then Cost, then Graduate Earnings, then program name.

Each factor score times its weight gives the points, and the points add up to the published score of 77.6 out of 100. Nothing is rescaled, so the score means the same thing on every list. Read the full California State University-Fullerton review.

73 of 78 programs carry an audit record. Each review lists the pages we verified and the date, under Sources.

Graduate Earnings is measured for this field at each school, and federal data withholds it for small graduating classes. The tax-training factors rate what each school publishes about its courses. Track Record reflects how many students finish this field each year, not how good the program is. Prices are the published per-credit rate times the credits the degree takes; fees are noted on each review but not scored.

Credential Alignment reflects what a school states about accreditation and exam preparation. Certification and licensing rules change, so confirm them with the certifying body.