ASU business school offers accountancy master’s degree programs with data and analytics emphasis

Participants can study for, take and pass the CPA exam while still in either program


September 30, 2020

The Master of Accountancy (MACC) and Master of Taxation (MTax) programs from the W. P. Carey School of Business at Arizona State University offer a data and analytics emphasis while preparing students to pass the CPA exam before either program ends.

Students can complete the MACC or MTax program in nine months, learning how to navigate today’s highly complex and data-centric audit, tax and financial consulting environments. Also, thanks to a partnership with Surgent CPA Review, both programs provide an excellent foundation for CPA exam prep, meaning participants can study for, take and pass the exam while still in either program. The programs also have been redesigned to allow students to customize the coursework to their specific interests. students in class Download Full Image

“The data and analytics emphasis in our accountancy programs gives new accountants strong analytical skills to be competitive in the industry, which is becoming more and more data-driven,” said Andy Call, professor and director of the School of Accountancy in the W. P. Carey School of Business at ASU. “In addition to these technology skills, our programs offer CPA exam prep and even map out a study schedule to help students and their peers practice for and then pass the exam. This approach will help graduates get their career off to a fast start.”

The STEM-designated MACC program gives graduates on student visas access to an optional practical training (OPT) extension for up to 36 months. This longer work authorization term may help international students gain additional real-world skills and experience in the U.S.

Students in MACC and MTax learn from esteemed faculty who bring decades of real-world experience into each class. And with a recent $15 million investment by the W. P. Carey Foundation to bolster career services, students have more access to resources, coaching and employers.

Applications for fall 2021 are now open for both the MACC or MTax programs.

Shay Moser

Managing Editor, W. P. Carey School of Business

480-965-3963

ASU agribusiness professor awarded USDA grant to study U.S. beef preferences and its global demand

Multi-institutional research will strengthen and expand U.S. beef export markets


September 30, 2020

The USDA National Institute of Food and Agriculture has awarded researchers from Arizona State University and the University of Tennessee Institute of Agriculture grant funding to examine consumer preferences for U.S. beef and to estimate beef import demand in select countries within Asia, Europe and Latin America.

Leading the effort is Carola Grebitus, associate professor of food industry management in the Morrison School of Agribusiness at ASU’s W. P. Carey School of Business. The $477,131 grant will fund the researchers' insights regarding the economic implications of changes in trade policies and provide information on how the U.S. beef export market can be strengthened. cows Download Full Image

“This project will evaluate consumers’ willingness to pay and demand for U.S. beef in select markets that are important to U.S. exports and overall global beef trade,” said Grebitus. “Our findings will provide information to beef producers and processors with regards to beef characteristics that are important to consumers in different parts of the world, and shed light on whether shoppers are willing to pay a premium for U.S. beef.”

While the United States is one of the largest beef exporters in the world, recent years have been fraught with trade disputes that have impacted agricultural trade, such as the trade war with China; U.S. withdrawal from the Trans-Pacific Partnership; a renegotiated U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement; and ongoing trade negotiations with the European Union. Although China opened its market to U.S. beef in 2017, beef exports to this region have remained negligible, further prompting research to help strengthen and expand the U.S. beef export markets.

Beef is one of the largest U.S. agricultural exports, making it a vital sector to analyze for global trade. “Maintaining and expanding foreign markets for U.S. beef is crucial to the economic viability of U.S. agriculture," said co-project director Karen DeLong, associate professor in the Department of Agricultural and Resource Economics at the University of Tennessee. “This project will provide beef producers and processors with information of potentially significant drivers of future beef demand and important information regarding the potential for U.S. beef in foreign markets."

The three-year project is funded by the USDA National Institute of Food and Agriculture and will target specific markets that are important to U.S. exports and overall global beef trade. Japan and Mexico are the two largest markets for U.S. beef and will be among the countries chosen for this study, along with three emerging markets: China, the U.K. and Germany. The three emerging markets were also chosen because they are representative of key regions around the world, allowing research results to be extrapolated for other countries.

“Ultimately, this project will provide insights regarding the economic implications of changes in the aforementioned trade policies and provide information on how the U.S. beef export market can be strengthened,” said co-project director Andrew Muhammad, Blasingame Chair of Excellence in Agricultural Policy at the University of Tennessee. “The policy relevance lies in the analysis of different export markets outside the U.S. and whether or not foreign consumers are likely to purchase U.S. beef with different characteristics, and then using these results to assess the impact of pending and existing trade agreements on U.S. beef exports."

Shay Moser

Managing Editor, W. P. Carey School of Business

480-965-3963