Master of Professional Accounting

Masters DegreeMPACCT

This internationally recognised master's degree prepares you to launch a career as a professional accountant with just 12 months of full-time study. Option to take the CA Program (CAANZ) at the end with 9 months of further part-time study.

240 points, MPAcct (CA Program), 21-23 months study; or 180 points MPAcct, 12 months study

Hamilton

Waikato Management School

January (21 months to complete) or November (23 months to complete)

Why study the Master of Professional Accounting?

Waikato's Master of Professional Accounting (MPAcct) is tailor-made for university graduates who have never studied accounting before, but already have a bachelor's degree in another area.

This internationally recognised qualification will set you up for a professional career in accounting and as a future business leader. It is globally accredited by professional bodies and respected by top employers.

Depending on your career goals, choose either the 180-point Master of Professional Accounting programme (12 months) or the 240-point programme (CA Program) with a Chartered Accountancy endorsement (21-23 months).

The course has two intakes each year, so you can start in either January or November. If you start in January, the course will take 21 months to complete with a short break over Christmas. If you start in November, it will take 23 months to complete with a 2-month break over summer.

During your studies, you will develop advanced knowledge and skills in all the core areas of accounting, business, law, economics and finance, and be able to apply them to practical accounting situations.

Please note this is an accelerated course with an intensive workload.

Career Opportunities

Auditor
Business analyst / consultant
Chartered accountant
Chief financial officer
Financial manager
Management accountant
Tax accountant

240 points, MPAcct (CA Program), 21-23 months study; or 180 points MPAcct, 12 months study

Hamilton

Waikato Management School

January (21 months to complete) or November (23 months to complete)

Degree information

Available planners
Master of Professional Accounting
MPAcct - 180 or 240 points - November intake
The 180-point Master of Professional Accounting requires full-time study for 12 months. Take all 12 papers (green boxes), worth 15 points each. Students who are enrolled in the 240-point Master of Professional Accounting - CA Program wlll then study part-time for a further nine months. Take all eight of the CA Professional Modules (blue boxes), worth 7.5 points each.
Select a tile for more information.
November to February (C Trimester)
ECONS506 Economics for Business
ECONS506 Economics for Business15 points An analysis of the economics of business including producers, consumers, markets and the role of the State. This paper is designed for MPAcct and MAppFin students who may not have studied economics at undergraduate level.Full paper details
ECONS507 Quantitative Methods for Business Analysis
ECONS507 Quantitative Methods for Business Analysis15 points This paper provides students with a thorough grounding in the applied quantitative techniques required for professional practice in business, finance and economics. The emphasis is on selecting appropriate techniques, their use and the interpretation of results.Full paper details
ACCTP569 Management Accounting for Organisational Value
ACCTP569 Management Accounting for Organisational Value15 points This paper provides an understanding of budgeting, product, and service costing, control, and performance evaluation. The paper also covers the local and global organisational environment within which a business operates relating to management.Full paper details
ACCTP570 Accounting Systems and Processes
ACCTP570 Accounting Systems and Processes15 points This paper covers the form and function of financial statements and how financial transactions are recorded through the understanding of accounting principles and concepts that underlie financial reporting. An understanding of ethical and professional values as important elements to accurate financial reporting will also be covered.Full paper details
March to October (A & B Trimesters)
ACCTP571 Financial Accounting and Reporting
ACCTP571 Financial Accounting and Reporting15 points This paper explores the theoretical principles underlying current accounting practices, principles and regulations and their application to the preparation and analysis of financial statements at a national and international level.Full paper details
ACCTP576 Business Law
ACCTP576 Business Law15 points This paper introduces students to the New Zealand legal system and laws regulation specified business activities. The initial focus is given to the laws applying to business contracts. The paper also cover principles applying to companies.Full paper details
ACCTP578 Accounting Information Systems
ACCTP578 Accounting Information Systems15 points This paper employs hands-on application of current technologies to prepare students to use and develop accounting systems, to store and retrieve accounting data, and to analyse complex accounting data.Full paper details
ACCTP573 Management Accounting and Strategic Decision Making
ACCTP573 Management Accounting and Strategic Decision Making15 points This paper provides an overview of management accounting, decision theory, control theory, economics, and human and organisational behaviour theory and the importance of information for governance and strategic decision making in a global sustainable environment.Full paper details
ACCTP577 Performance Reporting
ACCTP577 Performance Reporting15 points The paper will cover the three key areas of financial management decisions relating to investment, financing and asset management.Full paper details
ACCTP572 Advanced Auditing
ACCTP572 Advanced Auditing15 points This paper aims to develop an awareness of auditing by applying theory to audit practice and audit decision-making. Students will focus on the role of the external auditor, professional expectations, professional ethics, and regulation related to the audit of financials statements. The key concepts of the audit process and the application of audit techniques to cases will be emphasised.Full paper details
ACCTP574 Advanced Financial Accounting
ACCTP574 Advanced Financial Accounting15 points This paper is designed to deepen understanding of the issues involved in the current practices, principles, and regulations of New Zealand accounting. The paper critically discusses major issues of accounting practice. The paper further facilitates critical and independent thinking, enhances analytical ability, and fosters creativity and initiative.Full paper details
ACCTP575 Advanced Taxation
ACCTP575 Advanced Taxation15 points This paper covers the fundamentals of the New Zealand taxation system and its administration and aims to help students develop the technical skills in the interpretation and application of the New Zealand Tax Legislation (Income Tax Act 2007, GST ACT 1985 and other related legislations).Full paper details
CA Program (January to September)
ACCTP512 Risk and Technology
ACCTP512 Risk and Technology7.5 points Risk and Technology analyses how businesses create and protect stakeholder value with a focus on risk management, data and technology arising from existing and emerging technologies, process automation and the use and application of data.Full paper details
ACCTP513 Financial Accounting and Reporting
ACCTP513 Financial Accounting and Reporting7.5 points This paper requires candidates to apply International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS), or local equivalents, and regulatory and ethical requirements to account for and report on a diverse range of business transactions and events.Full paper details
ACCTP517 Audit and Risk
ACCTP517 Audit and Risk7.5 points This paper develops a student’s knowledge and skills required for applying professional judgement and professional scepticism in addressing risk in auditing areas where significant professional judgement is required in the context of the audit of general-purpose financial statements.Full paper details
ACCTP516 Tax
ACCTP516 Tax7.5 points This paper is concerned with the core knowledge and skills of tax required to provide advice and services for a range of transactions and events appropriate to the jurisdiction.Full paper details
ACCTP514 Business Performance
ACCTP514 Business Performance7.5 points This paper is concerned with equipping students with skills for critiquing the performance of a business and supporting decision-making. The ability to critique the performance of a business and provide advice in the execution of business strategy is an essential skill for Chartered Accountants.Full paper details
ACCTP519 Data Analytics and Insights
ACCTP519 Data Analytics and Insights7.5 points This paper will enable students to identify, analyse and solve business problems using data analysis techniques and modern business intelligence tools. Students will develop effective techniques to communicate insights. Full paper details
ACCTP515 Accounting for Mātauranga Māori and Sustainability
ACCTP515 Accounting for Mātauranga Māori and Sustainability7.5 points In Sustainability for Accountants, students will develop their awareness of environmental, social and governance (ESG) impacts on organisations, and the role Chartered Accountants play in linking these issues to broader business agendas. Students will also develop an awareness of Mātauranga Māori and its contribution to sustainability decision-making.Full paper details
ACCTP518 Integrated Chartered Accounting Practice
ACCTP518 Integrated Chartered Accounting Practice7.5 points This paper requires students to build on and integrate existing technical knowledge, critical thinking, and professional skills to provide business advice. Students will embed an ethical approach in the application of these skills and communicate insights effectively to meet the needs of a variety of audiences.Full paper details
This information is provisional and subject to change.
Specialist subject
CA Professional Modules (optional)
You can apply for the Master of Professional Accounting if you:
Have a bachelor's degree in any subject area
Have achieved at least a B-minus grade average in your final year of study
Domestic tuition fees
Approximate annual tuition fees and costs for domestic students enrolled in one year of full-time study.
Domestic tuition costs
Scholarships
Visit our Scholarship finder for more information about possible scholarships.
Scholarships Finder
Relevant as of 13 February 2024.
All amounts are in New Zealand Dollars (NZD). Tuition fees shown are indicative only and may change. There are additional fees and charges related to enrolment. Please see the Table of Fees and Charges for more information. You will be sent an enrolment agreement which will confirm your fees. View information about fees free study.

The 180-point Master of Professional Accounting requires full-time study for 12 months. Take all 12 papers (green boxes), worth 15 points each. Students who are enrolled in the 240-point Master of Professional Accounting - CA Program wlll then study part-time for a further nine months. Take all eight of the CA Professional Modules (blue boxes), worth 7.5 points each.

Select a tile for more information.

November to February (C Trimester)

ECONS506 Economics for Business

ECONS507 Quantitative Methods for Business Analysis

ACCTP569 Management Accounting for Organisational Value

ACCTP570 Accounting Systems and Processes

March to October (A & B Trimesters)

ACCTP571 Financial Accounting and Reporting

ACCTP576 Business Law

ACCTP578 Accounting Information Systems

ACCTP573 Management Accounting and Strategic Decision Making

ACCTP577 Performance Reporting

ACCTP572 Advanced Auditing

ACCTP574 Advanced Financial Accounting

ACCTP575 Advanced Taxation

CA Program (January to September)

ACCTP512 Risk and Technology

ACCTP513 Financial Accounting and Reporting

ACCTP517 Audit and Risk

ACCTP516 Tax

ACCTP514 Business Performance

ACCTP519 Data Analytics and Insights

ACCTP515 Accounting for Mātauranga Māori and Sustainability

ACCTP518 Integrated Chartered Accounting Practice

This information is provisional and subject to change.

Specialist subject

CA Professional Modules (optional)

Why study at Waikato?

Internationally recognised

Waikato's Master of Professional Accounting (180 points) is endorsed by four of the world's largest industry accounting bodies - CAANZ, CPA Australia, CIMA, and ACCA, making it your passport to work overseas and access a huge range of benefits.

Pass the CA Program (CAANZ)

Option to do 9 months' extra part-time study to complete the CA Program (Chartered Accountants Australia and New Zealand) as a student at the University of Waikato, making you highly sought after by top employers in New Zealand and overseas.

Top 1% globally

Waikato Management School sits in the top 1% of business schools globally thanks to our prestigious Triple Crown Accreditation (EQUIS, AMBA and AACSB), which we've held since 2005.

Which course should I choose?

Master of Professional Accounting - 180 points

Waikato's 12-month Master of Professional Accounting provides the ideal academic springboard to become an accountant. You don't need to have studied accounting before.

This qualification is endorsed by four of the world's largest industry accounting bodies - CAANZ, CPA Australia, CIMA, andACCA, (see below). This means our graduates can join any one of these four organisations as a provisional member, opening the door to a huge range of benefits and job opportunities.

This degree is also respected by top employers, including the 'Big Four' professional services firms: Deloitte, PwC, EY, and KPMG.

During the one-year accelerated course, you will gain applied knowledge in management and financial accounting, accounting information systems and processes, performance reporting, auditing, taxation, business law, strategic decision-making, quantitative skills for economics and finance, and economics for business.

Once you graduate, you will be ready to start work as a junior accountant in either a public practice, commercial firm or organisation.

Please note: You will still need to gain three years' work experience and pass your Professional Exams with one of the four organisations below before you can become a fully qualified chartered accountant.

Master of Professional Accounting (CA Program) - 240 points

Waikato University's new 240-point Master of Professional Accounting (CA Program) will get you even further ahead in your future career.

This programme is endorsed and run in partnership with Chartered Accountants Australia and New Zealand (CAANZ).

Over 21-23 months of accelerated study (depends on whether you start in January or November), students will complete both the academic and professional requirements set out by CAANZ.

You will gain all the accounting and business knowledge you need in the first year of study, as described in the 180-point Master of Professional Accounting above.

But this is where things get interesting! The extra 9 months of part-time study after that will allow you to finish your CA Professional Modules while you are still at university, before entering the workforce.

This will make you highly attractive to top employers, both in New Zealand and overseas.

Each of the eight modules is taught by our lecturers face-to-face in Hamilton, over 8 weeks part-time, through a mix of lectures and tutorials. Exams will be held at the end of each module and assessed by CAANZ for quality assurance purposes.

Graduates of this qualification will be eligible to join CAANZ with provisional membership status. The third and final step in becoming a fully qualified Chartered Accountant is to achieve three years' work experience in an accounting role.

Even though I’d studied accounting before, the course expanded my knowledge base and gave me the technical skills I needed to start my accounting profession.
Annalea Tumutoa
Master of Professional Accounting
Read Annalea's story
Programme is structured in a thoughtful way, starting with the basics, then moving from intermediate to advanced accounting topics. The course brings in elements of information systems and law as well, so we can be decision-makers, not just book-keepers.
Chandrashekar (Chandra) Raju
Master of Professional Accounting
Read Chandrashekar's story
The papers helped me understand what I was going into career-wise, especially the foundations and theory of auditing.
Hayley Flett
Master of Professional Accounting, Bachelor of Social Sciences
Read Hayley's story