As a graduate in business or a cognate discipline, the Master of Professional Accounting Accelerated will equip you with professional skills in accounting, finance, computer software applications, economics, statistics, and business law, as well as analytical and research skills. The course allows you to add accounting to your existing qualifications to broaden your career opportunities.
If you are a business graduate or a graduate from a cognate discipline looking to redirect your career, this course is for you. It is suitable for graduates in business or a cognate discipline who are interested in employment in accounting and financial management orientated careers. Potential fields of employment include financial accounting, management accounting, taxation, auditing, finance, banking management, administration, consulting or business advisory services.
| Duration | 1.5 years full-time or 3 years part-time | 
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| Credit Points that Must be Earned | 72 | 
| Number of Units Required | CQUniversity uses the concept of credits to express the amount of study required for a particular course and individual units. The number of units varies between courses. Units in postgraduate courses normally consist of 6 points of credit or multiples thereof (e.g. 12, 18, 24). | 
| Expected Hours of Study | One point of credit is equivalent to an expectation of approximately two hours of student work per week in a term. | 
| Course Type | Postgraduate Award | 
| Qualification (post nominal) | MProfAcctAccel | 
| AQF Level | Level 9: Masters Degree (Coursework) | 
| Course Fees | 
                                            Indicative Year - 2026
 Indicative Year - 2025
 Indicative Year - 2024
 Indicative Year - 2023
 Indicative Year - 2022
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                Domestic Students Tertiary Admission Centre Codes (TAC) Codes  | 
            Not Applicable | 
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                International Students  CRICOS Codes  | 
            Not Applicable | 
To be eligible for entry into this course, students must hold one of the following:
A completed Australian Qualifications Framework (AQF) equivalent bachelor degree, or higher AQF equivalent qualification, in business or related field*; or
A completed AQF equivalent bachelor degree in accounting received from an overseas institution or organisation, that does not meet accreditation with an Australian Accounting registration body for associate membership purposes; or
A completed CQUniversity Graduate Diploma in Professional Accounting.
*As this course is designed for students who do not already hold a completed accounting degree, a related field does not include accounting.
English Language Proficiency Requirements:
If you were not born in Australia, Canada, New Zealand, United Kingdom, Ireland, South Africa or United States of America you are required to meet the English Language Proficiency requirements set by the University.
Applicants are required to provide evidence of completion of:
A secondary qualification (Year 11 and 12, or equivalent), or
An Australian Qualifications Framework (AQF) diploma level qualification, or
Bachelor level qualification study for a period of at least 2 years fulltime with a minimum overall GPA 4.0
completed within Australia, Canada, New Zealand, United Kingdom, South Africa, Ireland, or United States of America, which will meet the English proficiency.
If you do not satisfy any of the above, you will need to undertake an English language proficiency test and achieve the following scores as below:
An International English Language Testing System (IELTS Academic) overall band score of at least 6.0 overall with a minimum 5.5 in each subset; or
Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) - Requires 550 or better overall & minimum TWE score of 4.5 (Paper Based Test), or 75 or better overall and no score less than 17 (Internet Based Test); or
Pearson Test of English Academic (PTE Academic) - Requires an overall score of 54 with no sub-score less than 46; or
An Occupational English Test with Grades A or B only in each of the four components
English test results remain valid for no more than two years between final examination date and the date of commencement of study and must appear on a single result certificate.
Each student will be assessed individually.
There are no prior study recommendations.
There are no security requirements.
There are no health requirements.
| Interim Awards | Not applicable | 
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| Exit Awards | CC38 - Graduate Certificate in Professional Accounting CC35 - Graduate Diploma of Professional Accounting | 
| Accreditation | 
                
                
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No Residential School for this course.
| Not applicable | 
| Year | Number of Students | 
|---|---|
| 2025 | 4 | 
| 2024 | 4 | 
| 2023 | 4 | 
| 2022 | 4 | 
Please note that in some instances there may be similarities between course, entry and inherent requirements.
If you experience difficulties meeting these requirements, reasonable adjustments may be made upon contacting accessibility@cqu.edu.au. Adjustment must not compromise the academic integrity of the degree or course chosen at CQUniversity or the legal requirements of field education.
Examples are:
Complying with academic and non-academic policies and procedures such as Student Charter, Student Misconduct Policy, Student Behavioural Misconduct Procedures, Assessment Policy and Procedure (Higher Education Coursework), Accounting professional and ethical standards.
Demonstrating honesty and integrity in academic and accounting practice.
Critically reflecting on ethical dilemmas and issues and take responsibility for ethically correct decisions and/or ensuring awareness of applicable ethical thinking and behaviour.
Examples are:
Working constructively in a diverse and changing academic and professional environment.
Being able to work individually and in groups in challenging environments.
Responding objectively, consistently and professionally to challenging and demanding situations.
Successfully distinguishing your own personal behaviours, experiences and emotions from people and situations in a professional setting.
Examples are:
Functioning with an awareness and understanding that Accounting practice is mandated by specific legal and regulatory requirements and standards to enable the professional delivery of practice.
Knowledge and compliance with Australian Law and professional regulatory requirements and standards, which informs and determines accounting practices.
Ability to apply appropriate legal principles and disclosure requirements in preparing financial reports.
Complying with the policies and practices of organisations in which you may be placed for finding employment.
Complying with the requirements for registration with the Accounting Professional & Ethical Standards Board (APESB)
Examples are:
Ability to understand and respond to verbal and communication accurately, appropriately and in a timely manner.
Ability to provide clear instructions in the context of the situation.
Providing accurate, timely, clear feedback and reporting in the delivery of accounting practice.
Delivering interactivity with your communication (timeliness, accuracy and effectiveness) to resolve complex problems and maintain trusting and effective relationships.
Verbally communicating in the English language with accuracy, appropriateness and effectiveness.
Actively participating in discussion activities related to the course.
Using language that is appropriate to the context of the individual or group.
Establishing rapport with clients in the delivery of accounting practice and responding appropriately to clients, supervisors and other professionals.
Recognising, interpreting and responding appropriately to behavioural cues.
Being self-aware of your own use of non-verbal cues during interactions.
Having sensitivity and empathy to cultural, religious and individual differences.
Being able to consistently display appropriate facial expressions, eye contact, body movements and gestures while being mindful of personal space and boundaries.
Being able to demonstrate effective non-verbal communication that is respectful, clear, empathetic, honest and non-judgemental when communicating with students, families and professional colleagues.
Effectively and appropriately communicating, in written English, in a wide variety of contexts to engage in activities related to the course and in professional settings.
Acquiring, understanding, applying and conveying information in a written format.
Competently and appropriately producing written assessment work in a logical, coherent manner, and with correct grammar and punctuation to the required academic standards.
Expressing complex and detailed information and knowledge into a logical and legible report, in a timely manner that meets professional standards and clearly communicates the intended message.
Accurately conveying and documenting information in a written form that meets legal and accounting practice requirements.
Examples are:
Demonstrating the mental functioning and thinking capacities to deliver competent accounting practice.
Having the cognitive capacity to acquire theoretical knowledge as well as develop the cognitive processing skills to successfully undertake the course, its learning activities and assessments.
Having the capacity to acquire, process, integrate and implement a comprehensive body of knowledge and skills in both academic and professional practice settings.
Competently and consistently demonstrating the ability to read, decode, interpret and comprehend multiple sources of information in accounting practice.
Acquiring and interpreting evidence and accurately conveying appropriate information both in data and numerical formats.
Having the ability to reason with numbers and other mathematical concepts, principles and operations and competently communicate and demonstrate these in a range of contexts to solve a variety of mathematical problems associated with accounting practice.
Demonstrating the capacity to undertake complex financial analysis of accounting reports, including the use of Excel spreadsheet software.
Examples are:
Demonstrating an understanding of how theory, as well as personal, social, and cultural experiences, relate to practice or personal or professional knowledge.
Discovering and challenging own underlying assumptions.
Making connections between personal and work experiences and what is being learned.
Examples are:
Having the ability to use ICT appropriately and effectively in a wide range of accounting contexts.
Demonstrating sufficient computer knowledge and skills to engage in the on-line learning environment that may include completing relevant on-line assessments, participating in various on-line forums, responding to emails and using spreadsheet software such as Excel.
Preparing accounting entries and/or reports using accounting specific ICT.
Processing and presenting information relevant to accounting by using specific software programs and Excel spreadsheet software.
| Course Learning Outcomes | |||||||
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| Australian Qualifications Framework Descriptors | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 
| 1. KNOWLEDGE Have a body of knowledge that includes the understanding of recent developments in a discipline and/or area of professional practice | |||||||
| 2. KNOWLEDGE Have an understanding of research principles and methods applicable to a field of work and/or learning | |||||||
| 3. SKILLS Have cognitive skills to demonstrate mastery of theoretical knowledge and to reflect critically on theory and professional practice or scholarship | |||||||
| 4. SKILLS Have cognitive, technical and creative skills to investigate, analyse and synthesise complex information, problems, concepts and theories and to apply established theories to different bodies of knowledge or practice | |||||||
| 5. SKILLS Have cognitive, technical and creative skills to generate and evaluate complex ideas and concepts at an abstract level | |||||||
| 6. SKILLS Have communication and technical research skills to justify and interpret theoretical propositions, methodologies, conclusions and professional decisions to specialist and non-specialist audiences | |||||||
| 7. SKILLS Have technical and communication skills to design, evaluate, implement, analyse and theorise about developments that contribute to professional practice or scholarship | |||||||
| 8. APPLICATION OF KNOWLEDGE & SKILLS Be able to use creativity and initiative to new situations in professional practice and/or for further learning | |||||||
| 9. APPLICATION OF KNOWLEDGE & SKILLS Be able to use high level personal autonomy and accountability | |||||||
| 10 APPLICATION OF KNOWLEDGE & SKILLS Be able to plan and execute a substantial research-based project, capstone experience and/or piece of scholarship. | |||||||
| APPLICATION OF KNOWLEDGE & SKILLS Communicate, interact and collaborate with others effectively in culturally or linguistically diverse contexts in a culturally respectful manner | |||||||
| Number of units: 12 | Total credit points: 72 | 
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Accreditation with CPA Australia, Chartered Accountants Australia and New Zealand, and the Institute of Public Accountants is pending.
All students must undertake the following core units.
Computing Requirements
As a student, it is necessary to have access to a computer or equivalent device in order to complete your coursework. You should have a good understanding of technology and the ability to navigate the online environment, which may involve completing online assessments, participating in online forums, and responding to emails. There may be instances where you need to use a computer or equivalent device for in-class tasks or assessments. It is important that you have dependable access to the internet and a computer or equivalent device capable of video conferencing for online classes. Make sure to review your unit profiles to learn about any specific technology requirements for your coursework.