California State University-Northridge Master of Professional Accountancy: 2027 Review

Score

72.5 of 100, rank 10 of 50

Cost (20%)

9.6 of 10

Graduate Earnings (20%)

6.7 of 10

Completion (15%)

9.6 of 10

Flexibility (15%)

1.0 of 10

Credential Alignment (10%)

10.0 of 10

Track Record (10%)

7.0 of 10

Program Reputation (10%)

7.1 of 10

Credits

32

Format

On Campus

Terms

8 weeks

Starts

1 start per year

Time to Finish

12 to 24 months

Accreditation

AACSB (confirmed on the official list)

AACSB Accounting

Accounting accreditation listed by AACSB

See exactly how we score on the methodology page. We checked the school's figures on October 8, 2026.

This is a one-year cohort where each course builds on the one before it. You finish with a four-part exam that simulates the certified public accountant (CPA) exam, and Becker CPA review access comes with your enrollment.

The David Nazarian College of Business and Economics at Cal State Northridge offers the Master of Professional Accountancy. It's a 32-unit degree taught on campus in Northridge, California.

• Career changers with a business or other non-accounting degree: the program was designed for you, and no work experience is required.
• California CPA candidates short on units: the degree meets the state's 150-hour requirement.
• International students with a bachelor's degree who want U.S. CPA licensure.
• Students who want a Big Four or mid-size firm job: the EY Center for Careers hosts a recruiting boot camp for the program.
• Applicants with four years of work experience can have the Graduate Management Admission Test (GMAT) or Graduate Record Examinations (GRE) waived. You need a 3.0 GPA in your last 60 units.

The core starts with ACCT 511 Accounting Ethics and Professional Responsibilities, which covers the ethics units California requires. ACCT 620A, 620B and 620C walk you through financial accounting reporting in three parts. ACCT 605 and ACCT 624 teach audit and attestation, from basics to advanced work. ACCT 600 and ACCT 625 cover tax for individual taxpayers and for entities.

ACCT 530 Accounting Information Systems and ACCT 536 Accounting for Governmental and Nonprofit Entities round out the 29 required units. The last three units are ACCT 697, a four-part comprehensive exam that simulates the CPA exam. You'll learn from faculty who include working CPA practitioners. Outside class, you can join the Volunteer Income Tax Assistance (VITA) tax clinic and Beta Alpha Psi.

The degree is 32 units. You can finish in one year full time, across two summer terms, two semesters and one winter term. If you study part time, you'll take two years. You must finish within five calendar years of admission. The degree meets California's 150-hour rule for CPA licensure.

The school lists $420 per credit. It also estimates the whole program at under $22,108 in tuition, and up to two admitted students receive a full state university fee waiver for working as graduate assistants.

Classes meet on the Northridge campus, in the evenings and on Saturdays. Most courses run in 8-week modules, so you'll move quickly. You move through the sequence with a cohort. Admission is in the fall only. A one-day Recruiting Boot Camp opens the program.

The accounting program holds its own AACSB accreditation, and the college is one of six in California with both business and accounting accreditation (2025). The curriculum is built for the California CPA Accounting Subjects, Accounting Study and ethics requirements. Becker CPA review access is included while you're enrolled.

Where this degree can lead: Accounting Degree Jobs.

A new MPAcc student on Niche calls the experience great and the professors and staff supportive. In a Niche poll of nine respondents about the Nazarian College, all agreed the professors are engaging and easy to understand. Profiles on the program's own site describe a graduate who accepted a KPMG offer before graduating and another who landed a job at EY first.

A student there adds that the CSUN accounting name is known across the profession. In 2026, the Los Angeles Business Journal named 26 Nazarian College graduates to its Top 100 Accountants list.

• How are cohort seats and course sequences set for part-time students over two years?
• How does the four-part comprehensive exam in ACCT 697 line up with CPA exam sections?
• Which firms attend the Meet the Firms events and MPAcc office hours each year?
• How do I apply for the graduate assistant fee waiver?
• How do I get my Becker CPA access and when should I start it?

• Best Master's Programs #10 of 50
• Accounting Programs in California #4 of 7

• Loyola University Maryland #8 of 50
• San Diego State University #9 of 50
• Texas A&M University-College Station #11 of 50
• University of Florida #12 of 50

Also at California State University-Northridge: our bachelor's program review