Portland State University Master of Taxation in 2027

Portland State's Master of Taxation (MT) runs mostly online with one required weekend on campus each quarter, and its calendar is built around tax season and fall recruiting so you can finish in 12 months full time or 18 to 24 months part time.

Your program totals 45 credits: a 33-credit core in tax law and practice, and 12 credits of electives. Pacific Northwest public accountants, attorneys and corporate tax specialists helped shape it, and working practitioners teach alongside full-time faculty. You build a writing portfolio as you go and finish with a capstone case that you present to a panel of judges.

The winter and spring terms leave room for paid internships during tax season, so you can earn while you study. The school also notes that the program welcomes career-changers from law, corporate finance, consulting, investment advising, estate planning and entrepreneurship, not only accounting graduates.

The full rubric is on the methodology page.

It's an online program with required campus visits. Most coursework is asynchronous and online, and you attend one weekend residency in downtown Portland at the start of each quarter, which gives you face time with classmates and faculty without leaving your job.

Attendance at residency is required. The school describes its courses as using industry-standard technologies and reflecting the current state of tax law, so you move beyond annual tax returns and analyze issues at a strategic level.

You also get one-on-one advising and career preparation tools.

Who It Fits

• Accounting majors who need a fifth year: the program works as the extra year toward the 150 credit hours needed for CPA licensure, and you'll get a specialized master's degree instead of generic electives.
• Working professionals: coursework is mostly asynchronous and online, with a single on-campus weekend at the start of each quarter, so you keep your job.
• Students who want public accounting interviews: the summer start prepares you for fall interview season, and a graduate says the public accounting firms she interviewed with know the program.
• Career-changers and lawyers: students regularly arrive from law, corporate finance, consulting and estate planning, and the curriculum is grounded in primary source authority such as the Internal Revenue Code and Treasury regulations.

The 33-credit core starts with Tax Research and Writing, which covers professional online research tools and the rules for tax practitioners. Tax Accounting Methods and Periods covers cash, accrual and installment methods. Corporate Taxation I and II move through corporate operations, distributions, reorganizations, consolidated returns and anti-abuse provisions.

Pass-through Entities I and II cover partnerships, limited liability companies, allocations, loss limitations and distributions to retiring owners. Taxation of Property Transactions looks at basis, depreciation and recognition, and Financial Accounting for Income Taxes covers deferred tax assets, liabilities and valuation allowances. In the Professional Practices Seminar, you hear leading regional tax professionals talk about their careers.

Electives include Federal Tax Procedure, State and Local Taxation, International Taxation, Taxation of Real Estate Transactions and Taxation of Estates, Gifts, and Trusts, and a four-credit practicum places you in a public accounting firm or a company tax department. In the Tax Case Capstone, you and your team work on complex issues, coached by experienced tax professionals, and deliver a written memo and an oral presentation to a hypothetical client.

Courses the School Names

• Tax Research & Writing
• Corporate Taxation I and II
• Pass-through Entities I and II
• Tax Accounting Methods and Periods
• Financial Accounting for Income Taxes
• Tax Case Capstone

Standout Features

• Co-developed with Pacific Northwest public accountants, attorneys and corporate tax specialists
• Schedule synchronized with accounting recruiting cycles, with the winter term structured around tax season
• Writing portfolio built across the program, plus an application-focused capstone project

You can finish in 12 months as a full-time student or in 18 to 24 months part time. Full-time and part-time students can begin in the summer, and if you're part time, you can also begin in the fall. The calendar follows the profession.

The summer start gets you ready for fall interview season, the winter term is structured so you can work during tax season, and the spring term begins after April 15. Residencies happen in June, September, January and April, and the first session of each class term takes place in person during residency.

A school path called ACTG + MT lets Portland State accounting majors apply in their junior year and take up to 8 graduate taxation credits at the undergraduate tuition rate.

For the 45-credit program, Portland State says Oregon residents and applicants from the Western Interstate Commission for Higher Education (WICHE) states can expect tuition and fees around $35,954 full time or $37,122 part time. Non-residents and international students should expect between $43,694 and $44,862.

Federal data lists a graduate charge of $711 per credit at the university. The school's internships pay. If you're a student from Oregon or select Western states, a school article says the paid internship could cover nearly half of the program's cost.

You'll also find need-based and merit-based scholarships, graduate assistantships and on-campus student employment.

Portland State holds regional accreditation from the Northwest Commission on Colleges and Universities (NWCCU), and its School of Business has dual accreditation in business and accounting from AACSB. For the Class of 2025, the school reports that 85% of students were employed full time within 6 months of graduation. The school says the average starting salary was $80,200 among graduates who shared salary data, and 73% worked in accounting-tax roles.

About 64% work in the Portland metro area, and 43% were promoted or changed employers or functions within six months. Employers the school names include Moss Adams, Baker Tilly, Novogradac and EY. Faculty bios include former PricewaterhouseCoopers and KPMG tax professionals, law firm tax practice leaders and an Internal Revenue Service (IRS) subject matter expert.

Where this degree can lead: Masters in Taxation Jobs.

Graduates in a 2022 school article describe a program that's a fit for the profession. One said that all the public accounting firms she interviewed with know the program and value it highly. Another said being in the master's program gave her the confidence she needed to ace fall recruiting.

She added that completing the master's gave her confidence in her ability to accomplish more than she ever thought she could. In a 2026 school post, a current student named the International Taxation course as one of the most influential parts of her experience because it tied cross-border tax policy to real business challenges.

A 2022 school article adds that the program has the highest rate of post-graduation employment of any of the university's graduate business programs.

• Which residency weekends fall in June, September, January and April for my start term, and how far ahead are the dates posted?
• Should I begin in summer to prepare for fall interview season, or in fall on the part-time path?
• How do the paid internships work during winter and spring, and how do students find them?
• Which electives suit my goal, whether that is state and local taxation, international taxation or estate work?
• How will the 45 credits count toward the 150 credit hours needed for CPA licensure in my state?

• Best Master's in Taxation Rank 5 of 78, master's
• Online Master's in Taxation Rank 2 of 41, master's
• Accelerated Programs Rank 9 of 33, master's
• Part-Time Programs Rank 4 of 39, master's
• Best for Working Professionals Rank 4 of 46, master's
• Best for Parents Rank 4 of 46, master's
• Public University Programs Rank 5 of 35, master's
• AACSB Accredited Programs Rank 2 of 16, master's
• Internship or Practicum Rank 2 of 24, master's
• Master of Taxation Rank 2 of 8, master's

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