Move toward Your Academic Dream:

How to Apply for a Doctoral Program in Accounting

By Yu Tian

for Engl 5057 Writing: Teaching & Theory, ETSU, April 2006

 

            If you love academic life and your dream is to be an accounting professor in a college or a university, your first step will be pursuing a doctoral degree in Accounting. Generally, admission to a doctoral program in Accounting is highly competitive and most programs reject far more applicants than they accept, but you can greatly enhance your chances by carefully designing and preparing your application.

 

Before Starting

            Before you begin your application process, you should have a clear view about yourself. Having a long-term career goal with a clear sense of self is the key to effective graduate school planning. If you are not sure whether you are willing to spend the rest of your life on an academic career, please do not start your application. A doctoral program is not as fun as you imagine, like your undergraduate or even graduate studies, and it requires self-motivation, hard work and persistence. It is not wise to make a rush decision to submit your application only because you hear that a doctoral degree may help you to find a better job or because you just want to escape from your current busy schedule in a public accounting firm. You may want to kill yourself later on when you are stuck in research that may people find tedious.

 

Selecting Schools

            Once you are sure you want to pursue the Accounting doctoral degree, it is ideal to start selecting schools around one and a half year before your expected enrollment semester. Before selecting schools, knowing what you want is as important as making yourself attractive to doctoral program selection committees. You should try select a program that best fits with you. The faculty’s primary research interests and strengths should be on the top of your consideration list, since research is the first concern a doctoral student should have and what you learn from your doctoral program will substantially affect what you do with most of your waking hours for most of the rest of your career. For instance, some accounting doctoral programs mainly conduct research in financial archival approach; some are good at managerial behavior approach; some only concentrate on economic models analysis; and some do the combinations. So for example, if you do not have a strong background in mathematics, you will want to cross out the schools that are doing economic models analysis, no matter how prestigious the programs are.

In the U.S., there are less than 100 universities which offer a doctoral degree in Accounting. The list of these schools can be found in a book “Accounting Faculty Directory”, which provides such list of both schools and faculty directory and is published by Prentice Hall every year. It is a good idea for you to start by borrowing the book from a professor in any accounting department in the U.S.

Before you start searching programs, prepare an application master file, either a paper notebook or a computer file like Microsoft Word or Excel. The file includes the specific information about the program in each school, such as the program’s academic rank, research focus, faculty’s strength, class size of current year, admission criteria, and so on. You can also include every step of your application, such as application sent, fee paid, references requested, exam score sent, professor contacted, etc. You will need the master file to keep track of every step of your application and a master file is very useful to manage your application files with little mess.

When you visit each school’s website, besides carefully examining its faculty’s research details, pay attention to any other factors you want to consider, such as school location, program size, average completion time (most schools have the information on their websites), curriculum, comprehensive exam, dissertation and publication requirement, application fee, and so on. Most of the above information is not available in the Accounting Faculty Directory book. When doing these researches, you should record any information regarding each school in your application master file. Try to be as detailed as you can so that you do not need to go back to each school’s website when you need general information in the near future.

If you still have any questions about some programs, send emails to the directors of the doctoral program or call them directly. Many of them are very happy to help you. In addition, you may want to talk with your current professors (or your previous professors of the same discipline that you want to apply for, if you are out of school for some time) and ask their opinions about the programs. The professors can provide best information about doctoral programs, especially about their own doctoral programs.

Hopefully, now you can select approximately 10 to 20 schools that match your research interest and your other personal preferences. Should you apply for all of them? Of course not. You have to consider another important factor: select the school you are interested in that also has potential interest in you, given your credentials. Most schools want the best candidates they can attract; however, schools have their own preferences. For example, some schools love to see a candidate who has a very high academic record, like GPAs and test scores, while other schools prefer an applicant who has substantial working experiences in the intended study area. Try to find your strength and find schools that like your strengths, and eliminate schools that do not prefer your type from your list. You may make a best estimate by taking a look at schools’ previous students’ background, like their previous majors, working histories, research interests, and so on.

The last element of selecting schools you should consider is to try to optimize your application results. How? An old saying clearly describes this: “Do not put all your eggs in one basket.” That is, apply for schools that belong to different tiers. If your credentials are very high, you may want to try more prestigious programs. At the same time, be sure to add one or two “safe” schools to your list. “Safe” means you will be very likely to get admitted. If your background is not very outstanding, always focus on second or third tier schools although try some top programs. In a word, select reasonable schools and narrow your selection down to 5 to 10 schools that you will apply.

 

Standard Tests

Generally most accounting doctoral programs require the Graduate Management Admission Test (GMAT) for admission, and a few programs require the Graduate Record Examination (GRE) general test. International students whose native language is not English and who have not received a degree from English speaking country are required to take Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL). In addition, a few programs require Test of Spoken English (TSE) score for non-native English speakers. Ideally, you should have taken these tests before your school selection process. If not, try to arrange the test one year before your enrollment date and make a best estimate that how much time you can devote to reviewing for the test. Always try your best to shoot for the highest score you can. If you do not have enough time, find out what are your selected schools’ specific requirements, if any, and focus your time on the part of the test that these schools weigh more during their reviewing process.

 

Application Package

            Once you have finalized schools, you are ready to submit your application package. Try to send out your application before previous December of your enrollment year (most programs are Fall admission), or earlier if possible. You have to carefully prepare all the documents in your package.

§         Application Form: Many schools require an application form that is offered online. Fill out the form and pay your application fee, or the school will not process your application. For year 2006 admission, most schools’ application fees range between 35 dollars and 75 dollars.

§         Personal Statement: Many schools require a personal statement (sometimes called statement of purpose). A personal statement is your chance to present yourself as a serious student and a unique person. Generally, the length of the statement should be one or two pages. A personal statement is one of the most important factors the admission committee considers. An impressive, clear, carefully reasoned, and well composed statement will move the applicant upward on the program’s ranking list. Start early and do not rush to complete it. After you have done your draft, have others read your essay and ask for their opinions. Always polish, polish, and polish the essay before sending it out.

§         Recommendation: Almost every program will require you to provide written evaluations from others, often called references. Try to find professors to write recommendations for you since you want to be evaluated from an academic perspective. Most schools have their own recommendation forms that references will need to fill out. The recommendation is regarded as a more objective evaluation of an applicant’s academic potential. An excellent reference will add more weight to your package, while a poor reference will absolutely ruin your application. So, get the potential reference’s positive response first and never assume a professor will write an excellent recommendation just because you have received an “A” in his or her class. Also, provide the forms and your application documents in a neat folder and give them to the reference as early as possible. Leave ample time for references since a reference has many other routines to do. Better not to rush a reference to finish your letter in a short time period. But if you have to request them to do so, be as polite and sincere as possible.

§         Financial Assistance: Do not forget to apply for available financial assistance when you submit your application. Normally, a doctoral program will provide full financial support (including a tuition waiver and a monthly stipend) for your study. Remember, besides departmental financial support, there are some additional award from other resources, like graduate school fellowships, university minority scholarships, funding or grant from a company, whichever is applicable for you. However, do not plan to work part-time outside the university in order to make more money for living. Most doctoral programs require full time involvement and they will not permit you to work outside of the program.

 

Interview

            If you are lucky enough, you will get some invitations for campus visits after you submit your applications. These visits are typically in late Fall or in early Spring. That means you are the candidate whom the program considers seriously. Usually if you get this chance, you will have at least a 50 percent chance for success. Do not be too excited since you still need to carefully present yourself in order to make yourself stand out.

§         Always Be Over-prepared: Before you go to the school, get as much information as you can from its website, your professors, or other sources. Never assume that such and such things would not happen or you and interviewing professors would never discuss a specific topic. Have a detailed knowledge about its faculty’s research interest and read their recent publications if possible. Prepare a long list of questions, not only regarding the program, but also about your future study life, academic career, or anything you think appropriate. Doing so shows your strong interest in the program, and also could “save” you in case you and the professors or you and current students in the program fall into a horrible silence.

§         “Sell” Yourself Wisely: On the interview day, first, dress up like you will go to a formal job interview. Generally, dark suits will make you look more professional. Second, be confident with your strengths and your potential academic capability and be nice to everyone you meet and be positive about anything you discuss. Third, show great interest in the program and ask smart questions. Fourth, remember to write a thank-you letter after you go home.

 

Make Your Final Decision

            Ideally, you have more than one offer to choose from. When making your final decision, consider the program’s academic reputation, its financial assistance, your family’s (if any) potential opportunities there, and any other factors you care about. In conclusion, choose the program that best fits you. At last, pack your stuff and be ready to move on toward your academic dream!

 

 

List of Helpful Websites

 

Graduate Management Admission Council (GMAC) Official Website: Serves the entire management education community through a variety of products, services, and industry initiatives. http://www.gmac.com

GMAT/Master of Business Administration (MBA) Official Website: Provides what you need to know about the GMAT exam, from what it measures to how to become a GMAT taker or school. http://www.mba.com/mba/TaketheGMAT

GRE General Test Official Website: Provides test registration, information for policymakers and teachers, and sample questions. http://www.ets.org/gre/

TOEFL Official Website: Provides information about the TOEFL tests and services, including TOEFL practice questions. http://www.ets.org/toefl

Test of Spoken English Official Website: Provides information about the TSE tests and services, including TSE sample questions. http://www.ets.org/tse