University of Hartford Master of Science in Accounting and Taxation in 2027

This 100% online master's pairs accounting and taxation in 10 seven-week courses, with six start dates a year and a first-time Certified Public Accountant exam pass rate the school says is the highest of any Connecticut university.

The Master of Science in Accounting and Taxation (MSAT) at the University of Hartford is taught entirely online through the Barney School of Business. Each course lasts only seven weeks, so you can complete the 30-credit, 10-course degree in less than one year, or you can go part time at your own pace.

You choose among six start dates through rolling admission. The program prepares you for work in public accounting, corporate finance, consulting, government and nonprofit organizations, and it builds in emerging technology, including analytics and artificial intelligence (AI) applications in accounting. You also don't need an accounting background to apply, because foundation courses can be taken alongside your MSAT coursework.

The program says it has a 100% graduate placement rate. It also reports that MSAT graduates who took the Certified Public Accountant (CPA) exam for the first time in 2024 had the highest pass rate of any university in Connecticut, at a 64% pass rate for advanced degree first-time testers. The Barney School is among the 5 percent of business schools in the world that hold AACSB accreditation.

The degree helps you meet your 120/150-hour CPA licensing requirement while you study, and the school lists career paths including Tax Consultant, Certified Public Accountant, Forensic Accountant and Chief Financial Officer. A third-party description adds that the curriculum fulfills the educational requirements for CPA licensure, and that many graduates go on to work in management or leadership roles in accounting firms and businesses.

Where this degree can lead: Masters in Taxation Jobs.

Who It Fits

• Career changers from other fields: foundation courses run alongside the MSAT, and an accounting certificate gives you another on-ramp if you want to build the basics first.
• Working professionals: seven-week online courses and a part-time option at your own pace let you fit classes around a job.
• Future CPAs: the program meets the 150-hour requirement for the CPA examination in Connecticut, and the school says graduates are qualified to take the CPA and CMA examinations.
• Students who want a business degree too: a dual MSAT and Master of Business Administration (MBA) is available.
• Tax-focused accountants: electives include Advanced Taxation of Pass-Through Entities, State and Local Tax, Estate Planning and Administration, and Research in Taxation.

The degree has a 21-credit core and nine credits of electives, which means three elective courses. The core includes Taxation of Business Organizations, Financial Reporting and Analysis, Ethics for Accounting Professionals, Accounting Analytics and Business Analysis, an Emerging Technology and Management Control Systems Seminar, Business, Law, Compliance and Society, and Advanced Auditing with Data Analytics and AI Applications.

For electives you can pick from tax-heavy options such as Advanced Taxation of Pass-Through Entities, Personal Tax and Financial Planning, Research in Taxation, State and Local Tax and Estate Planning and Administration, or you can branch into Forensics and Fraud Examination and Governmental and Nonprofit Accounting. Faculty teach in auditing, business law, corporate taxation, financial analysis and managerial accounting, and the school calls them academic and industry leaders.

Guest speakers visit from the Big Four accounting firms and from financial service organizations to talk about current business topics. To receive the degree you finish all requirements with a minimum grade point average of 3.0 and no more than one grade below B in courses beyond the basic accounting core.

Courses the School Names

• Taxation of Business Organizations (AC 560)
• Emerging Technology & Management Control Systems Seminar (AC 604)
• Financial Reporting and Analysis (AC 715)
• Accounting Analytics and Business Analysis (AC 726)
• Advanced Auditing with Data Analytics and AI Applications (AC 750)
• Ethics for Accounting Professionals (AC 725)
• Forensics and Fraud Examination (AC 724)
• Estate Planning and Administration (AC 772)

Standout Features

• 100% graduate placement rate, and MSAT graduates who took the CPA Exam for the first time in 2024 had the highest pass rate of any university in Connecticut (64% pass rate for advanced degree first-time testers), per the program page
• Dual MSAT/MBA available; graduate certificates in Accounting and Taxation
• Guest speakers invited from the Big Four accounting firms and beyond
• Emerging technology focus including analytics and AI applications in accounting
• Students from non-accounting backgrounds can apply, with foundation courses taken alongside MSAT coursework
• Tuition discount for educational partners

Credits come to 30, spread over 10 courses of seven weeks each. Full-time students can finish in less than one year, and part-time students set their own pace. Many part-time working professionals skip the spring tax season semester and still finish in about two years, according to a third-party description of the program.

Six start dates a year mean you can begin when it suits you, with fall, spring and summer starts. If you've studied at another accredited graduate business school, you may transfer up to six credits of courses completed with a grade of B or better.

A dual MSAT and MBA is available if you want a second degree, and the graduate taxation certificate requires four graduate tax courses after a basic undergraduate taxation course.

Tuition is $916 per credit for summer 2026, fall 2026 and spring 2027. With 30 credits, the total tuition comes to $27,480. The program describes itself as one of Connecticut's most affordable MSAT programs, and it offers a tuition discount for educational partners. Applying costs $50 for domestic applicants, and Graduate Management Admission Test (GMAT) and Graduate Record Examination (GRE) scores are optional.

30 credits at $916 a credit comes to $27,480 in tuition, before fees.

It's 100% online, and each course runs seven weeks. A 2025 student story on the school's site describes a program that's entirely online, so she completes classwork on her own schedule. Professors offer virtual office hours, and the story says they'll meet with you to answer your questions.

Studying online didn't keep her off campus, either: she went to career fairs and accounting events there and was inducted into Beta Alpha Psi, the accounting honor society. Before you enroll, the program page also introduces a graduate success counselor on the graduate admission team. With 10 courses of seven weeks each, you finish one course and move on to the next several times a year.

The full rubric is on the methodology page.

An MSAT student featured on the school's site in 2025 says her classes gave her a well-rounded foundation of accounting, and she values the Beta Alpha Psi events where firms present. She credits the university's accounting certificate with letting people without an accounting background take the foundational classes before moving into the MSAT, and she says online professors offer virtual office hours.

Outside the school, a 2020 GradReports list of accounting master's programs showed University of Hartford graduates carrying the lowest median student debt on that list.

• How do the foundation courses fit around the MSAT courses if I come from a non-accounting degree?
• Which three electives do students interested in tax most often choose?
• Which of my earlier graduate business courses would count toward the six transfer credits?
• How does the tuition discount for educational partners work, and does my employer qualify?
• Which on-campus career fairs and Beta Alpha Psi events can online students join?

• Best Master's in Taxation Rank 52 of 78, master's
• Online Master's in Taxation Rank 27 of 41, master's
• Cheapest Programs Rank 14 of 15, master's
• Best 100% Online Programs Rank 26 of 40, master's
• Accelerated Programs Rank 31 of 33, master's
• Part-Time Programs Rank 29 of 39, master's
• Best for Working Professionals Rank 34 of 46, master's
• Best for Parents Rank 34 of 46, master's
• Private University Programs Rank 28 of 43, master's
• AACSB Accredited Programs Rank 12 of 16, master's
• Accounting and Taxation Rank 5 of 13, master's

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