The Best Master's in Accounting in Georgia for 2026

Georgia State's Flexible Professional Master of Accountancy, housed in the Robinson College of Business, is built for working students: classes meet Monday through Thursday evenings, and students with an accounting background can finish in as little as 12 months or stretch the program out to five years. No GMAT or GRE score is required. Electives are organized into three tracks that map directly to the CPA Exam's discipline sections: Business Analysis and Reporting, Tax Compliance and Planning, and Information Systems and Control. U.S. News & World Report ranked the program No. 56 nationally and No. 30 among public universities for 2026, and Robinson reports 94% of 2023 graduates were employed within three months.

GSU's Hakia Score of 80.4 is the lowest of Georgia's top four accounting master's programs, reflecting a 53% graduation rate against a 55% admit rate. It is also the cheapest by far: $7,344 in tuition for Georgia residents, or $516 per credit hour, versus $23,520 for non-residents at $1,442 per credit hour, a $16,176 in-state discount. Robinson's own data shows the payoff: 2023 graduates reported a 30% average salary increase after finishing the degree, enough to pay back the cost of the program in 1.3 years. This is the fit for a Georgia resident who wants the lowest-cost, fastest-payback path to CPA eligibility without a GMAT.

Kennesaw State's Master of Accounting is a two-semester, cohort-based "2 in 2" program: finish your 30 credit-hour degree and sit for all four sections of the CPA Exam in a single August-to-May run. You choose a specialization in Audit/Advisory or Tax, and the program is face-to-face only, with no evening or online sections. Entry requires an accounting undergraduate degree and five completed prerequisite courses (Intermediate Accounting I and II, Tax, Accounting Information Systems, and Audit), plus a capstone course that folds CPA Exam prep, textbooks, and exam sitting fees into tuition. The School of Accountancy sits inside Coles College of Business, one of the largest accounting programs in Georgia, and houses an Internal Audit Center that the Institute of Internal Auditors recognizes as 1 of 12 Centers of Excellence worldwide.

A Hakia Score of 79.4 puts Kennesaw State at #5 among Georgia's best master's in accounting programs for 2026, the highest score in this group of four. The numbers back the accelerated format: a 52% graduation rate, a 69% admit rate, and a tuition split of $4,560 in-state versus $16,488 out-of-state, an $11,928 non-resident premium. Enrollment across the university tops 47,764. This program fits students who already hold an accounting degree, want the fastest CPA-eligible path in the state, and can commit to a full-time, single-cohort schedule with no part-time option. Nationally, accountants and auditors earn a median $94,160 a year, per BLS Occupational Outlook data, the same benchmark that applies across every school in this ranking.

Georgia College's Master of Accountancy is a 30-semester-credit-hour program built to satisfy Georgia's CPA licensure education requirements, with an elective CPA Exam Review course that earns credit while you study for the test. Unlike a typical MAcc, it is open to graduates of any undergraduate major: if your degree is not in accounting, the College of Business & Technology builds a custom plan that adds up to 36 semester hours of foundation coursework ahead of the 30 graduate-level hours. Incoming students can attend an optional in-person Graduate Orientation on the Milledgeville campus to meet faculty and connect with peers before classes start.

Georgia College earns a Hakia Score of 75.2, good for #6 among Georgia's best master's in accounting programs for 2026. It posts the strongest completion numbers in this group of four: a 64% graduation rate and a 78% admit rate, the most accessible entry point here. Tuition runs $7,696 in-state versus $28,022 out-of-state, a $20,326 gap, the steepest non-resident premium among these four schools. That combination makes it a fit for Georgia residents switching into accounting from another major, or anyone who values a structured on-ramp and a comparatively high graduation rate over the lowest possible price tag. The BLS puts the national median salary for accountants and auditors at $94,160 a year, context that applies to every program on this list, not a school-specific outcome.

The University of West Georgia's Master of Professional Accounting, housed in the Richards College of Business, is built around Georgia's CPA licensure math: completing the MPAcc alongside a bachelor's degree satisfies the state's 150 total semester-hour rule and its 30 hours of upper-level coursework requirement. The program targets corporate accounting, public accounting, and entry into accounting or business doctoral programs. Richards College is one of only five business schools in Georgia to hold AACSB's additional accounting accreditation on top of its general AACSB business accreditation.

UWG carries a Hakia Score of 71.5, ranking #7 among Georgia's best master's in accounting programs for 2026. It is the most selective school in this group of four, admitting 52% of applicants, and its 43% graduation rate is the lowest of the four, a real completion risk to weigh against the selectivity. Tuition is $4,488 in-state versus $16,200 out-of-state, an $11,712 gap. It fits students focused squarely on hitting Georgia's CPA semester-hour requirements at the lowest in-state price in this set, who are comfortable with a more competitive admit bar and want to gauge their odds of finishing before enrolling. The national median salary for accountants and auditors is $94,160 a year, per BLS data, the same figure that applies across every school here.

Georgia Southern runs its Master of Accounting two ways: on-campus in Statesboro or fully online as the WebMAcc, out of a School of Accountancy that has graduated students since 1996. Core seminars cover financial accounting and auditing plus taxation of corporations and partnerships, with a required choice between an Accounting Data Analytics or Accounting Information Systems track, and electives that include tax research, fraud and expert witnessing, and estate and gift taxation. The program is built to prepare graduates for the CPA, CMA, and CFE exams, and the Parker College of Business holds AACSB accreditation, a distinction the school notes only about 5% of business programs worldwide earn.

Georgia Southern's Hakia Score of 71 places it #8 among Georgia's best master's in accounting programs for 2026. It is the most accessible school in this group of four by far, admitting 88% of applicants, against a 55% graduation rate. Tuition is $4,488 in-state versus $16,200 out-of-state, an $11,712 non-resident premium, though the online WebMAcc format matters here: it lets out-of-state students study without relocating, unlike the campus-only programs elsewhere on this list. It fits students who want format flexibility, an easier admit bar, and a broader certification target than CPA alone. Nationally, accountants and auditors earn a median $94,160 a year, according to BLS Occupational Outlook data, a benchmark constant across every school in this ranking.

Based in Dahlonega, GA, University of North Georgia is a public institution. Its Master's in Accounting program lands at #9 of the 12 ranked here, earning a 70.7 Hakia Score that weighs graduation rate, cost, selectivity, and outcomes. That sits below the 76.2 group average, in the lower third of the 12 ranked programs. The program graduates 37% of its students, below the 54% average across the ranked schools. University of North Georgia admits 68% of applicants, less selective than the 63% average for the group. That is more open than the 11% rate at Emory University, the most selective program on this list. Its completion rate lands toward the lower end in a group where graduation runs from 21% to 91%.

On cost, University of North Georgia charges $4,373 a year in-state, roughly 4x the $15,885 out-of-state rate. Over two years that is about $8,746 in tuition for residents, against $31,770 for non-residents. That puts it among the most affordable on this list, where annual in-state tuition runs from $4,373 at University of North Georgia to $63,400 at Emory University. Graduates step into a field with a $94,160 national median salary reported by the BLS. For prospective students, the main draw here is its low in-state cost.

Valdosta State University is a public institution in Valdosta, GA. Its Master's in Accounting program ranks #10 of the 12 analyzed here with a 68.2 Hakia Score, a composite of graduation rate, cost, selectivity, and graduate outcomes. That sits below the 76.2 group average, in the lower third of the 12 ranked programs. The program graduates 42% of its students, below the 54% average across the ranked schools. Valdosta State University admits 72% of applicants, less selective than the 63% average for the group. That is more open than the 11% rate at Emory University, the most selective program on this list. Its completion rate lands toward the lower end in a group where graduation runs from 21% to 91%.

On cost, Valdosta State University charges $4,488 a year in-state, roughly 4x the $16,200 out-of-state rate. Over two years that is about $8,976 in tuition for residents, against $32,400 for non-residents. That puts it among the most affordable on this list, where annual in-state tuition runs from $4,373 at University of North Georgia to $63,400 at Emory University. Graduates step into a field with a $94,160 national median salary reported by the BLS. For prospective students, the main draw here is its low in-state cost.

Brenau University is a private, nonprofit institution in Gainesville, GA. Its Master's in Accounting program ranks #11 of the 12 analyzed here with a 61.5 Hakia Score, a composite of graduation rate, cost, selectivity, and graduate outcomes. That sits below the 76.2 group average, in the lower third of the 12 ranked programs. The program graduates 33% of its students, below the 54% average across the ranked schools. Brenau University admits 88% of applicants, less selective than the 63% average for the group. That is more open than the 11% rate at Emory University, the most selective program on this list. Its completion rate lands toward the lower end in a group where graduation runs from 21% to 91%.

On cost, Brenau University charges $31,470 a year in-state. Over two years that totals about $62,940 in tuition. That puts it at the higher end on this list, where annual in-state tuition runs from $4,373 at University of North Georgia to $63,400 at Emory University. As a private institution, its tuition does not change with residency, unlike the public universities on this list. Graduates step into a field with a $94,160 national median salary reported by the BLS. For prospective students, the main draw here is its an online option.

Strayer University-Georgia is a private, for-profit institution in Chamblee, GA. Its Master's in Accounting program ranks #12 of the 12 analyzed here with a 60.8 Hakia Score, a composite of graduation rate, cost, selectivity, and graduate outcomes. That sits below the 76.2 group average, in the lower third of the 12 ranked programs. The program graduates 21% of its students, below the 54% average across the ranked schools. Strayer University-Georgia holds an open-admission policy, accepting every qualified applicant. Its completion rate lands toward the lower end in a group where graduation runs from 21% to 91%. The university enrolls 4,916 students overall. The degree is also offered online, which widens access for working students.

On cost, Strayer University-Georgia charges $13,725 a year in-state. Over two years that totals about $27,450 in tuition. That puts it at the higher end on this list, where annual in-state tuition runs from $4,373 at University of North Georgia to $63,400 at Emory University. As a private institution, its tuition does not change with residency, unlike the public universities on this list. Graduates step into a field with a $94,160 national median salary reported by the BLS. That median runs roughly 7x the program's annual in-state tuition. For prospective students, the main draw here is its an online option.