Overview

The Ph.D. program in Accounting prepares doctoral candidates to assume positions in leading graduate schools of business. The program places heavy emphasis on the development of research skills and research quality. In addition, professional skills and the ability to work effectively on faculty-guided research teams are required.

Curriculum

Accounting Seminars

Students take a series of five accounting research seminars (ACCT 6013, 6033, 6133, 6233, & 6433) that vary in topic as needed. The current sequence (alternating between Year A and B) is:

Year A: Course Topic

Fall Semester: Overview of accounting research with an emphasis on disclosure choice and consequences.

Spring Semester: Overview of accounting research with an emphasis on auditing and corporate governance.

Year B: Course Topic

 Fall Semester: Overview of accounting research with an emphasis on capital markets.

Spring Semester: Overview of accounting research with an emphasis on selected topics such as compensation, information systems, and internal control.

In addition, Spring, Fall, or Summer Semester directed readings courses are designed to enhance a student’s knowledge in their dissertation research area.

During these seminars, students are able to select an area of specialization. Students should enhance their program of study with a related seminar (or seminars) outside of the department.

Research Tools

Required Courses:

• ECON 5233 Mathematics for Economic Analysis
• ECON 5613 Econometrics I
• ECON 6623 Econometrics II
• ECON 5533 Microeconomic Theory I

Elective Courses: (select at least three courses from the following)

• ECON 6233 Microeconomic Theory II
• ISYS 5623 Statistical Analysis
• ISYS 5613 Business Applications of Non-Parametric Statistics
• ISYS 5723 Computer Methods in Research

Supporting Courses

Nine hours of supporting courses are selected by the student in consultation with the accounting doctoral program coordinator. Generally, such courses should be concentrated in a specific field in business or outside business (e.g. psychology, sociology, etc.) to meet the objectives of the student's program. All supporting courses taken must be completed with a grade of "B" or higher prior to sitting for the written comprehensive examination in Accounting.

Program Structure

The doctoral program in Accounting is a full-time, integrated program of coursework, colloquia, research, and teaching activities. Coursework includes the following elements: seminars covering current substantive areas in accounting research; "tool” courses covering statistics, econometrics, and other research tools; and courses in a supporting area. The major seminars introduce students to the current academic literature. The courses in the supporting area allow the students to either focus on a particular discipline such as finance, management, psychology, or on a specific theme such as sustainability, international issues, or logistics. During the first two summers, students write research papers that may be coauthored with an experienced accounting faculty member who serves both as co-author and mentor. Normal matriculation is four years.

Dissertation

The dissertation may be written in an area of accounting, subject to the approval of the candidate's dissertation advisory committee. Candidates must earn a minimum of 18 credit hours in ACCT 700V Doctoral Dissertation. Candidates must continue to register in ACCT 700V for one semester hour credit each semester until the dissertation is successfully defended.

Faculty Research Interests and Highlights

Accounting faculty work closely with doctoral students and mentor them to become excellent researchers and educators. The faculty are actively involved in research across a broad array of topics that include: corporate governance; executive compensation; audit market structures and auditor switching; earnings quality; corporate transparency / disclosure quality; financial reporting credibility; earnings management; agency conflicts; time-series properties of earnings; analyst forecasts; mispricing / market anomalies; accounting conservatism; firm valuation; earnings and cash flow prediction; information technology; restatements; IFRS; control systems; corporate reputation; audit quality; litigation and fraud; audit fees; and going concern assessments.
 
Our faculty have published in a variety of leading accounting journals including: The Accounting Review; Journal of Accounting and Economics; Journal of Accounting Research; Contemporary Accounting Research; Review of Accounting Studies; Auditing; Journal of Accounting and Public Policy; Journal of Accounting, Auditing, and Finance; Journal of American Taxation Association; Journal of Business, Finance, and Accounting; and Journal of Information Systems.

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