University of Mississippi Master of Taxation in 2027

The Master of Taxation (M.Tax) at the University of Mississippi is an in-person, 30-credit degree on the Oxford campus that you can finish in 10 to 12 months. It's built around the CPA exam, with a review course where you sit for three of the four exam sections before you graduate.

This degree comes out of the Patterson School of Accountancy, which describes itself as the nation's only autonomous school of accountancy. You'll study on campus in Oxford, and all 30 semester hours are taken in person. The school says its master's programs have held separate accounting accreditation from the Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business (AACSB) since 1983.

Most students begin in the summer after finishing their undergraduate courses. Admission asks for a 3.0 overall undergraduate grade point average, the required undergraduate courses, and a Graduate Management Admission Test (GMAT) score of at least 445 unless the score is waived.

The school says its programs meet the education requirements for the CPA exam and CPA licensure in all jurisdictions. In the review course, you sit for Financial Accounting and Reporting, Taxation and Regulation, and Auditing and Attestation while enrolled, and the school says many students finish the whole exam by graduation.

It reports that nine master's alumni received the Elijah Watt Sells Award for outstanding CPA exam performance from 2020 to 2024, and that graduates received 19 of the past 25 CPA exam medals awarded by the Mississippi Society of Certified Public Accountants.

On employment, the school states that virtually 100% of master's graduates have accepted full-time offers by the time they complete their degrees, and many accept offers before master's classes begin. It says Patterson School graduates are in great demand at Big Four firms, regional and local firms, businesses and government.

Where this degree can lead: Masters in Taxation Jobs.

Who It Fits

• Accounting majors finishing a bachelor's degree: most master's students begin in the summer right after their undergraduate courses and move straight through.
• Future CPA candidates: the optional CPA review course has you take three of the four exam sections while you're still enrolled, and the school strongly recommends it for every master's student.
• Students who want internship credit and firm contact: more than 200 students a year intern with firms and earn course credit, and Meet the Firms events run each fall and spring.
• Law students: a concurrent Juris Doctor (JD) and M.Tax path totals 108 earned hours instead of the 120 the two degrees take separately.
• Students who want funding: the school offers over 90 financial aid awards to master's students each year, including graduate assistantships, scholarships and fellowships.

The 30 hours are ten three-hour courses: five required accountancy and taxation courses, two taxation electives, two accountancy electives and one general elective. The catalog says the degree builds on your undergraduate coursework, strengthens your skills in data analysis and artificial intelligence, and gives you a specialization in taxation.

Your required list is Corporate Income Tax, Financial Accounting Theory/Analytics, Managerial Accounting & Business Intelligence, an Auditing Seminar and a Tax Research Seminar. For the six hours of tax electives you pick from Contemporary Taxation, Estate and Gift Taxation, Income Tax of Corporations & Shareholders, and Taxation of Partners and Partnerships, so you can lean toward estate planning, corporate work or pass-through entities.

Accountancy electives include Internal Auditing, International Accounting, an Accounting Internship, Accounting Data Modeling and Visualization, Professional Report Writing and Speaker's Edge, and that list also holds ACCY 6150, the recommended CPA review course. Your last three hours come from a list of approved courses your advisor gives you.

If you're a law student, six JD hours apply to the M.Tax and six M.Tax hours apply to the JD.

Courses the School Names

• Introduction to International Taxation
• Estate and Gift Taxation
• Income Tax of Corporations & Shareholders

Standout Features

• Concurrent J.D. and Master of Taxation path: 108 total hours instead of 120 when the degrees are earned separately
• Optional CPA review course (ACCY 6150) in which students take three of the four CPA exam sections

You can complete the master's in 10 to 12 months, and the school is quick to say that isn't just two semesters. Full-time in the fall and spring means 9 to 12 hours. The tuition charge is the same whether you take 9 or 12 hours, so a heavier load doesn't cost you anything extra.

One sample plan starts in the first summer term with 3 hours in each of the first summer, second summer and August intersession, then 12 hours in the fall and 9 in the spring, including the CPA review course.

You can apply for the summer term, fall semester, winter intersession or spring semester, and summer admits can begin in May intersession, the full summer term, either summer session or August intersession. Applications open up to a year in advance.

The per-credit graduate charge the university reports to federal data is $1,580, which gives you a starting point for your own budget across the 30 hours. Tuition is the same whether you take 9 or 12 hours in a fall or spring semester.

Beyond tuition, the Patterson School offers over 90 financial aid awards to master's students each year, and its financial aid page lists graduate assistantships, scholarships, fellowships and loans. Timing matters here: applications received by the priority deadlines of December 15, 2026 and February 15, 2027 are considered for Patterson School graduate assistantships, fellowships and scholarships for terms from summer 2027 through spring 2028.

This program runs on campus in Oxford. The school states that the master's programs include 30 semester hours, ten three-hour courses, taken in person. Fall and spring are your main semesters, and two or three classes generally fall outside them, usually in the summer, with a winter intersession class an option for some students depending on electives.

Beta Alpha Psi, a national scholastic and professional fraternity for financial information students and professionals, hosts Meet the Firms each fall and spring, and the school lists the Associated Accountancy Student Body and the National Association of Black Accountants (NABA) among its student organizations. Career services add internship search support, campus recruitment visits, resumes shared with potential employers, position openings sent by email and CPA exam preparation.

The full rubric is on the methodology page.

A commenter on Reddit in 2026 described a senior-year internship program that leads to almost 100% placement after the fifth-year master's, and said most master's graduates have passed several CPA exam parts before starting full-time work.

An alumnus posting in 2026 said the program prepared them very well for the CPA exam and a Big Four job, and another poster said Big Four firms recruit Ole Miss students as sophomores and juniors. A third commenter said the school walks you through the internship and job process and the CPA exams.

Course Advisor's 2023 rankings named the university first among Mississippi schools for students working on a master's in taxation.

• Which two of the four taxation electives run in the terms I plan to attend?
• Should I start in the summer, fall or intersession so that I take the CPA review course in the right term?
• Are graduate assistantships offered to new M.Tax students, and when should I apply for one?
• If I'm a law student, how do I arrange the concurrent JD and M.Tax path?

• Best Master's in Taxation Rank 77 of 78, master's
• On-Campus Master's in Taxation Rank 37 of 37, master's
• Accelerated Programs Rank 8 of 33, master's
• Public University Programs Rank 34 of 35, master's
• Master of Taxation Rank 8 of 8, master's

• University of Baltimore

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  Maryland $1,258 per credit Score 22.7

• Northeastern University

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  Massachusetts Score 32.2

• University of San Diego

  Master of Science in Taxation

  California $1,790 per credit Score 36.0

• Widener University

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  Pennsylvania $1,240 per credit Score 36.3