International Students

The highly-ranked MS in Accountancy program at the Wake Forest University School of Business has long been a place where students from all over the world come to prepare for careers in accounting. Whether you’re just exploring your enrollment options or have been recently admitted to the program, we’ve found that the most common questions we receive tend to be in regard to STEM certification and foundational coursework, so we’re providing the information below to help provide greater detail about these areas. Please take some time to browse this information and should you have any additional questions, please don’t hesitate to reach out to John White, MSA Program Lead (whitejg@wfu.edu), (336) 758-5084.

STEM Certified – OPT Extension Eligible

The Wake Forest MSA program is STEM certified, providing enhanced employment opportunities for international students. The STEM and OPT extension can allow students to work for three years in the U.S. while working with companies to obtain a work visa. Optional Practical Training (OPT) is a period during which undergraduate and graduate students with F-1 Visa status who have completed or have been pursuing their degrees for more than nine months are permitted to work for one year in the U.S. on a student visa with the goal of gaining practical training to complement their education. OPT extension eligibility allows a 24-month extension of the post-completion OPT, and is available to graduates of the Wake Forest MSA program.

International students always have the option to use their training to pursue career opportunities within their home countries, or find U.S. companies seeking to fill positions overseas with MSA graduates. The Wake Forest Center for Market Readiness and Employment is available to all MSA students to help define career objectives, improve interviewing skills and explore opportunities to launch the career you want.

Required Foundational Coursework

Students who did not take the foundational courses at a U.S. AACSB accredited institution will be required to do so before beginning coursework in the fall semester.  Please note that all accounting courses must be taught using U.S. GAAP to ensure CPA eligibility.  If you have already taken these courses at a non-U.S. AACSB accredited institution, you will be required to take these courses on the Wake Forest University campus in the summer prior to fall orientation.  Please note that some of our international students will need to request an early graduation date from their undergraduate university as these classes begin in May.

Foundational Courses

• Principles of Financial Accounting
• Introductory Statistics (Business Analytics I)
• Principles of Finance
• Intermediate Accounting I (U.S. GAAP)
• Intermediate Accounting II (U.S. GAAP)
• Introduction to Taxation (U.S. AACSB)