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MTax academics
The nine-month Master of Taxation and Data Analytics (MTax) program from ASU's W. P. Carey School of Business deepens and broadens your knowledge of taxation and opens doors to top hiring firms. Through a strong focus on data and analytics, real-world case studies, and collaborative projects, you'll build the skills needed to thrive in today’s complex tax environment. Explore the classes you’ll take and ensure you meet the prerequisites before you apply — we welcome students from both accounting and non-accounting backgrounds.
"It’s unique to be able to pursue a specialized taxation degree. I’m grateful for the opportunity to learn from such accomplished and successful tax professionals. The faculty are willing to share their time, expertise, and advice."
Mari Funabashi , MTax graduate
Curriculum
While some business schools allow you to add a tax emphasis to your accounting master’s degree, few offer a dedicated master’s in taxation — much less a built-in data analytics emphasis. The W. P. Carey MTax allows you to explore taxation in greater depth, while advancing your technology skills and preparing you for a variety of exciting careers. The program requires 30 total credit hours to complete.
Individualized attention and development are hallmarks of the program experience, which offers small class sizes, mentorship opportunities with alumni, and a supportive community of students sitting for the CPA exam while completing their degree.
MTax courses
Examine the tax consequences of common types of property transactions and enhance your ability to identify tax issues, locate and understand tax authority, and apply the authority to factual situations.
Examine analytics in the accounting function. Calculate, interpret, and apply descriptive, predictive, and prescriptive analytics in a variety of case settings focusing on auditing, risk management, forensics, and strategic planning decisions and events.
A class focused on successfully preparing for the CPA Exam with an emphasis on review, ethics requirements, and testing strategies.
Addresses the emerging roles of accounting analytics in accounting, auditing and tax contexts. Technological advances have allowed the capture and economic storage of massive accounting and business data and the focus of this class is how to productively gather and apply big data to a variety of accounting, auditing and tax-related contexts. Focuses on understanding the data within major accounting information systems and generating meaningful audit and/or tax analytics from the data. Critical to this is a deep understanding of accounting flows, processes and controls in order to understand and build meaningful audit-centric and/or tax-centric analytics.
Master common situations in federal corporate taxation, including shareholder taxation. Explore the tax ramifications of corporate formations, operations, distributions to shareholders, liquidations, acquisitions, and reorganizations.
A class focused on successfully preparing for the CPA Exam with an emphasis on review, ethics requirements, and testing strategies
Explore international taxation from a U.S. perspective, including tax treaties, transfer pricing, and inbound and outbound transactions. Explore current tax developments through cases focused on issue identification, research, professional judgment, and communication skills like those encountered in practice.
Develop a working knowledge of partnership income taxation. Topics include partnership taxation, partnership allocations, transactions between partners and partnerships, sales of partnership interests, distributions, and S corporations.
Discover principles of multi-state taxation, including the interaction among various multi-state tax issues and federal and state constitutional constraints. This course covers income tax with an emphasis on corporate tax matters, sales/use/gross receipts/excise taxes, and property taxes.
A class focused on successfully preparing for the CPA Exam with an emphasis on review, ethics requirements, and testing strategies.
Prerequisites
A foundational knowledge of accounting is critical to your success in the MTax program therefore students must have successfully completed an undergraduate degree in accounting from an accredited institution or completed either the Pathway Program or Bootcamp.
Pathway for non-accounting students
The School of Accountancy offers a Pathway Program for students with a non-accounting background. Including four foundational courses that you can complete in person or online, the program delivers essential skills and knowledge needed to excel in the master’s degree. To get started, simply submit your Pathway Program application.
The School of Accountancy also offers a dynamic MACC/MTax Bootcamp — including three, custom-designed non-credit courses that allow you to complete the foundational program prerequisites 100% online and in a single summer. No matter which option works best for you, our graduate recruiters are available to answer questions and support your next steps.
CPA test prep
Thanks to a W. P. Carey partnership with industry leader Becker CPA Review, you can access a suite of CPA exam prep materials, even before your first class, and at no additional cost! That means you can prepare for and pass the CPA exam while still enrolled in the master’s program, making you a more competitive applicant for opportunities in the short term and providing you a great foundation for the rest of your career.
Faculty
Accredited by the AACSB since 1987, the School of Accountancy within W. P. Carey is home to nationally recognized faculty who specialize in both the technical and practical aspects of taxation. With backgrounds ranging from tax law and corporate tax planning to data analytics and policy research, MTax faculty are not only subject matter experts — they’re mentors and industry connectors who help students navigate complex tax concepts and prepare for successful careers in public accounting, corporate tax, and beyond.