West Virginia University Master of Science in Forensic and Fraud Examination: Our 2027 Review

Before you graduate, you'll pitch a case to real Internal Revenue Service (IRS) criminal investigators and defend your findings in a moot court with real attorneys. This master's degree from West Virginia University (WVU) is built on the national curriculum the university developed for the National Institute of Justice, and WVU says the CFE and Certified Valuation Analyst (CVA) exam prep courses are included in your tuition.

The Master of Science in Forensic and Fraud Examination is a fully online, 30-credit degree from West Virginia University in Morgantown. You'll take ten courses in eight-week terms, with three admission terms a year, and WVU says students finish in one to two years.

WVU describes the delivery as asynchronous with two virtual residencies. To apply, you'll need a bachelor's degree from a regionally accredited institution, a resume and a minimum grade point average (GPA) of 2.75. You don't need Graduate Management Admission Test (GMAT) or Graduate Record Examinations (GRE) scores.

The full rubric is on the methodology page.

You'll take the degree online and asynchronously, which WVU explains as entirely online with no required live meeting times, plus two required virtual residencies held on set days. Courses run eight weeks, there are three admission terms a year, and students finish in one to two years.

The first residency is a hands-on financial investigation exercise. If you're an accounting student in the Chambers College, you can also take an accelerated bachelor's to master's route, completing the Bachelor of Science in Business Administration and this degree in an accelerated format.

• Experienced professionals returning to class, because WVU says the program is built to support non-traditional students.
• People with two years of related work experience, which WVU allows in place of the accounting prerequisite courses.
• Anyone aiming for the CFE or CVA exams, since the prep courses and case studies come with tuition.
• Future expert witnesses who want courtroom practice with real attorneys.
• Readers who want a technology angle, through an emphasis in Business Cybersecurity or Business Data Analytics.
• Current and former service members, who receive a $100 discount on each credit hour.

You'll take seven forensic core courses, three credits each. Accounting for Forensic and Fraud Investigators ties financial and managerial accounting, auditing and technology to forensic work. In Fraud Investigation, you'll cover fraud types, documents, evidence sources and internal and external schemes.

In Fraud Data Analysis, you'll learn computer-aided detection and how digital evidence and device data are collected. Fraud: Criminology/Legal Issues brings in theories of criminal behavior, rules of evidence, interviewing, report writing and ethics.

In Advanced Fraud Investigation, you'll take on collusion and management override, with a crime scene investigation exercise, data-mining analysis and testimony in a moot court. Forensic and Fraud Examination Advanced Analytical Techniques covers civil litigation support and damage claims, individual damages, and financial statement fraud, including fraud risk assessment. Private Company Valuation teaches you the fundamentals of valuing a private business.

You'll then add a nine-credit area of emphasis in Business Cybersecurity, Business Data Analytics or Management. Along the way you analyze real-world cases in money laundering, organized crime and financial statement fraud. The first virtual residency is a financial investigation exercise that simulates real evidence collection with electronic and paper records, and the capstones bring it together, including the case pitch to IRS investigators.

Courses the School Names

• Fraud Data Analysis
• Fraud: Criminology/Legal Issues
• Advanced Fraud Investigation
• Forensic and Fraud Examination Advanced Analytical Techniques

Standout Features

• Accelerated bachelor's to master's route from the B.S.B.AD. in Accounting
• Capstone simulations include pitching a case to real IRS criminal investigators and testifying in moot court with real attorneys
• Certified Fraud Examiner and Certified Valuation Analyst exam prep courses are included in tuition
• Developed on behalf of the National Institute of Justice, which sets WVU as a leader in national forensic and fraud examination curriculum

WVU lists tuition at $1,063 per credit hour, and your degree is 30 credits. Military pricing applies: if you're current or former service personnel, you'll receive a $100 per credit hour discount, and WVU participates in the Yellow Ribbon Program. WVU also says the CFE and CVA exam prep courses and case studies are included in your tuition.

30 credits at $1,063 a credit comes to $31,890 in tuition, before fees.

The John Chambers College of Business and Economics is accredited by AACSB and has been for over 60 years. The curriculum prepares you for the CFE and CVA exams. WVU says it leads the way in developing the national curriculum for forensic and fraud accounting programs on behalf of the National Institute of Justice.

Dr. David P. Weber, CFE, a Teaching Professor, is featured faculty, and Kip Holderness, who holds a Ph.D. from Bentley University, is listed as program coordinator. WVU says graduates are prepared to work at organizations like the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) or the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

You can look at careers it lists, including fraud examiner or investigator, forensic science technician, criminal investigator, special agent, quality control analyst and private detective.

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

• Alumna Kathy Birri, in a Q&A published by the Chambers College, called the program extremely valuable and said the education went beyond her expectations.

  Source: WVU Chambers College Q&A (July 2024)

• Graduate Sean Smith, in a WVU Online alumni spotlight, described the program as very applied, with real-world style cases, data analytics tools, case pitches and testimony practice.

  Source: WVU Online alumni spotlight (Feb 2026)

• After the moot court, a practicing attorney told alumna Kylee Reyes she had the temperament to be a good expert witness, according to a WVU news release.

  Source: My Buckhannon (WVU news release, Jan 2026)

• Birri also shared that she became a fraud investigator with the Tennessee Comptroller of the Treasury right after graduating.

  Source: WVU Chambers College Q&A (July 2024)

• Which area of emphasis fits my goals, and what courses does each one include?
• When are the two virtual residencies held, and how far ahead are the dates shared?
• How does the case pitch to IRS investigators work, and in which course does it happen?
• Does my work experience count in place of the two accounting prerequisite courses?
• How do I reach the CFE and CVA prep courses, and when do they fall in the program?
• Can I begin with the graduate certificate and move into the master's degree, and how do the credits carry over?
• How do I apply the military discount and the Yellow Ribbon Program?

A public land-grant research university in Morgantown, West Virginia, whose John Chambers College of Business and Economics is AACSB accredited.

• Best Forensic Accounting Programs Rank 1 of 27, master's
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• For Working Adults Rank 1 of 13, master's
• Public Universities Rank 1 of 11, master's

• Graduate Certificate in Forensic Accounting and Fraud Examination

  Graduate Certificate, Graduate Certificate

  Fully Online $1,063 per credit Score 95.3

• Murray State University

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• Utica University

  Master of Science in Forensic Accounting

  New York $775 per credit Score 96.8

• Florida Atlantic University

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  Florida Score 96.7