Evaluate Profile for PhD in Accounting

[rizma]

Dear Members

I am planning to apply for PhD in Accounting in coming years. I am an International applicant. Please evaluate my possibility of admission and suggest a few schools in the USA.

Bachelors: GPA 3.97/4.00 (Accounting)
Masters: GPA 3.98/4.00 (Accounting)
Experience: 3 years university teaching experience.
GMAT: 600 (Verbal 71 percentile, Quant 42 percentile)
TOEFL: 103

I will start Master of Accounting Program in The Ohio State University this fall.

Thanks in advance.

[YaSvoboden]

Your GMAT is very low for a PhD - especially the quant part. Without adding 100 points you are out of the range of schools that I feel I know well. Look through schools with accounting PhD programs and consider stuff with an average GMAT below 650.

The prior GPAs are very good and will help. The teaching experience will probably be a plus for schools in that range as most of them require a fair amount of teaching and place into teaching institutions.

I don't know a lot about the TOEFL, but I recall seeing 110 total as recommended score. I don't know how much this matters.

The MAcc at OSU will be good. I would recommend going to their workshops (https://fisher.osu.edu/myfisher/////...is-colloquium/) and possibly sitting in on a PhD seminar.

What are your goals with a PhD? If you want to be a teacher at an AACSB school and do a little research, then you can probably get into a school that will do that for you. If you want to go to a research school and be involved in the academic research community then you have some work to do. Your goal changes the advice I would give.

[rizma]

Thanks. The workshops can prove to be really useful.

[taxPhD]

GMAT is by far the biggest weakness in your profile. Retake during your masters and get it up to 700. With practice, I am sure you can get it up there, especially because your verbal is already pretty good. Really focus on getting that quant score up.

Focus on getting good grades in the MAcc program at OSU, and work on building relationships to get good letters of recommendation. They have some awesome faculty, in particular, if you happen to have Anne Beatty or Tzachi Zach for class make sure you perform really well and I'd visit them in office hours and let them know you want to get a PhD one day.

As mentioned by Ya, I also strongly recommend sitting in on the research workshops. Just don't show up though. Figure out who the faculty coordinator is for the workshops and go to their office and express your interest in doing a PhD and sitting in on the workshops in order to get more exposure to accounting research.

Depending on what your math/stats background is like. You may want to see if you can fit an introduction to econometrics course or something like that into your MAcc schedule as an elective.

[Accgirl]

What are your target schools? I only ask as your GMAT score will be a huge factor in getting you through the first round of the application process. After that, the recommendation letters and other elements of your application packet will come more into focus. I feel that my GMAT score is what kept me from getting the final interviews in a few of my top programs. Others above have told you the same thing, so I won't repeat it. But, a higher GMAT will give you a fighting chance at admission.

[rizma]

I know that the GMAT score is the biggest shortcoming in my profile. Thus I have shortlisted a few schools which might fit the range. I am not sure whether I will be able to appear for the GMAT in the next year as I am keeping MAcc program as my main focus.

The schools I have shortlisted are:

1. Bentley University
2. Syracuse University
3. Florida Atlantic University
4. Florida International University
5. Louisiana State University
6. Arizona State University
7. Michigan State University and a few more.

It would be really helpful if you can suggest my chances in the abovementioned schools and a few other schools where I might apply.

Regards

[rizma]

GMAT is by far the biggest weakness in your profile. Retake during your masters and get it up to 700. With practice, I am sure you can get it up there, especially because your verbal is already pretty good. Really focus on getting that quant score up.

Focus on getting good grades in the MAcc program at OSU, and work on building relationships to get good letters of recommendation. They have some awesome faculty, in particular, if you happen to have Anne Beatty or Tzachi Zach for class make sure you perform really well and I'd visit them in office hours and let them know you want to get a PhD one day.

As mentioned by Ya, I also strongly recommend sitting in on the research workshops. Just don't show up though. Figure out who the faculty coordinator is for the workshops and go to their office and express your interest in doing a PhD and sitting in on the workshops in order to get more exposure to accounting research.

Depending on what your math/stats background is like. You may want to see if you can fit an introduction to econometrics course or something like that into your MAcc schedule as an elective.

Thanks a lot for the detailed answer,

I would definitely get in touch with the faculty members you mentioned.

I know that the GMAT score is the biggest shortcoming in my profile. Thus I have shortlisted a few schools which might fit the range. I am not sure whether I will be able to appear for the GMAT in the next year as I am keeping MAcc program as my main focus.

The schools I have shortlisted are:

1. Bentley University
2. Syracuse University
3. Florida Atlantic University
4. Florida International University
5. Louisiana State University
6. Arizona State University
7. Michigan State University and a few more.

It would be really helpful if you can suggest my chances in the abovementioned schools and a few other schools where I might apply.

[daizj900322]

Your GMAT is very low for a PhD - especially the quant part. Without adding 100 points you are out of the range of schools that I feel I know well. Look through schools with accounting PhD programs and consider stuff with an average GMAT below 650.

The prior GPAs are very good and will help. The teaching experience will probably be a plus for schools in that range as most of them require a fair amount of teaching and place into teaching institutions.

I don't know a lot about the TOEFL, but I recall seeing 110 total as recommended score. I don't know how much this matters.

The MAcc at OSU will be good. I would recommend going to their workshops (https://fisher.osu.edu/myfisher/////...is-colloquium/) and possibly sitting in on a PhD seminar.

What are your goals with a PhD? If you want to be a teacher at an AACSB school and do a little research, then you can probably get into a school that will do that for you. If you want to go to a research school and be involved in the academic research community then you have some work to do. Your goal changes the advice I would give.

Totally agree with YaS. I just graduated from OSU Macc and is entering a PhD program this year. Definitely take the seminar and workshop. The professors are super nice and supportive. Bump up your GMAT quant scores. Your TOEFL should also be above 110, since schools are concerned about our communication skills as foreigners.

[taxPhD]

Thanks a lot for the detailed answer,

I would definitely get in touch with the faculty members you mentioned.

I know that the GMAT score is the biggest shortcoming in my profile. Thus I have shortlisted a few schools which might fit the range. I am not sure whether I will be able to appear for the GMAT in the next year as I am keeping MAcc program as my main focus.

The schools I have shortlisted are:

1. Bentley University
2. Syracuse University
3. Florida Atlantic University
4. Florida International University
5. Louisiana State University
6. Arizona State University
7. Michigan State University and a few more.

It would be really helpful if you can suggest my chances in the abovementioned schools and a few other schools where I might apply.

With a 600 GMAT, Michigan State and ASU are going to be out of reach. Syracuse is likely out of reach too. Bentley and LSU are only going to be decent fits, depending on your research interest. I don't know much about FAU's or FIU's programs.

My guess is the faculty at OSU will be much more likely to write you good letters and help you throughout the application process if you show them that you can get a higher score on the GMAT versus just targeting lower tier schools. I don't mean this to sound insensitive, but faculty at a place like OSU are unlikely to see the "I don't have time to resit the GMAT during the MAcc program" argument as a valid one.

[hummingbird]

As everyone else mentioned, GMAT is the weakest link in your profile. Please work on that.