University at Albany Master of Science in Taxation in 2027

The University at Albany's Master of Science in Taxation (MS Tax) has trained accountants since 1986 in a 30-credit cohort that most students finish in one year. Working tax attorneys and a former Internal Revenue Service (IRS) agent teach, and graduates have gone to the Big Four, mid-size firms, corporations and government.

The University at Albany (UAlbany) Massry School of Business runs this program in Albany, New York, and it's provided accountants with tax expertise since 1986. You move through it as part of a cohort over two semesters of full-time study, or you can spread it over two or more years if you work in the field.

The school says its tax courses are taught by the pros, so you learn from practicing tax attorneys and a former IRS agent who bring real-world experience to class. An advisory council that includes representatives from international accounting firms, industry and the IRS reviews the tax program, so your coursework stays tied to what employers expect.

The program is accredited by Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business (AACSB), as are all of the school's accounting programs, and it meets the education requirements for CPA licensure in New York. A significant number of graduates are placed with Big Four, medium-size and regional CPA firms, as well as corporate tax practices and governmental entities.

Named employers include Deloitte, Ernst & Young (EY), KPMG and PricewaterhouseCoopers, mid-size firms such as BDO, RSM and CBIZ, corporations such as Comcast, IBM and Moody's, and agencies such as the IRS, the U.S. Department of the Treasury and the New York State Department of Taxation and Finance.

The program graduates about 35 students annually, and most go on to enter taxation practices. Federal College Scorecard data show median earnings of $109,679 four years after completion for taxation master's graduates who received federal aid.

Where this degree can lead: Masters in Taxation Jobs.

Who It Fits

• Accounting graduates aiming for a New York CPA license: the program is registered with the New York State Education Department and meets the 150-semester-hour education requirement, and it qualifies you to apply for the Uniform CPA Examination.
• Full-time students who want a fast route: the cohort format completes the 30 credits over two semesters, and most students finish in one year.
• Working accountants with three years of experience: part-time study is open to students with a minimum of three years of full-time work in accounting, and it can be completed in two or more years.
• Students who like a legal angle: you can take a tax law course each semester at Albany Law School, and recruiters and alumni say that exposure sets graduates apart.

Four required tax courses form the center of the degree. Principles of Tax Research emphasizes practical research projects and case studies, from primary and secondary authority to computer research databases and the oral and written presentation of conclusions.

In Corporate Taxation you'll cover the formation, operation and liquidation of C and S corporations, when to make an S election, dividends and stock redemptions, and get an introduction to reorganizations, consolidated returns and New York State and multistate taxation. In Taxation of Partnerships you'll look at partners and partnerships through formation, operation and liquidation, including liability sharing and distributive shares.

Seminar in Tax and Financial Planning closes the core, and you'll study planning techniques for individual taxpayers and business entities, including equity-based compensation and the choice of entity.

The rest of your 30 credits split into two tax electives, two accounting electives and two business electives. Tax choices include Tax Practice and Procedure, Estate and Gift Taxation, International Taxation and State and Interstate Taxation.

Service Learning and Community Engagement in Taxation puts you into a semester-long project such as IRS Voluntary Income Tax Assistance (VITA), and Research Seminar in Accounting is a capstone built on academic research, a report and an oral presentation.

Courses the School Names

• Principles of Tax Research, Corporation Taxation, Taxation of Partnerships, Seminar in Taxation and Financial Planning
• electives such as Estate and Gift Taxation, International Taxation, State and Interstate Taxation

Standout Features

• AACSB-accredited and meets the 150-hour education requirement for initial CPA licensure in New York
• Option to take a tax law course each semester at Albany Law School
• Ranked first on Best Value Schools Best Masters in Taxation list (2021)
• Taught by working tax attorneys and a former IRS agent
• Tax program reviewed by an advisory council that includes representatives from international accounting firms, industry and the Internal Revenue Service

You can complete the 30-credit program as part of a cohort over two semesters of full-time study, and the school says most students finish the coursework in one year. Others study part-time and finish in two or more years.

If you go part time, you'll need a minimum of three years of full-time work experience in the accounting field. The structure is 24 graduate accounting credits plus 6 general business credits. The school lists a priority review deadline of November 1 for fall applicants, and departmental assistantship and scholarship consideration is built into the application.

Albany's graduate charge in federal college data is $1,040 per credit, and that's the number you multiply across your 30 credits. Applicants receive departmental assistantship and scholarship consideration, and the Enrico Petri Scholarship, created in 2008 to honor the program's founder, a popular professor, supports an MS Tax student.

On value, College Factual's 2026 list of best-value taxation master's schools in New York placed Albany third of the nine schools it ranked.

Your cohort meets in person in Albany, New York. You take classes with the same group of students over two semesters, so you've got a built-in study network, and the business school gives you technologically advanced classrooms, accounting and digital forensics labs, a trading room with Bloomberg terminals and a dedicated career services office.

On-campus recruiters from major accounting firms, private corporations and government agencies seek out graduates with tax expertise.

The full rubric is on the methodology page.

Albany's own graduates make the case on the program page. One says the cost was more than reasonable compared with similar programs and that almost all of the accounting graduates seemed to be employed on graduation.

Another says exposure to different topics in taxation gave a solid foundation for starting a career as a tax accountant, and a third says the tax research skills learned at UAlbany are extremely valuable day to day.

The accounting department chair told the university in 2014 that the best students get heavily recruited by the Big Four, and an alumna with a master's in taxation described the alumni presence at a Big Four firm as almost a home away from home.

Best Value Schools placed the program at the top of its Best Masters in Taxation Programs list in 2021 and again listed SUNY (State University of New York) at Albany first in 2025, and College Factual's 2026 look at earnings put Albany's taxation graduates among the highest paid in New York.

• Which Albany Law School tax courses are open to MS Tax students this semester, and how do they count toward my 30 credits?
• How do the two tax, two accounting and two business electives fit together for my career plan?
• What is the priority review deadline for my start term, and how are departmental assistantships and scholarships decided?
• If I study part-time, how are courses scheduled so I can stay on track alongside my job?
• Which firms and agencies recruit on campus for tax students, and when do those visits happen?

A public research university in Albany, New York, whose Massry School of Business offers an AACSB-accredited Master of Science in Forensic Accounting.

• Best Master's in Taxation Rank 28 of 78, master's
• On-Campus Master's in Taxation Rank 14 of 37, master's
• Accelerated Programs Rank 13 of 33, master's
• Part-Time Programs Rank 14 of 39, master's
• Best for Working Professionals Rank 17 of 46, master's
• Best for Parents Rank 17 of 46, master's
• Public University Programs Rank 14 of 35, master's
• Master of Science in Taxation Rank 9 of 21, master's
• Best Programs in New York Rank 4 of 11, master's

• Northwestern University

  Taxation

  Illinois Score 57.5

• Georgetown University

  Master of Studies in Law in Taxation

  District of Columbia Score 57.3

• Boston University

  LLM in Taxation

  Massachusetts Score 57.2

• New York University

  Master of Studies in Law in Taxation

  New York $3,638 per credit Score 58.3