Davenport University Bachelor of Business Administration in Accounting, Accounting Fraud Specialty: Our 2027 Review

Davenport gives you a full bachelor's in accounting and lets you tilt it toward fraud with a 12-credit specialty and a course in real forensic cases. It's one of only eight programs with special accounting accreditation from IACBE, and you can earn it entirely online. Qualifying graduates are also covered by Davenport's Employment Guarantee.

Davenport University's Bachelor of Business Administration (BBA) in Accounting is 120 credits, and you pick one of three specialties: management accounting, professional accountancy or fraud accounting. The private nonprofit school is headquartered in Grand Rapids, Michigan. You can earn the degree 100% online through Davenport's Global Campus, or face to face on the Grand Rapids W.A. Lettinga Campus.

Students learn to develop and maintain accounting records, prepare financial statements and use accounting information as a decision-making tool. Because the fraud work sits inside a broad accounting degree, you graduate ready for general accounting roles and with a fraud focus on your transcript.

The accounting program holds accounting accreditation from IACBE, which Davenport says only eight schools have earned. The school says the curriculum is aligned with the Certified Public Accountant (CPA), CFE and Certified Management Accountant (CMA) exams and also prepares you for the Certified Government Financial Manager (CGFM), Certified in Financial Management (CFM) and Certified Internal Auditor (CIA) exams.

Faculty bring real-world CPA experience from the Big Four accounting firms. Graduates can work in public, private or government accounting, and students can gain hands-on experience through the Volunteer Income Tax Assistance (VITA) program, which offers free tax help to low-income families.

Where this degree can lead: Forensic Accounting Jobs, Certified Fraud Examiner Certification.

• First-time college students and transfer students who want a bachelor's with a fraud specialty rather than a master's. The specialty is a 12-credit block inside the 120-credit degree.
• You live in Michigan or out of state. Davenport publishes an online rate for each.
• You want practice, not just theory. The major requires an internship or field experience and offers Business Professionals of America competitions.
• You plan to sit for the CPA exam. The school says the curriculum aligns with the CPA exam as well as the CFE and CMA exams.
• If you want a safety net, there's Davenport's Employment Guarantee.

The fraud centerpiece is Accounting Fraud Examination, a required course for every accounting major. It's an introduction to forensic accounting that covers the history of the field, fraud triangle theory, financial statement misrepresentation, and fraud examination techniques including prevention and control.

You'll be exposed to real-world forensic accounting cases and have the chance to complete an experiential learning project. By the end, you should be able to list common red flags of fraud, discuss detection methods, compare financial statement schemes, and analyze sample forensic scenarios through case study.

If you want more, the Accounting Fraud Specialty adds a 12-credit block of coursework to your plan. Around it, the major builds a solid accounting base, including Auditing and Assurance Services, Accounting Information Systems, Advanced Accounting Topics and EDP Computer Auditing.

Experience comes next. You'll take either a Field Experience in Business course or an Accounting BBA Internship, three credits either way. In your last semester, Accounting Issues and Research serves as the summative capstone, with a research paper and presentation. If you hold QuickBooks certification, you can transfer it in as credit for Accounting Information Technology.

Standout Features

• Employment Guarantee since 2014: up to 48 credits of additional education (valued at up to $48,864 on 2024-25 tuition) if a qualifying graduate has no job in six months
• Three specialties built around exam prep: Accounting Fraud (internal audit/CIA courses), Management Accounting (CMA prep courses), Professional Accountancy (taxation and CPA-oriented courses)
• Employment Guarantee for qualifying students
• Free income tax assistance for low-income families through VITA
• Honors path earns the bachelor's and master's in accounting in five years
• One of only eight schools with IACBE accounting accreditation

For 2026-2027, online undergraduate tuition is $1,059 per credit hour for Michigan residents. Non-Michigan residents pay a net $716 per credit hour online after a $343 Davenport Tuition Grant. You'll also pay a $245 registration fee and a $155 technology fee each semester.

Davenport's Employment Guarantee offers additional education benefits to qualifying graduates who haven't found work within six months, and you can ask the admissions office how the transfer policy and aid apply to you.

120 credits at $716 a credit comes to $85,920 in tuition, before fees. At the in-state rate of $1,059, the same 120 credits come to $127,080.

The degree can be earned 100% online through Davenport's Global Campus, and the school also offers it face to face in Grand Rapids. It totals 120 credits, so your timeline depends on how many credits you transfer in and how many courses you take each term.

Transfer applicants need a cumulative transfer grade point average of 2.0, or a 2.0 from the most recent institution attended, with transferable college-level math and English. Accounting faculty teach small classes, and an honors path lets you earn a bachelor's, a Master of Accountancy (MAcc) and a graduate certificate in five years.

The full rubric is on the methodology page.

• A student quoted on Davenport's accounting page calls the program exceptional and says professors invest in students and take time to build relationships with them.

  Source: Davenport University website

• Which courses make up the Accounting Fraud Specialty for my catalog year?
• How is the experiential learning project in Accounting Fraud Examination structured online?
• Which tuition rate applies to me, and how do the registration and technology fees add up per semester?
• How many of my existing credits will transfer, and does my QuickBooks certification count?
• Do I qualify for the Employment Guarantee, and what are its requirements?
• Can an online student complete the internship or field experience near home?
• How does the program prepare me for the CPA, CFE and CMA exams?

• Best Forensic Accounting Programs Rank 12 of 22, bachelor's
• Best Bachelor's Programs Rank 12 of 22, bachelor's
• Best Online Programs Rank 5 of 8, bachelor's
• CFE Exam Prep Programs Rank 9 of 12, bachelor's
• Cheapest Programs Rank 9 of 11, bachelor's

• University of Northwestern Ohio

  Bachelor of Science in Accounting, Forensic Accounting

  Ohio $305 per quarter credit Score 62.7

• University of Central Oklahoma

  Bachelor of Science in Forensic Accounting

  Oklahoma Score 63.5

• Purdue University Global

  Bachelor of Science in Accounting and Analytics, Forensic Accountancy Concentration

  Indiana $371 per quarter credit Score 62.1

• Fort Hays State University

  Bachelor of Science in Financial Forensics and Fraud Investigation

  Kansas $275.65 per credit Score 65.3