By Mark Woodland
BYU''s accounting program is considered to be one of the best in the nation - a fact which may raise questions as to why there is no doctoral program offered. However, a Ph.D. prep program has been established for accounting and information systems that have a perfect record for placing students in other doctoral programs.
'The Church won''t allow any growth at BYU,' said Paul Lowry, director of information systems Ph.D. preparation program. 'They are especially against advanced graduate programs because they are much more expensive than undergraduate education.'
Because of this inability to offer doctoral degrees, BYU''s School of Accountancy in the Marriott School of Management began a program almost 10 years ago that allows master''s students to participate in special classes and activities emphasizing Ph.D. preparation. Shortly after, the Department of Information Systems decided to follow suit.
'There is no other program like it in the U.S. that we know of,' Lowry said. 'We are the first to establish this kind of formal Ph.D. prep program and we now supply close to 10 percent of new Ph.D. students in accounting in the U.S.'
The idea of the program came about when Lowry attended a new faculty seminar where Elder Henry B. Eyring and Richard G. Scott strongly encouraged faculty to do more research with master''s-level and undergraduate-level students, Lowry said.
'I proposed to my group that we do a similar program and I was ''volunteered'' to do it,' he said.
Since the creation of these programs, Doug Prawitt, a BYU professor and creator of the accounting Ph.D Prep Track, has seen obvious progress.
'It has grown substantially in numbers,' Prawitt said. 'Once we established a track record and had several top-notch placements at top universities, word of mouth started up among the students and we''ve had over 10 new entrants into the program each year over the past five or six years.'
The program requires the same amount of credits as a standard master''s program, Lowry said. This program simply replaces some traditional elective courses with Ph.D.-focused courses and seminars. The participants also get the opportunity to conduct research with a faculty member.
The main advantage of this program is the opportunity it provides participants to experience a Ph.D. environment without the commitment.
'In business you get to do an internship to see if you like the field you are studying,' said BYU alumni David Wood, a former Prep Track participant. 'The Ph.D. prep program offers a similar opportunity to those thinking of becoming a professor.'
Dustin Norris, a junior in accounting from Katy, Texas, is considering pursuing a Ph.D., but is wary after seeing his brother-in-law drop out of a Ph.D. program.
'The drop-out rate is so high in Ph.D. programs,' Norris said. 'It would be nice to do the prep program to see if I really want to go that direction.'
About one-third of participants in the Accountancy Prep Track program decide not to continue on, Prawitt said.
Those who do pursue a Ph.D. after taking part in these programs have a high probability of acceptance into a doctoral program. Both the Information Systems and Accounting Departments have a 100 percent placement rate, according to a news release.
Students can apply to these programs every year. Once accepted into either master''s program students must request to be considered for Ph.D. prep.