Graduate Certificate Programs in Taxation – Online and Campus
Updated: March 18, 2025
Graduate certificate programs in taxation provide college graduates and mid-career professionals who hold a bachelor’s degree with training in individual and corporate tax liability, knowledge of federal and state tax laws, and tools for filing taxes for various types of taxable entities. These programs are offered by accredited colleges and universities, often through schools of business, accounting, or professional development. They confer graduate credits that may be transferable to master’s programs in accounting and/or taxation, and many certificate programs offer a curriculum that overlaps with master’s-level degree programs. In fact, students pursuing a graduate certificate often take classes with students enrolled in master’s degree programs.
A typical taxation graduate certificate program consists of a relatively small cluster of courses (often four to six) that can be completed in one year or less. To be eligible for a graduate certificate program, applicants must hold a minimum of a bachelor’s degree. Some taxation programs require an undergraduate degree in accounting or prior training in accounting fundamentals. However, exact admission requirements vary by program and there are schools that offer taxation graduate certificate programs designed for students with a bachelor’s degree in any field or discipline.
Note: While graduate certificate programs in taxation alone do not qualify students to take the Uniform Certified Public Accountant Examination, the coursework students complete as part of a graduate certificate program can often be applied to the 150 hours of college-level accounting coursework required to qualify for the CPA exam.
Taxation Explained
Taxation is a specialization within the larger field of accountancy that focuses on laws pertaining to governmental taxes on individuals and other taxable entities. This includes how various types of businesses are taxed at the federal, state, and local levels, as well as internationally. Tax specialists apply accounting tools and knowledge of the law to the process of ensuring legal compliance with tax regulations, minimizing tax liabilities, and providing strategic tax planning.
Tax planning professionals must be familiar with the tax preparation and filing processes for individuals, pass-through entities (PTEs), partnerships, trusts, limited liability companies, and various corporate entities. In addition, taxation specialists commonly learn about the types of transactions between individuals and business that have tax consequences, and how potentially taxable assets can be classified in order to reduce tax liabilities. Accountants and business professionals who specialize in taxation study estate and gift taxes, charitable contributions, property transactions and settlements, tax shelters, mergers and acquisitions, and investments in order to ensure they can provide clients with expertise in managing tax responsibilities.
While there is no specific professional license in taxation, tax accountants are generally required to hold a Certified Public Accountant (CPA) credential. CPA licensing requirements vary by state, but most states require accountants to have a bachelor’s degree plus at least 150 hours of college-level accounting coursework at the bachelor’s level and one to two years of experience in accounting. Qualified candidates must then pass the Uniform Certified Public Accountant Examination prior to becoming fully licensed by the state.
Identifying and Classifying Taxation Graduate Certificate Programs
Graduate certificate programs have several features that distinguish them from other academic programs. They are designed for post-baccalaureate students, which means applicants must hold a minimum of a bachelor’s degree to be eligible for enrollment. They confer graduate credits and a certificate of completion rather than a degree. Graduate certificates typically consist of a relatively small number of graduate courses that provide applied training in a narrower field of study when compared to a full master’s degree program. Finally, to be listed on GraduateCertificates.com, they must be offered by an accredited college or university.
Taxation graduate certificate programs are generally designated as such, although there is some variation in naming for these programs across different universities. Graduate certificate programs in individual, business, and corporate taxation are all classified as taxation graduate certificate programs on this site, as are programs with similar names, provided they offer graduate training in skills and proficiencies related to taxation. It is important to note that professional certification programs are not classified as graduate certificate programs because they do not confer graduate credits, and may not be offered by institutions of higher education.
Taxation Graduate Certificate Coursework
Curricula for graduate certificate programs in taxation vary by school and by program. Some programs focus on filing and planning for individuals, while others have a curriculum geared toward business and corporate taxation, and there are also programs that focus on international taxation. However, most programs have courses that cover topics in state and federal tax law, various types of taxable entities, and tax advising strategies for individuals, partnerships, estates, trusts, and/or companies. In addition, taxation graduate certificate programs commonly provide students with one or two electives that may cover state and local taxation, the federal tax code, corporate and shareholder taxation, real estate taxes, and/or other specialized areas within the field of taxation.
The list below draws on actual program curricula and is intended to offer a representative overview of the types of courses that are commonly part of a taxation graduate certificate.
- Individual Taxation
- Taxation for Business Entities
- Corporations and Taxation
- Tax Law
- Taxation of Estates, Gifts, and Trusts
- Taxation of Flow-Through Businesses
- S Corporation Taxation
- Federal Tax Law Research Methods
Online Graduate Certificate in Taxation Programs
Many schools now offer fully and/or partially online graduate certificate programs in taxation in order to expand the reach of their graduate programs and provide a more flexible and convenient alternative to traditional, campus-based programs. Online graduate certificate programs give students who would prefer not to commute to a campus for classes and students who do not reside within commuting range of the school offering the program the opportunity to study taxation at the graduate level using distance learning technologies.
Online coursework is typically be delivered via one or two modes of online instruction: synchronous instruction and/or asynchronous instruction. Synchronous instruction takes place in real-time and includes lectures and class meetings that are streamed live using web conferencing software. In contrast, asynchronous instruction encompasses all coursework that does not have a real-time component, including pre-recorded lectures and demonstrations, assignments that students complete on their own time, and online discussion boards. Programs that utilize synchronous instruction offer more structure and less flexibility than programs that do not hold classes and lectures in real-time. Programs that rely exclusively on asynchronous instruction are more flexible and convenient as students can view course materials at any time, but generally require students to have strong time management skills in order to keep up with assignments by set due dates.
Prospective students should be aware that graduate courses are more rigorous and typically move at a faster pace compared to undergraduate courses, and that this is true for both on-campus and online graduate certificate programs.
Another variable that is important to consider when exploring online programs is campus visits. While many online graduate certificate programs are 100% online and do not require students to attend any campus-based sessions, some programs require campus visits. Residency sessions are generally short (three to five days is common) and can be a valuable addition to an online program. However, they require travel and may be inconvenient or costly for some students. Programs that require more than three campus visits per year are classified on this site as hybrid or blended programs rather than as online programs. Programs that do not require any campus visits, and programs that require three or fewer campus-based sessions per calendar year, are classified as online programs.
Examples of Online Taxation Graduate Certificate Programs
The examples below provide details of several online graduate certificate programs in taxation. These examples are meant to offer an overview of the types of programs that are available online. Each program is offered by a regionally accredited college or university.
The Pennsylvania State University (Penn State) offers a Graduate Certificate in Taxation through Penn State World Campus that is 100% online and that does not require any campus visits. The program consists of three courses that confer nine graduate credits. All three courses draw on Penn State’s online Master’s in Taxation program, and students can earn the certificate in eight to 16 months. Potential courses include: Taxation, Corporate Taxation and Financial Reporting, Taxation of Pass-Through Entities, International Taxation, and State and Local Taxation. Credits earned through the certificate program can be applied to Penn State’s Master’s in Taxation program if and when a student opts to pursue further studies in taxation. To be eligible for the Graduate Certificate in Taxation, applicants must hold a bachelor’s degree from an accredited school. Further details about Penn State’s taxation graduate certificate program are available at www.worldcampus.psu.edu.
The University of Cincinnati has a Graduate Certificate in Individual Taxation program and a Graduate Certificate in Corporate Taxation program. Both programs are offered in a fully online format through the Carl H. Lindner College of Business. Each program has a 12-credit curriculum comprised of six courses that overlap with the University of Cincinnati’s Master of Science (MS) in Taxation program. Graduate credits earned as part of these certificate programs can be transferred to the MS program. Students in the Individual Taxation program can take courses in Individual Tax Structure, Partnership Taxation, S Corporations, State and Local Taxation, and Estate and Gift Taxation. For the Corporate Taxation program, students can take courses in Corporate Tax – Formation and Structure; Corporate Tax – Redemption, Liquidations and Spinoffs; Corporate Tax – Attributes & Operational Considerations; Partnership Taxation; Accounting for Income Taxes; International Taxation; and more. For additional information on these programs, visit business.uc.edu.
The University of North Carolina at Greensboro (UNC Greensboro) has a Graduate Certificate in Taxation program that can be completed on campus or in a fully online format. The program is offered through UNC Greensboro’s Bryan School of Business, and students in the program complete a four-course curriculum, earning 12 graduate credits. The program has one required course: Introduction to Business Entity Taxation, and then students choose three elective courses from the following: Taxation of Estates, Gifts and Trusts; Taxation of Flow-Through Business Entities; Taxation of Corporations and Shareholders; and Advanced Business Law. Program applicants are required to hold a bachelor’s degree from an accredited college or university with a cumulative undergraduate GPA of 3.0 or higher on a four-point scale. More information on the program is available from the Bryan School of Business at bryan.uncg.edu.
More Graduate Certificates in Taxation
| School Name | Location | Program |
|---|---|---|
| East Texas A&M University | Online | Tax Accounting Graduate Certificate |
| Golden Gate University | Online; San Francisco, CA | Graduate Certificate in Advanced Studies in Taxation (Post-Master's) |
| Minnesota State University, Mankato | Online | Graduate Certificate in Taxation |
| Missouri State University | Online; Springfield, MO | Tax Accounting Graduate Certificate |
| PennState World Campus | Online | Graduate Certificate in Taxation |
| Suffolk University | Boston, MA | Graduate Certificate in Foundations of Accounting & Taxation |
| Suffolk University | Boston, MA | Graduate Certificate in Tax Compliance & Planning |
| UNC Greensboro | Online; Greensboro, NC | Graduate Certificate in Taxation |
| University of Cincinnati | Online | Corporate Taxation Graduate Certificate |
| University of Cincinnati | Online | Individual Taxation Graduate Certificate |
| Widener University | Chester, PA | Taxation Graduate Certificate |