Accounting (B.S.B.A.)

Our Accounting Major Program, B.S.B.A. Degree

The Detroit Mercy Accounting Program develops professional accountants who transcend narrow functional boundaries and can fill a variety of roles in any organization. A Bachelor of Science in Business Administration with a major in Accounting prepares graduates for life's career, not just the next job. Students are taught the accounting skills and analytical tools necessary to succeed in today's rapidly changing economic environment.

A student with a major in Accounting can expect to have many doors open throughout his or her career. Graduates generally begin in entry-level accounting positions, but have also started their career in other areas. Accounting students may apply for any position open to Business Administration majors, so that an Accounting major can be thought of as reaping the most flexibility in the long run.

Upon completion of the 120-hour B.S.B.A. degree program with a major in Accounting, a student is qualified to take the Uniform Certified Public Accounting (CPA) examination. To become licensed as a CPA in Michigan, the accountant must successfully pass the CPA exam, complete a total of 150-credit hours and meet experience and other requirements set by the Michigan Board of Accountancy. Complete information can be obtained on the state site.

A number of other professional certification programs are available to the Accounting Program graduate. Students may choose to pursue certifications in management accounting, financial management, internal auditing, or forensic accounting, for example. Most certifications, like CPA licensing, have education, examination, experience and continuing professional education requirements. Students are encouraged to consult with the faculty about career paths and certification.

The College reserves the right to add or delete course offerings and to redesign the program.

Degree Requirements (120 credits)

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    Accounting Major Courses (30 credits)

    • ACC 2010 Principles of Accounting I (3 credits)
    • ACC 2020 Principles of Accounting II (3 credits)
    • ACC 3110 Intermediate Accounting I (3 credits)
    • ACC 3120 Intermediate Accounting II (3 credits)
    • ACC 3310 Cost Accounting Systems and Procedures (3 credits)
    • ACC 4130 Advanced Accounting ** (3 credits)
    • ACC 4300 Federal Income Taxation I (3 credits)
    • ACC 4500 Accounting Information Systems (3 credits)
    • ACC 4510 Auditing (3 credits)
    • ACC Accounting Elective (3 credits)

    ** Satisfies international course requirement.

    Students require a minimum of 120 credits to obtain the undergraduate degree. More credits will be required in order to satisfy undergraduate degree requirements if courses in the University Core Curriculum are not able to be double-counted.

    Students must have attained at least a 2.0 in Accounting major courses by graduation.

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    Business Core Courses (27 - 30 credits)

    Students must have attained at least a 2.0 in business core courses by graduation.

    • BUS 1600 Business as a Profession ** (3 credits)
    • BUS 2310 Business Law (3 credits)
    • BUS 3110 Organizational Design and Structure (3 credits)
    • BUS 3120 Principles of Marketing (3 credits)
    • BUS 3130 Financial Management (3 credits)
    • BUS 3150 Quantitative Methods for Decision Making (3 credits)
    • BUS 3160 Control of Operations Management and Quality (3 credits)
    • BUS 3180 Leadership and Teams with Diverse People (3 credits)
    • BUS 3190 Ethics, Business Leadership and Social Responsibility (3 credits)
    • BUS 4990 Strategic Policy and Management (3 credits)

    ** BUS 1600 is only required of freshman Business students.

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    Business Supportive Courses (15 credits)

    (Note: several courses also fulfill Detroit Mercy core requirements)

    • BUS 2950 Principles of Managerial Economics (3 credits)
    • ECN 2960 Macroeconomic Principles (3 credits)
    • ENL 3080 Business Writing (3 credits)
    • MTH 1120 Mathematical Analysis II (3 credits)
    • STA 2250 Statistics (3 credits)
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    University Core Curriculum Courses (39-51 credits)

    University Core Curriculum

    In addition to the program-specific courses, students must also fulfill all requirements contained in the University Core Curriculum. Some of these core curriculum requirements may be satisfied by courses required by the program.  Please review the Degree Evaluation or consult an academic advisor for more information. The number of credits needed to satisfy core curriculum requirements will depend on courses taken. 

    Honors Students

    Contact an advisor in the University Honors Program for specific requirements.

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    General Electives (9 credits)

    Students may select from courses offered at Detroit Mercy. Elective courses beyond 9 credits may be required depending on courses taken.

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    Optional Concentration for Accounting Students

    Accounting students may select up to one concentration, but may not select a concentration in Accounting. Although a concentration is not required, students choosing to take additional business electives within a particular area (outside of Accounting) are encouraged to formally recognize the concentration on their transcripts. Students must have at least three courses within a concentration and obtain a minimum of 2.0 for the area of concentration. Students may not count a business elective towards more than one concentration.

    Business Intelligence Concentration (select all three)

    • BUS 4605 Business Intelligence (3 credits)
    • BUS 4610 Database Management for Business (3 credits)
    • BUS 4615 Business Analytics (3 credits)

    Business Law Concentration (select at least three)

    • BUS 3520 Labor Law & Collective Bargaining (3 credits)
    • BUS 3700 International Business Law (3 credits)
    • BUS 3720 Sports Law (3 credits)
    • BUS 4760 Legal Environment of Real Estate (3 credits)
    • BUS 4770 Insurance Law and Risk Management (3 credits)
    • BUS 4790 Human Rights Law (3 credits)

    Decision Sciences Concentration (select at least three)

    • BUS 3680 Research Methods for Sports Management (3 credits)
    • BUS 4000 Global Sustainable Development (3 credits)
    • BUS 4001 Sustainable Development of a Social Enterprise (3 credits)
    • BUS 4600 eBusiness (3 credits)
    • BUS 4605 Business Intelligence (3 credits)
    • BUS 4610 Database Management for Business (3 credits)
    • BUS 4615 Business Analytics (3 credits)
    • BUS 4625 Supply Chain Management (3 credits)
    • BUS 4635 Project Management (3 credits)

    Finance Concentration (select at least three)

    • BUS 3300 Fundamentals of Investments (3 credits)
    • BUS 3310 Social Venture Capital and Impact Investing (3 credits)
    • BUS 3340 Corporate Finance (3 credits)
    • BUS 3370 Management of Financial Institutions (3 credits)
    • BUS 4310 Advanced Investments (3 credits)
    • BUS 4350 Global Finance (3 credits)
    • BUS 4360 Real Estate (3 credits)

    Human Resources Concentration (select at least three)

    • BUS 3510 Human Resources Management (3 credits)
    • BUS 3520 Labor Law & Collective Bargaining (3 credits)
    • BUS 3530 Seminar in Human Resource Management (3 credits)
    • BUS 3550 Individual and Group Behavior, Motivation, Decision Making, and Performance (3 credits)
    • BUS 4520 Labor Relations (3 credits)

    International Business Concentration (select at least three)

    • ACC 4130 Advanced Accounting (3 credits)
    • BUS 3700 International Business Law (3 credits)
    • BUS 4000 Global Sustainable Development (3 credits)
    • BUS 4350 Global Finance (3 credits)
    • BUS 4560 Comparative International Management (3 credits)
    • BUS 4870 Global Marketing Strategies (3 credits)
    • BUS 4940 International Studies in Business (3 credits)

    Management Concentration (select at least three)

    • BUS 3550 Individual and Group Behavior, Motivation, Decision Making, and Performance (3 credits)
    • BUS 4620 Introduction to Entrepreneurship (3 credits)
    • BUS 4540 Organizational Strategy, Cultural Design, Development, Change, and Performance (3 credits)
    • BUS 4560 Comparative International Management (3 credits)
    • BUS 4570 Current Issues in Organizational Management & Leadership (3 credits)
    • optionally, up to one course from the business law concentration
    • optionally, up to one course from the human resources concentration

    Marketing Concentration (select at least three)

    • BUS 3820 Consumer Behavior (3 credits)
    • BUS 3860 Business Research Methods (3 credits)
    • BUS 3870 Internet Marketing (3 credits)
    • BUS 3880 Sports and Entertainment Marketing (3 credits)
    • BUS 4590 Social Entrepreneurship (3 credits)
    • BUS 4600 eBusiness (3 credits)
    • BUS 4620 Introduction to Entrepreneurship (3 credits)
    • BUS 4810 Promotion Management (3 credits)
    • BUS 4820 Channel and Retailing Management (3 credits)
    • BUS 4830 New Product Management (3 credits)
    • BUS 4840 Ethics in Marketing (3 credits)
    • BUS 4870 Global Marketing Strategies (3 credits)
    • BUS 4890 Marketing Strategy (3 credits)

    Social Entrepreneurship Concentration (select at least three)

    • BUS 3310 Social Venture Capital and Impact Investing (3 credits)
    • BUS 4000 Global Sustainable Development (3 credits)
    • BUS 4001 Sustainable Development of a Social Enterprise (3 credits)
    • BUS 4590 Social Entrepreneurship (3 credits)
    • BUS 4620 Introduction to Entrepreneurship (3 credits)

    Sports Management Concentration (select all three)

    • BUS 3680 Research Methods for Sports Management (3 credits)
    • BUS 3720 Sports Law (3 credits)
    • BUS 3880 Sports and Entertainment Marketing (3 credits)
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    Accounting Major - Suggested Plan of Study #1

    Suggested Plan of Study #1

    First Year Term I (15 credit hours)

    • ACC 2010 Principles of Accounting I (3 credits)
    • BUS 1600 Business as a Profession * (3 credits)
    • Physical Sciences Core Course (3 credits)
    • ENL 1300 College Writing (3 credits)
    • MTH 1110 Mathematical Analysis I (3 credits)

    * BUS 1600 is only required of freshmen. This class is replaced with a general elective course for other students.

    First Year Term II (15 credit hours)

    • ACC 2020 Principles of Accounting II (3 credits)
    • ENL 1310 Academic Writing (3 credits)
    • MTH 1120 Mathematical Analysis II (3 credits)
    • PHL 1000 Introduction to Philosophy (3 credits)
    • Religious Knowledge Core Course (3 credits)

    Second Year Term I (15 credits)

    • ACC 3110 Intermediate Accounting I (3 credits)
    • BUS 2310 Business Law I (3 credits)
    • CST 1010 Fundamentals of Speech (3 credits)
    • BUS 2950 Principles of Managerial Economics (3 credits)
    • PHL 2010 Foundations of Ethics (3 credits)

    Second Year Term II (15 credit hours)

    • ACC 3120 Intermediate Accounting II (3 credits)
    • ECN 2960 Macroeconomic Principles (3 credits)
    • ENL 3080 Business Writing (3 credits)
    • STA 2250 Statistics (3 credits)
    • Literary Experiences Core Course (3 credits)

    Third Year Term I (18 credit hours)

    • ACC 3310 Cost Accounting Systems and Procedures (3 credits)
    • BUS 3110 Organizational Design and Structure (3 credits)
    • BUS 3120 Principles of Marketing (3 credits)
    • Upper level accounting elective course (3 credits)
    • Integrating Theme Core Course (3 credits)
    • Various: Undergraduate Elective (3 credits)

    Third Year Term II (15 credit hours)

    • ACC 4500 Accounting Information Systems (3 credits)
    • ACC Accounting Elective (3 credits)
    • BUS 3130 Financial Management (3 credits)
    • BUS 3150 Quantitative Methods for Decision-Making (3 credits)
    • Aesthetics Experiences Core Course (3 credits)

    Fourth Year Term I (18 credit hours)

    • ACC 4130 Advanced Accounting (3 credits)
    • ACC 4300 Federal Income Taxation I (3 credits)
    • BUS 3160 Control of Operations Management and Quality (3 credits)
    • BUS 3190 Ethics, Business Leadership and Social Responsibility (3 credits)
    • Integrating Theme Core Course (3 credits)
    • Historical Experiences Core Course (3 credits)

    Fourth Year Term II (15 credit hours)

    • ACC 4510 Auditing (3 credits)
    • BUS 3180 OB: Leadership and Teams with Diverse People (3 credits)
    • BUS 4990 Strategic Policy and Management (3 credits)
    • Philosophy or Religious Studies Core Course (3 credits)
    • Various: Undergraduate Elective (3 credits)
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    Accounting Major - Suggested Plan of Study #2

    This alternative plan of study may be selected by Accounting majors. It can be used if a student started in the Business Administration major and wishes to switch to the Accounting major. Ideally, the change in major should be decided prior to the start of the student's junior year.

    Suggested Plan of Study #2

    First Year Term I (15 credit hours)

    • BUS 1600 Business as a Profession * (3 credits)
    • Physical Sciences Core Course (3 credits)
    • ENL 1300 College Writing (3 credits)
    • MTH 1110 Mathematical Analysis I (3 credits)
    • PHL 1000 Introduction to Philosophy (3 credits)

    * BUS 1600 is only required of freshmen. This class is replaced with a general elective course for other students.

    First Year Term II (15 credit hours)

    • ENL 1310 Academic Writing (3 credits)
    • MTH 1120 Mathematical Analysis II (3 credits)
    • PHL 2010 Foundations of Ethics (3 credits)
    • Integrating Theme Core Course (3 credits)
    • Religious Knowledge Core Course (3 credits)

    Second Year Term I (15 credits)

    • ACC 2010 Principles of Accounting I (3 credits)
    • BUS 2310 Business Law I (3 credits)
    • CST 1010 Fundamentals of Speech (3 credits)
    • BUS 2950 Principles of Managerial Economics (3 credits)
    • STA 2250 Statistics (3 credits)

    Second Year Term II (15 credit hours)

    • ACC 2020 Principles of Accounting II (3 credits)
    • ECN 2960 Macroeconomic Principles (3 credits)
    • ENL 3080 Business Writing (3 credits)
    • ENL Lit (3 credits)
    • Literary Experiences Core Course (3 credits)
    • Aesthetics Experiences Core Course (3 credits)

    Third Year Term I (18 credit hours)

    • ACC 3110 Intermediate Accounting I (3 credits)
    • ACC 3310 Cost Accounting Systems and Procedures (3 credits)
    • BUS 3110 Organizational Design and Structure (3 credits)
    • BUS 3120 Principles of Marketing (3 credits)
    • Upper level accounting elective course (3 credits)
    • Integrating Theme Core Course (3 credits)

    Third Year Term II (15 credit hours)

    • ACC 3120 Intermediate Accounting II (3 credits)
    • ACC 4500 Accounting Information Systems (3 credits)
    • BUS 3130 Financial Management (3 credits)
    • BUS 3150 Quantitative Methods for Decision-Making (3 credits)
    • Various: Undergraduate Elective (3 credits)

    Fourth Year Term I (18 credit hours)

    • ACC 4130 Advanced Accounting (3 credits)
    • ACC 4300 Federal Income Taxation I (3 credits)
    • BUS 3160 Control of Operations Management and Quality (3 credits)
    • BUS 3190 Ethics, Business Leadership and Social Responsibility (3 credits)
    • Historical Experiences Core Course (3 credits)
    • Various: Undergraduate Elective (3 credits)

    Fourth Year Term II (15 credit hours)

    • ACC 4510 Auditing (3 credits)
    • ACC Accounting Elective (3 credits)
    • BUS 3180 OB: Leadership and Teams with Diverse People (3 credits)
    • BUS 4990 Strategic Policy and Management (3 credits)
    • Philosophy or Religious Studies Core Course (3 credits)
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    Experiential Education

    Students in the four-year Accounting program may participate in an experiential education program by completing internship or cooperative education assignments. These are generally completed during the summers after the junior and senior years. A mentor from the voluntary alumni mentoring program will assist and guide each student in career planning and development. This mentoring will supplement the academic advising provided by the College of Business Administration and the many services provided by the University's Center for Career & Professional Development. In recent assignments, students have worked with Chrysler, Deloitte & Touche, DTE, Ernst & Young, Ford, Plante Moran, Quicken Loans, and other firms.
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    Program Contact Information

    College of Business Administration
    University of Detroit Mercy
    4001 W. McNichols Road
    Detroit, MI 48221-3038

    Location: Commerce and Finance, CF 112, McNichols Campus
    Telephone: 313-993-1202
    Fax: 313-993-1673
    Email: petersea@udmercy.edu

    Dean, College of Business Administration : Joseph Eisenhauer, Ph.D.
    Telephone: 313-993-1204
    Email: joseph.eisenhauer@udmercy.edu
    Office: Commerce and Finance, CF 122

    Assistant Dean of Academic Affairs : Leonard Kloft, Ph.D.
    Telephone: 313-993-1200
    Email: leonard.kloft@udmercy.edu
    Office: Commerce and Finance, CF 109

    Director of Undergraduate Business Programs : Evan A. Peterson, J.D., Ph.D.
    Telephone: 313-993-1202
    Email: petersea@udmercy.edu
    Office: Commerce and Finance, CF 115

    Director of Graduate Business Programs : Omid Sabbaghi, Ph.D.
    Telephone: 313-993-1172
    Email: omid.sabbaghi@udmercy.edu
    Office: Commerce and Finance, CF 245

    Coordinator of Student Services: Carrol Parris, M.A.
    Telephone: 313-993-1203
    Email: carrol.parris@udmercy.edu
    Office: Commerce and Finance, CF 114

    Accounting Discipline Coordinator : Jeanne M. David, Ph.D.
    Telephone: 313-993-3325
    Email: jeanne.david@udmercy.edu
    Office: Commerce and Finance, CF 225

    Decision Sciences Discipline Coordinator : Gregory W. Ulferts, D.B.A.
    Telephone: 313-993-1219
    Email: ulfertgw@udmercy.edu
    Office: Commerce and Finance, CF 143

    Finance Discipline Coordinator : Suk Kim, Ph.D.
    Telephone: 313-993-1264
    Email: kimsuk@udmercy.edu
    Office: Commerce and Finance, CF 244

    Management Discipline Coordinator : Gerald Cavanagh, S.J., D.B.A.
    Telephone: 313-993-1195
    Email: cavanagf@udmercy.edu
    Office: Commerce and Finance, CF 126

    Marketing Discipline Coordinator : Ram Kesavan, Ph.D.
    Telephone: 313-993-1115
    Email: kesavar@udmercy.edu
    Office: Commerce and Finance, CF 204

    Office Manager : Wendy Marshall, M.B.A.
    Telephone: 313-993-1200
    Email: marshawl@udmercy.edu
    Office: Commerce and Finance, CF 112

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2022-2023