Top 10 Universities for Accounting &

Finance
Tuesday, July 23, 2013 at 1am
Like many of the 30 subjects ranked in the 2013 QS World University Rankings by
Subject, the top 10 universities for accounting and finance is dominated by the US
and UK, but also features two Australian entries. Find out more about the strengths and
specializations of each of these world-leading universities for accounting and finance

1. Harvard University
Harvard University is well respected across many different subject areas in fact its
ranked number one in 10 out of the 30 subjects covered in the 2013 QS World
University Rankings by Subject. But the prestigious Harvard Business School is
undoubtedly among the universitys most famous schools. Research at the schools
accounting and management research unit currently focuses on the use of performance
measurement systems to help businesses communicate with external investors, improve
resource allocation and strategy, and build accountability.

2. London School of Economics and Political Science

(LSE)
Specializing in social sciences, LSE ranks highly across these subjects for example,
its also currently ranked second for politics and international studies. LSEs
Department of Accounting offers BSc, MSc, diploma and PhD programs, and has
identified three key strands of research: regulation, financial reporting and auditing; the
economics of accounting; and the organizational and strategic aspects of accounting.

3. University of Oxford
The University of Oxford doesnt have an undergraduate course specifically in
accounting and/or finance, though these subjects are available within the economics and
management degree. It offers several different masters programs in finance, either
singly or in combination with a second subject, and its Sad Business School is home to
internationally renowned research groups focusing on both accounting and finance.

4. University of Cambridge
Likewise, the University of Cambridge doesnt teach any undergraduate courses
specifically in accounting and finance, though these subjects may be covered in other
programs, but does offer several MPhil programs in finance. The universitys finance
and accounting research group, based at the Judge Business School, focuses on:
business finance, financial policy, empirical corporate finance, investment management,
financial reporting and stock markets.

5. Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT)

MIT, currently number one in the overall QS World University Rankings, also has its
own world-renowned business school the MIT Sloan School of Management. Again,
the universitys accounting and finance programs are concentrated at graduate level,
with research groups dedicated to both fields. Relevant research centers include the
laboratory for Financial Engineering, Center for Energy and Environmental Policy
Research, and MIT Center for Digital Business.

6. Stanford University
Stanfords business school is quite simply called the Stanford Graduate School of
Business. Accounting research at the school currently focuses on issues relating to
financial reporting and management control, including accounting-based valuation
strategies and the design of performance measurement and incentive systems.
Meanwhile major topics for finance research at Stanford include asset pricing and
corporate finance, including analysis of investment decisions.

7. University of Melbourne
The University of Melbourne offers accounting and finance programs from
undergraduate level (as part of a Bachelor of Commerce) up to PhD, mainly through the
Melbourne Business School. The Department of Accounting focuses on financial
accounting, managerial accounting and auditing and assurance services. Major topics at
the Department of Finance include capital markets and financial institutions,
investments and financial planning, corporate finance and real estate finance.

8. University of California, Berkeley (UC Berkeley)

Berkeleys Haas School of Business teaches courses in accounting and finance at
undergraduate level, as well as offering PhD and MBA programs. Research in these
fields is based at the Center for Financial Reporting & Management, with
specializations including financial reporting, financial statement analysis, managerial
accounting and managerial performance evaluation.

9. University of Sydney
At the University of Sydney Business School, which again teaches courses from
undergraduate up to PhD level, current research in accounting covers areas such as:
international accounting, public sector accounting, corporate responses to accounting
regulation, accounting for intellectual capital, and accountability. Meanwhile the finance
departments major areas of focus are security market microstructure and corporate
finance.

10. University of Chicago

Finally, the University of Chicagos accounting and finance faculty are based at its
Booth School of Business, which offers PhD and MBA programs. Relevant research
interests include external financial reporting and disclosure issues, securities regulation,
international financial reporting and the role of accounting in contracting.
About the QS World University Rankings by Subject
Published annually since 2011, the QS World University Rankings by Subject highlights
the worlds top 200 universities across 30 different subjects. The ranking is compiled
based on QSs global surveys of academics and graduate employers, combined with
data about research citations per faculty member.