Ross Applicants’ Top 50 Questions

• General Questions
• Applying to Ross MAcc Program
• Career Development and Placement
• Housing and Student Life
• GMAT, GPA, and TOEFL & International Student Questions

General Questions

A: Prospective students can schedule “counseling” appointments with the director of the MAcc Program via email at rossmacc@umich.edu.

A: A great resource for virtually all questions about the Ross MAcc Program is our website, at www.bus.umich.edu. Here, information can be found on all of the programs offered by the University of Michigan's Ross School of Business, including course descriptions, entry requirements, student profiles, and frequently asked questions. The application is completed on-line.

A: The MAcc Program is a full-time program that begins each fall. Winter or spring enrollment is not offered.

A: The MAcc Program takes 10 months to complete, starting in September and ending the following June.

A: We do not offer a particular specialization or concentration track. Our MAcc Program is designed to allow students the flexibility to take electives that meet each individual’s goals. The “specialization” of the program shows through the electives that the MAcc student will choose during his/her 10 months in the program.

A: A maximum of six credits is allowed to be taken outside of Michigan's Ross School of Business. For courses above the six-credit limit, advanced approval must be obtained from the program director. 

A: Contact the Residency Office at 734-764-1400. Residency information is also available online at www.umich.edu/~regoff/resreg.html.  

A: The program can offer significant tuition reimbursement through graduate student instructor positions and scholarships to outstanding students. A scholarship application is provided to students upon admission to the program and is due February 1. The Ross Office of Financial Aid also exists to assist students with loan and other aid opportunities. Current tuition figures, which are updated annually in June, may be reviewed at www.bus.umich.edu/admissions/financialaid/tuitionandcosts/macc.htm.  For additional information contact the University of Michigan Ross School of Business, Office of Financial Aid, 701 Tappan St., Room E2540, Ann Arbor, MI 48109-1234, 734-764-5139, rossfinaid@umich.edu.

Applying to the Ross MAcc Program

A: All Ross MAcc applicants must be completing or have completed the equivalent of an accredited four-year U.S. bachelor’s degree in virtually any field of study. In addition, applicants must have satisfied five of the six prerequisite requirements listed below in order to have their application reviewed. All six courses must be completed by the start of the MAcc Program. (University of Michigan courses are in bold.):

• Principles of Financial Accounting (ACC271 or ACC 300 or equivalent)
• Principles of Managerial Accounting (ACC272 or ACC 301 or equivalent)
• Intermediate Financial Accounting (ACC312 or equivalent)
• Intermediate Cost Accounting (ACC315 or equivalent)
• Principles of Microeconomics (Econ101 or equivalent)
• Statistics (300-400 level) (OMS301/STAT250/350/ECON404/405/406 or equivalent)

Courses taken at all other institutions are subject to review by Ross faculty to determine whether they qualify as prerequisites. MAcc applicants who list non-University of Michigan accounting courses as potential MAcc Program prerequisites should submit both syllabi and course descriptions (from official university publications) for those courses. Documentation should include the title/author of the textbook used, detailed list of topics covered in the course, length of the course (number of weeks), how often the course met during the week (number of hours), how the course was taught (lecture, discussion, etc.)  and how the course was graded.  We reserve the right to review such courses in order to determine their equivalency to the MAcc prerequisite courses we offer at the University of Michigan. We do not accept community college, distance-learning, or online accounting courses as fulfillment of our prerequisites. These accounting prerequisites must be taken at an accredited four-year college or university.

As part of the application process, you will be evaluated on your qualitative and quantitative potential for success in the Program. Personal essays and letters of recommendations are used as critical indicators.

A: We require either the GMAT or GRE test be taken to be eligible to apply. It is recommended that you take it as soon as possible. Request that your scores be reported directly to the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor. The school’s GMAT code number is SN1-J6-34.  Please note we do accept GRE scores in place of the GMAT, but we prefer the GMAT.  We do not have a minimum score requirement.

A: We require two letters of recommendation. We suggest you request recommendations from persons who have been directly responsible for assessing your academic performance and/or professional experience. At least one recommendation should come from an intermediate accounting professor.  The recommendation forms are completed online by your recommenders. It is important that recommendations provide details and/or examples to support opinions about an applicant. For example, the statement "Julie is a great student" does not provide as much insight as a concrete example of how well Julie performed in class assignments when faced with certain responsibilities and challenges. Recommendations that state strong feelings (either positive or negative) without examples are not helpful.

Q: Do I need to schedule an interview?

A: No. Interviews will be conducted by invitation only. If the admissions committee invites you to interview, you will receive the invitation and scheduling information via email. The interview provides the admissions committee with more information about you. It is not an indication of the outcome of your application. Interviews are typically conducted by faculty in the Accounting department, MAcc Program Office staff, and Ross alumni. Interviews may be conducted in person or by telephone.

A: There are three ways to submit supplemental information. Be sure to indicate your name and contact information in a note and let us know that this is supplemental to your application.

1. Email it to rossmacc@umich.edu.
2. Fax it to our office at 734-763-7804.
3. Mail it to our office at 701 Tappan St., E2540, Ann Arbor, MI 48109-1234.

Please try to submit all pieces of information within your application.

A. We are looking for individuals who will be highly involved at Ross and later as alums. One way for us to gauge future involvement is by looking at past and recent involvement. 

A: Admission to the Ross MAcc Program is for the fall term only. We do have a rolling admissions process. Admission is competitive, so we strongly encourage you to apply early. Your application and all supporting materials must be on file in the Admissions Office before your application can be considered complete and ready for review. Scholarship and graduate student instructor positions are available and an application is provided to students upon admission to the program. Click here for deadline information.   

A: We will not admit individuals who have already earned a MAcc or equivalent degree from another institution, whether accredited or unaccredited. No previous course work will transfer into our MAcc program. In addition, students admitted to Michigan's Ross School of Business may not be simultaneously enrolled in two graduate programs.

A: Yes, most of our students come directly out of an undergraduate degree program.

A: No, we do not require work experience. However, if you have had some work experience, whether through a part-time job or summer internship, please include that information in your application so that it may be considered during our review.

A: Yes.

A: Reapplicants must submit new application forms and one new letter of recommendation, along with the application fee, in order to be considered for admission. Additionally, reapplicants must include a cover letter discussing experiences since the last application and an updated resume. New essays are not required, but sometimes can be beneficial if there have been significant developments that you would like to address independently of your cover letter. Credentials and other supporting materials sent with your initial application will be held for one year. If you reapply after that time, you must submit a completely new application and supportive documents.

A: Except in some rare cases, decisions are final. However, an applicant may appeal the decision by putting the request in writing to the Director of MAcc Admissions. The appeal must include additional information that the applicant feels would have an impact on his or her application. No applications will be reviewed if new information is not included with the appeal. Letters can be sent to: Director of MAcc Program, 701 Tappan Street, Ann Arbor, MI 48109-1234.

A: Unfortunately, no. But if you have additional information regarding updated grades or test scores, teamwork, leadership, or community involvement, you should send the information to the Admissions Office:

In addition, you must submit your transcript with your most recent grades to the Office of Admissions.

A: All parts are important, especially when competing against many other excellent applicants. It is important to show you have a clear sense to your skills, explain why the MAcc makes sense for you, and define your goals for the future.

A: When you submit your undergraduate University of Michigan transcript, you should ask the Registrar to include documentation showing the grade behind a pass/fail. It is also okay if students ask faculty or departments to send letters to attest to the actual grades. We recommend that you do not take any of the MAcc program prerequisites as a pass/fail.

Career Development & Placement

A:  Our MAcc students are fortunate in that many different career paths are available, depending on how the MAcc student constructs his/her elective courseload.  Careers are possible in public accounting (audit, tax and advisory), consulting, investment banking, corporate finance, government jobs; Law school and PhD programs are also possibilities.

A: You can find current placement statistics for graduates as well as internships broken out by function, industry, region, and compensation in our Placement Report.  

A: You can find a list of companies that recruit at Ross by following this link.

A: Ross alumni have access to iMpact, the on-line career opportunity database and networking system. iMpact is continually updated with alumni job postings from organizations targeting Michigan's Ross School of Business alumni. iMpact can help you find other alumni, and allows you to search by industry, company and other topics to yield a list of recruiting companies in your area of interest, including links to company-specific information. iMpact also gives you instant access to library and career resources such as company and industry information, career advice, negotiating guidelines, and interviewing skills.

Housing & Student Life

A: For information about available housing, including single student housing, family housing, and off-campus housing, visit www.housing.umich.edu/options.  To receive an off-campus housing information packet call University Housing at (734) 763-3205.

A: Ross offers an extraordinary environment for students. Michigan's Ross School of Business is a small and close-knit community within one of the world’s great universities. That produces a rare combination of human scale and personal attention with first-rate faculty and facilities. Among the Ross' own facilities are state-of-the-art computer resources and our own extensive business library.

Michigan's Ross School of Business is a true community, tucked into a corner of the University of Michigan campus. Beyond the curriculum, our highly active student organizations create great social and professional opportunities and the School hosts speakers and events of special interests to the School’s students. And beyond the Ross School of Business, the University of Michigan – rated as the best campus cultural environment in the United States – offers a wonderful array of options for leisure time, from big-time athletics and recreational facilities to museums and lectures.

And when you go home at night, you walk through a pleasant and safe college town – a town synonymous with higher education but with the options of a major city.

A: You can learn more about the student clubs and organizations at the Ross School of Business by visiting the Clubs & Organizations page.  

A: You can find links to many Ann Arbor resources by visiting www.ecurrent.com.

GMAT, GPA, TOEFL & International Students

A:Ross will keep GMAT scores on file for two years. Test scores are valid for five years from the date you took the test to the deadline date when you apply. We encourage you to take the GMAT no later than one month prior to when we will review your application, and preferably much earlier. If you take the test early enough, we encourage you to include an unofficial score report with your application if it is available.

A: For information about testing sessions and locations in your area visit www.gmac.com or call 1-800-GMAT-NOW (1-800-462-8669).

A: We do not have a minimum score requirement, but most admitted students have scored between 600 and 740. The average score of admitted students is 680. Please keep in mind that your GMAT score is only one of a number of criteria we review in determining admission. If your score is below our average or does not fall within this range, we still encourage you to apply. You may, however, want to consider retaking the GMAT to improve your score. 

A: Academic institutions generally receive scores within 10 business days after the test is given. It has been known to take longer, so allow plenty of time. If you are uncertain as to whether we will receive your official scores by the deadline, you can upload your unofficial score via your online application, fax your unofficial score report to our office at 734-763-7804, or send it to 701 Tappan St., Room E2540, Ann Arbor, MI 48109-1234.

A: We do not have a minimum GPA requirement. Most admitted students have GPAs of 3.0 and above.  The average tends to be around a 3.6.

A: Many of the requirements are the same as those for our U.S. applicants. You must hold the equivalent of a four-year U.S. bachelor’s degree.

You must have completed the equivalents to the six prerequisite courses listed under our Admissions Requirements.

Applicants whose native language is not English must pass the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) with a score of 100 or higher (ibt). The TOEFL examination should be completed before the application deadline for which you are applying.  The average TOEFL score of those admitted is between 109-110, and the code to have scores automatically sent to Ross is 1839.  We do not accept IELTS test scores.

All applications must take the Graduate Management Admissions Test (GMAT). There are no minimum requirements for the GMAT, however scores for those admitted to the program have scored between 600 and 740. The average score of admitted students is 680. The GMAT examination must be completed before the application deadline for which you are applying.

All applicants are asked to submit two letters of recommendation.

An interview may be requested by our Admissions Office.  We will contact you if an interview is required.

A.  Yes.  Beginning with the Fall 2011 admit term, we will consider applicants who hold a three-year undergraduate degree from India.

A: Applicants whose native language is not English must pass the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) with a score of 100 or higher (ibt). The code to have scores automatically sent to Ross is 1839.

A: International applicants who have earned a degree from a United States school or an institution abroad where the curriculum is taught exclusively in English are exempt from the TOEFL requirement. Those who have worked in the U.S. full time for two or more years in the past five years are also exempt from the TOEFL requirement.

A: TOEFL scores are valid for two years from the year of the exam. For example, if you took the exam in 2009, your score will be accepted until 2011.