Here are some tips for selecting schools, based on an analysis comparing each school to all others across dozens of factors:
Schools Concentrating On Accountants And Auditors
- Focus: For schools with a focus on this career area, look at Kennesaw State, Georgia State, Augusta State, and Dalton State.
Fastest Response From Schools
- Request Info: For the fastest information for prospective students, look at the Spotlight schools on this page.
Student Body
- Part-Time: For schools emphasizing part-time studies, consider Clayton State, Columbus State, Georgia Southwestern State, and Augusta State.
- Female: For schools particularly welcoming to female students, consider Wesleyan College and Brenau.
- Diverse: For a diverse student body, consider Fort Valley State, Paine College, Savannah State, and Albany State.
- Adult Learners: For lots of adult learners, consider Brenau, Wesleyan College, Middle Georgia Technical College, and Columbus State.
School Setting
- Out of State: For geographic diversity, take note of Clark Atlanta University, Paine College, Wesleyan College, and Oglethorpe University.
- Dorms: For a residential campus environment, take note of Wesleyan College, Berry, Fort Valley State, and Savannah State.
Excellence
- SAT: For students with high SAT scores, look at University of Georgia, Oglethorpe University, Berry, and Georgia College & State University.
- % Accepted: For selective institutions, look at Reinhardt College, Albany State, Brenau, and Paine College.
- Class Size: For small class sizes, look at Wesleyan College, Berry, Paine College, and LaGrange.
Student/Alumnus Reviews of Schools for This Career and State
Sort Reviews By:Sorting by: • Show All Details • Hide All Details
Georgia State University • Atlanta, GA
Studying Masters Of Professional Accountancy (completion in 2008)
• 8/17/2011
"Georgia State provided a very good academic experience. I took a lot away from the program."
Ratings are on a 1-10 scale
| Characteristic | Rating | Comment |
|---|---|---|
| Would Recommend? | yes | For someone pursuing accounting as a career, Georgia State is a great choice. Job placement is very high, with a rigorous and impressive program. |
| Program Reputation | 9 | Georgia State has an outstanding reputation in Atlanta for the accounting program. This is why I chose the program. |
| Program Quality | 9 | Georgia State has an excellent accounting program. I feel I got the best education I could have gotten in Atlanta. |
| Instruction | 9 | The instructors are all professionals in their field. I feel that they were all very knowledgeable and I learned a great deal. |
| How Difficult | 8 | The program was fairly difficult. It provides a solid academic basis in accounting, as well as some practical applications. |
| Hands-On vs. Bookish | A little more hands-on than book learning, but a fair mix of both. Testing and assignments are from books, with some practical application projects. | |
| Schedule Flexibility | 8 | The classes are mostly in the evening. This is ideal for commuters and grad students who are working. |
| Academic Facilities | 8 | Academic facilities were very good. I did not use tutoring services. However, all other media was good, and classroom space and technology were all up to date. |
| Social Life | 2 | I did not live on campus so I had very few social experiences. However, the campus is in metro Atlanta so there is a lot of opportunity for this. |
| Placement Services | 10 | I was connected with a job almost instantly. My current employer recruits from Georgia State often as do others. |
| Alumni Network | 5 | Nothing particularly impressive about the alumni network. We keep in contact for recruiting purposes. |
Gainesville State College • Gainesville, GA
Studying Business Administration (completion in 2004)
• 9/8/2011
"I love Gainesville - it was a wonderful experience. I have not been back to the college in years, but it was such a peaceful campus. All the professors were so smart and they had very high degrees. The school was not too big so you were never taught by a TA. You always had the actual professor to learn from. I felt that I was getting a super great education!"
Ratings are on a 1-10 scale
| Characteristic | Rating | Comment |
|---|---|---|
| Would Recommend? | yes | I would for the core classes and the beginning accounting classes, but then they would need to transfer to UGA to finish up. I received my Business Admin degree and that was luckily all I needed because I got so much on the job training. Now I'm sure I could take some classes to get my masters and it would probably be easy for me! |
| Program Reputation | 9 | I've always heard Gainesville has a great accounting program. Many go onto UGA to complete the four years. |
| Program Quality | 8 | My accounting teacher was awesome! He had us learn everything by writing it down the way they used to do it. He said we would have software that would do a lot of the work for us but we needed to know the fundamentals to actually understand what was going on behind the scenes. I understand GL accounts, journal entries, balance sheet movements, inventory movements, and accounts payable very well because of that! |
| Instruction | 5 | I really learned on the job when it comes to what I need to know. I learned the basics in class but each company does things a little differently. We do go by GAAP standards, but reporting and where we will post certain things can be different in each situation. |
| How Difficult | 5 | I only took accounting 1 and 2. Both classes were pretty straight forward. |
| Hands-On vs. Bookish | In some classes I never used my book at all. Other classes used the book and only the book. | |
| Schedule Flexibility | 10 | This school is a commuter school so it has a lot of night classes available. I was able to work two jobs and go to school full time and still have a day or two off. |
| Academic Facilities | 10 | We had a Mac lab with at least 15 computers and I never needed to wait for one. The library also had computers along with two stories of books. |
| Social Life | 10 | There were lots of clubs and events were held even in the summer. I went to campus crusade and made a lot of friends. |
| Placement Services | 10 | The counselors at the school were very helpful. Each was very knowledgeable about the career paths and jobs that were available. |
| Alumni Network | 10 | Gainesville is a part of UGA and UGA has a great network of people. Although I don't use this network, I know a lot of my friends that have found jobs through Alumni. |
Berry College • Rome, GA
Studying Finance (completion in 2010)
• 9/17/2011
"The school is too expensive, but they did a great job educating me. I wish it was a little bigger."
Ratings are on a 1-10 scale
| Characteristic | Rating | Comment |
|---|---|---|
| Would Recommend? | maybe | My recommendation depends on several factors an incoming student should be aware of. The students are very stuck up and you are required to live on campus. If you're OK with this then attend; if not, then don't. |
| Program Reputation | 9 | It's a very well-known school throughout the South, especially considering that it's a small private school. |
| Program Quality | 7 | The school had wonderful professors and terrific class sizes. |
| Instruction | 9 | They taught us how to use programs like MSExcel extensively. I can use many of the programs better than my superiors. |
| How Difficult | 10 | It's definitely a tough field of study, but it is well worth the effort. The professors help you out along the way, but it's not easy. |
| Hands-On vs. Bookish | They wanted us to experience the real world. We were very focused on going out and learning. | |
| Schedule Flexibility | 3 | Being a small school, they did not offer a variety of classes and some were only offered certain years. This got to be challenging when trying to make a schedule with electives. |
| Academic Facilities | 8 | They had the best computer labs, a great library and people were always around to help out. It was what I expected from a small, private school. |
| Social Life | 5 | As far as athletics go, Berry was lacking. Being a Christian college, some of the students seemed unusual to those who didn't share the same values. |
| Placement Services | 1 | They did not help me find a job at all. I had to do all of that myself. They didn't even help me with a resume. |
| Alumni Network | 5 | I don’t know anything about the alumni network. I suspect that means it's not very good. |
Clayton State University • Morrow, GA
Studying BBA In Accounting (completion in 2004)
• 11/5/2011
"I got a quality education and that was all that I wanted. I didn't care about partying; I was there to learn and that's what I did."
Ratings are on a 1-10 scale
| Characteristic | Rating | Comment |
|---|---|---|
| Would Recommend? | yes | I recommended it to my brother and now he is in a top-rated graduate program. The quality has only gone up since I graduated. |
| Program Reputation | 8 | My brother just graduated from there this past spring and from talking to him, the program is still pretty rigorous. In addition, they recently got approved for an MBA program that made them tighten up their teaching requirements. |
| Program Quality | 8 | I have been out of school for some time now, but looking back, I feel that I got a quality education. The classes were small and personalized. |
| Instruction | 3 | I don't feel that the school did a good job of preparing me for a career. Few teachers gave real-life uses for what they taught. |
| How Difficult | 7 | It was a very rigorous program. There were no easy teachers or easy classes. |
| Hands-On vs. Bookish | There was a good mix of hands-on training and book learning. The professors tried to mix it up, especially when the book differed greatly from real-life encounters in the profession. | |
| Schedule Flexibility | 10 | I never had a problem with scheduling. Classes were offered throughout the day and at night. |
| Academic Facilities | 5 | I spent the least amount of time on campus as possible, so I cannot answer regarding some of the facilities and resources. But I can say that the professors were readily available. |
| Social Life | I never went to a party, homecoming or sporting event. I didn't live on campus and I worked full-time. | |
| Placement Services | I cannot speak on this because I never sought out this service. I know that there was a career service center, but its services were not well advertised. | |
| Alumni Network | 5 | I have an old classmate who is a very involved alum, but I am not personally. I get things mailed to me regularly, but have yet to participate in any alumni event. |
Georgia Southern University • Statesboro, GA
Studying Accounting (completion in 2005)
• 3/5/2012
"I had a job when I graduated. I was prepared for the work environment."
Ratings are on a 1-10 scale
| Characteristic | Rating | Comment |
|---|---|---|
| Would Recommend? | yes | Again, I had a job I was prepared for when I graduated. |
| Program Reputation | 7 | Graduates receive the same opportunities as all graduates from the state of Georgia. Graduates often obtain jobs with the Big 4 firms out of Atlanta. |
| Program Quality | 8 | The professors are hands on and participate in student development. The program is successful in helping place students in their careers through career fairs and civic activities. |
| Instruction | 8 | The quality of instruction is high. It provides a core structure for completing the CPA exam. |
| How Difficult | 5 | The difficultly of an accounting major is higher than most business degrees. This accounting program is probably average as professors provide multiple choice tests in many instances and some will grade on a curve. |
| Hands-On vs. Bookish | Internships are available and professors work with students with part time jobs in the field of study. Projects and labs are offered. | |
| Schedule Flexibility | 10 | Classes are provided throughout the week on various days such as Mon, Weds, and Friday or Tuesday and Thursday. Online classes are available and night classes are as well. |
| Academic Facilities | 10 | Professors have ample office time and tutors are available for each area of study. Libraries and computer labs are well equipped and easily accessible at all hours. |
| Social Life | 10 | The football program has 6 national championships in Division I AA! Parties are frequent and students have fun. |
| Placement Services | 10 | The accounting program is strong at giving opportunities for job interviews. I had 4 job offers from 6 interviews thanks to career fairs and civic activities. |
| Alumni Network | 3 | The alumni network is not strong. Traditionally, graduates go straight to work and do not participate after graduation. |
Kennesaw State University • Kennesaw, GA
Studying Accounting (completion in 2011)
• 3/26/2012
"It was a mediocre experience. I enjoyed my time there, holding off the real world for a little longer, and made some good friends. But I wasn't challenged and that left me very dissatisfied."
Ratings are on a 1-10 scale
| Characteristic | Rating | Comment |
|---|---|---|
| Would Recommend? | maybe | If you want to get your CPA and just need the hours to do so, go here. You'll get the hours for sure and without too much difficulty. If you want a program that'll really prepare you for the test, then look elsewhere. |
| Program Reputation | 4 | I have not heard of this school outside of Georgia. Everyone that I speak to that does not live in Georgia has no idea what I'm talking about when I speak about Kennesaw. |
| Program Quality | 5 | It was alright, but nothing spectacular. I breezed through the program. That's not a testament to how smart I am, but to how unchallenging the curriculum was. |
| Instruction | 8 | The teachers, like at any university, can be hit or miss. But for the most part they were very eager to teach and help you learn. |
| How Difficult | 3 | I barely studied and scored high marks. On average, I studied about 1 hour a week, 2 hours if there was a test that week. |
| Hands-On vs. Bookish | We rarely did any simulations or case studies. When we did, other groups would just present them to the class and the rest of the students would, unfortunately, just zone out. | |
| Schedule Flexibility | 8 | They were accommodating of all sorts of lifestyles. There were day classes, summer classes, online classes, weekend classes, and hybrids of all of those. |
| Academic Facilities | 8 | The campus was beautiful. Very new facilities, easy access to technology, and plenty of quiet places to study and common areas for group meetings. |
| Social Life | As a graduate student I was never encouraged to join any groups (other than the business fraternities). I was on campus only to go to class and I think this is pretty typical of students. | |
| Placement Services | I had a job before I went into the program so I never tapped those resources. They did have an emphasis on getting internships for the undergraduates, or at least that's what the signage around campus would imply. | |
| Alumni Network | 6 | I have not really been involved with the alumni network. My professors, however, have always been eager to help, whether with recommendations or with advice. |
Online Course Finder
Find the path to your
education in 3 easy steps.