Let’s say you’re not a lawyer. Instead, you’re a current or aspiring accountant, wealth manager, auditor or other professional who wants the distinction of an advanced degree in taxation from one of America’s premier tax programs. Our Master in the Study of Tax Law could be the perfect choice for you.

Offered through BU Law’s renowned Graduate Tax Program, the Master in the Study of Tax Law is a 24-credit program designed to provide foundational tax law training to business professionals. It is a practical program, built upon the practice-oriented curriculum of BU Law’s top-ranked LLM in Taxation Program. Its goal is to equip you with legal knowledge and skills that will boost your professional standing, not turn you into a theoretical legal scholar.

As a student in this program, you’ll develop a fundamental understanding of tax law through five required classes that cover the foundational legal principles of federal income tax, corporate tax, US tax practice and procedure and partnership tax. In addition, all students receive rigorous hands-on training in tax-focused legal research and writing — essential skills in the tax professional’s tool kit.

Beyond these requirements, you will have access to the graduate tax program’s expansive curriculum, one of the most comprehensive in the nation, enabling you to take any of the program’s 40+ specialized electives that suit your needs.

Interested in commercial deals? Partnership transactions? Trusts and estates work? Real estate development? Bankruptcies and workouts? Intellectual property transactions? Financial products? Corporate mergers? Retirement planning? You name it. We’ve got it.

If you already have an accounting, business or finance background — either through work or school – perhaps you’ve already developed the technical skills required for tax work. But why stop there? The legal training you’ll receive as a Master in the Study of Tax Law student will bring you to the next level, adding an entirely new dimension to your analytical, reasoning and problem-solving skills. Because you will study tax law alongside practicing lawyers and law students, you will learn first-hand what “thinking like a lawyer” is all about.

Your instructors will be accomplished tax lawyers who are among the leading practitioners in their fields. With decades of practice experience, they are uniquely qualified to train you in the intricacies of tax policies, practice and procedures. From them, you will learn how tax laws apply in the “real world” and how legal issues are addressed and resolved. You will also gain a more sophisticated understanding of risk — and you’ll develop problem-solving skills to help you effectively manage risks and tax liability issues on behalf of your clients.

While the program will not qualify you for the practice of law or to sit for any state bar exam, you will gain the same fundamental knowledge and professional skillset as your legal counterparts. Add this to your background – whether in accounting, financial advisory services, business consulting or other tax-related field – and you’ll find yourself atop a new professional platform.

Whether you’re a seasoned financial advisor or a recent college graduate en route to earning a CPA credential, your professional development begins on day one.

Master in the Study of Tax Law students have the same access to professional development support as the LLM in Taxation students. Our goal is to help you develop your professional skills and acquire the information you need to navigate the job market and seize opportunities that will lead to career satisfaction and success. That means dedicated, one-on-one career coaching by the program director and our Graduate Tax career advisor. You will receive expert guidance on developing your personal job search strategy, honing your interviewing and networking skills and perfecting your resume and cover letters for your self-marketing campaign. You will also have access to BU’s proprietary online job, internship, pro bono and career resource database.

You’ll be invited (and urged!) to attend an extensive array of career-related workshops and panels. Networking events with alumni and local practitioners will help you make valuable connections with the market. You’ll also have opportunities to connect directly with employers through on- and off-campus recruiting events with the “Big 4’ accounting firms.

Once you are an student, you become a lifelong member of BU Law’s global community, which boasts 24,000+ graduates from over 100 countries. Through the law school’s alumni database and the BU Alumni app, you’ll gain immediate access to this valuable resource. With your degree in hand, you’ll continue to strengthen your BU connections for the remainder of your career, no matter the direction it takes. Hard to put a price on that.