Rutgers’ MBA in Professional Accounting Gets a Revamp

On Mar 20, 2026

Rutgers Business School has revamped its MBA in Professional Accounting program to equip students with the skills demanded by an industry that continues to be transformed by technology.

The program, which is still designed to prepare college graduates who studied the arts, science or business for promising careers in accounting, has reduced the number of credits to 49 from 66, and is more affordable and more flexible, with full-time or part-time options. Additionally, students who complete the program will have sufficient credits to meet the education requirements for taking the CPA exam in New Jersey.

“The revised program delivers the same rigorous preparation for the accounting profession and the CPA exam while saving students both time and cost,” said Professor Alexander Sannella, the program director.

The MBA in Professional Accounting has a long-standing reputation for combining robust course work from the Rutgers MBA with curriculum from Rutgers Business School’s highly respected accounting department to equip students for jobs in public accounting, private industry, consulting and non-profits.

The program also has a robust roster of successful alumni that includes Kevin Kelleher, chief operating officer at Sony Music, and Paul McDonald, retired executive vice president and chief financial officer of Friendly’s Ice Cream

Updates to the program reflect the changes occurring in the accounting field. Courses like, Emerging Technologies in Accounting and Auditing, and Advanced Cost Accounting and Analytics, teach students the skills to apply emerging technologies and to understand the importance of analytics.

One of the program’s changes also allows students to dovetail their MBA in Professional Accounting with a second graduate degree – a Master of Accountancy in Accounting and Analytics. By applying a maximum of 12 credits of advanced standing coursework from the MBA in Professional Accounting, students are able to pursue the second master’s degree, which makes them eligible to sit for the CPA exam in New York.

A pending STEM designation combined with other enhancements represent an evolution in the nearly 70-year-old MBA in Professional Accounting.

“By modernizing the curriculum, adding flexible class scheduling options, and creating a pathway to a second master’s degree in accounting and analytics,” Professor Sannella explained, “the program is now more aligned with the needs of today’s students.”

Rutgers Business School will hold a spring Graduate Open House on Saturday, March 28, in Newark from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. There is also a one-hour, online information session on Wednesday, April 8 at noon.

To access more business news, visit NJB News Now.

Related Articles: