Montclair State University Forensic Accounting Graduate Certificate: Our 2027 Review

James DiGabriele developed Montclair State University's certificate and teaches it himself. He's a co-founder of the accounting firm DiGabriele, McNulty, Campanella & Co., and he's a Certified Public Accountant (CPA), a Certified Fraud Examiner and Certified in Financial Forensics. You'll work through simulated court scenarios and trial-based case studies, and you can finish all four courses in as few as 4 months.

Montclair State University is a public university in Montclair, New Jersey, and the Feliciano School of Business offers this Forensic Accounting Graduate Certificate. It's 12 credits. You'll take four graduate courses at three credits each, and all are required. The school says the certificate equips you with the specialized skills to detect, investigate and prevent financial crimes, and to resolve complex disputes.

You graduate ready to support law firms, corporations, government agencies and nonprofits, wherever financial integrity needs protecting.

The full rubric is on the methodology page.

The Feliciano School of Business holds accreditation from AACSB. Its program coordinator, James DiGabriele, is a CPA licensed in New Jersey who is accredited in business valuation, Certified in Financial Forensics and a Certified Fraud Examiner (CFE).

He holds a PhD in Accounting from Middlesex University Business School in London and has published in journals including Accounting Horizons and the Journal of Forensic Accounting.

He designed the business valuation and fraud examination courses so you can also sit for the related certification exams, including the Certified Valuation Analyst (CVA) credential and an Association of Certified Fraud Examiners (ACFE) credential. Montclair State says you can support law firms, corporations, government agencies and nonprofits when you graduate.

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

• You're an accounting graduate, or a finance graduate with substantial relevant experience, and you want a graduate-level forensic credential.
• You learn best from cases. Teaching uses discussion, simulated court scenarios and trial-based studies.
• You want flexibility. You can take the courses in any order, and they run face-to-face or hybrid.
• You're an accountant who likes valuation, and you can use the business valuation course as a step toward the CVA exam.
• You're an in-state or out-of-state student, and you'll pay the same graduate rate either way.

The four courses fit together as a short, complete forensic sequence.

Legal Issues in Forensic Accounting looks at the legal environment and at how a forensic accountant serves as an expert witness. It also covers the business crimes you may be hired to investigate.

Fraud Examination teaches you techniques to detect and prevent fraud in corporate settings. You'll cover skimming, larceny, billing schemes, check tampering, payroll schemes, corruption, fraudulent financial statements and interviewing witnesses.

Forensic Accounting focuses on the forensic accountant's role in litigation. You'll review, detect and investigate possible financial statement concerns of public and private companies, and the course discusses actual litigation and fraud cases to show how forensic accountants' roles are evolving. Its objectives also include reconstructing income indirectly, money laundering and commercial and economic damages.

Business Valuation analyzes company financial statements to determine fair market value and the key drivers of value, including valuation of companies within a litigation setting.

Across the certificate you'll also pick up fraud response and prevention strategies, damages calculation and technical areas such as bankruptcy, dispute resolution and matrimonial accounting.

Courses the School Names

• Legal Issues in Forensic Accounting
• Fraud Examination
• Forensic Accounting
• Business Valuation

Standout Features

• Courses can be taken in any order, each offered once per academic year
• Four graduate courses of three credits each can be completed in as few as 4 months
• Rolling admissions for fall and spring

Montclair State lists general master's, graduate certificate and certification tuition at $962 per credit. You'll also pay $37.02 in mandatory fees, a total of $999.02 per credit. The rate is the same for in-state and out-of-state students, so the certificate is straightforward to budget for no matter where you live.

The online application carries a $60 non-refundable fee, with a waiver if applicable. You can ask the admissions office what aid or employer support applies to graduate certificate students.

Classes are offered in both face-to-face and hybrid formats, which makes it easier for you to balance school with your professional schedule. You can take the four courses in any order, and each one is offered once per academic year, so you can start with whichever topic matters most to you.

The school says you can complete the certificate in as few as 4 months.

Admission is rolling. You'll submit the online application and one transcript from each college you attended. You apply through the Graduate School, and that's how you receive the certificate credential when you finish.

• In a Mondaq profile, the program's developer says the goal is to make sure forensic accountants entering the profession in the 21st century have the tools and expertise they need to make the right decisions and serve their profession well.

  Source: Mondaq (DiGabriele, McNulty, Campanella & Co.)

• Which semester does each of the four courses run, so I can plan the order and finish quickly?
• Which sections are face-to-face and which are hybrid?
• How do the business valuation and fraud examination courses connect to the CVA and ACFE credentials, and what extra steps would I take?
• Does a finance degree with experience qualify me, and what should I include in my application?
• Can the certificate credits count toward a Montclair State master's degree later?
• What case studies and court simulations should I expect in each course?

A public university in Montclair, New Jersey; the certificate is offered by the Feliciano School of Business.

• Best Forensic Accounting Programs Rank 4 of 17, graduate certificate
• Best Graduate Certificates Rank 4 of 17, graduate certificate
• Public Universities Rank 3 of 9, graduate certificate

• University of Massachusetts-Amherst

  Graduate Certificate in Forensic Accounting

  Massachusetts $850 per credit Score 86.5

• George Mason University

  Graduate Certificate in Forensic Accounting

  Virginia $1,025 per credit Score 85.8

• Illinois State University

  Forensic Accountant Certificate

  Illinois Score 83.5

• Stevenson University

  Graduate Certificate in Forensic Accounting

  Maryland Score 79.8