Graduate Certificates in Taxation

School of Taxation

The graduate certificate in estate planning provides practitioners with a broad-based education in the specialized field of estate planning. Designed and administered by attorneys and accountants who are estate planners, the courses in the certificate program will give you a solid foundation in federal tax law and relevant state law. You'll acquire the tools you need to advise clients on how to formulate, implement and revise estate plans. You'll hone your skills on contemporary case studies, using the same legal documents you'll encounter in practice. Our courses qualify for CPE (for California CPAs) and for CLE (for California attorneys).

All courses must be completed at Golden Gate University with a B average (3.00 grade point average) or better. Please note that some courses taken as part of certificate programs will have prerequisites. These prerequisites must be satisfied (through transfer of equivalent course work or through taking the courses at Golden Gate University) before the certificate courses can be completed.

REQUIRED COURSES - 12 units
· TA 325 Estate and Gift Taxation
· TA 334 Estate Planning
· TA 344 Federal Income Taxation of Trusts and Estates

One of the following:
· TA 337 Individual Retirement Plans and Distributions
· TA 349E Advanced Business Planning

The graduate certificate in international taxation is a 15-unit certificate for those students interested in a broad based education in the international taxation field. Because the certificate deals primarily with corporations, students should have an adequate background in corporate taxation before commencing the program.

All courses must be completed at Golden Gate with a B average (3.00 grade point average) or better. Please note that some courses taken as part of certificate programs will have prerequisites. These prerequisites must be satisfied (through transfer of equivalent course work or through taking the courses at Golden Gate University) before the certificate courses can be completed.

REQUIRED COURSES - 9 units
· TA 321 Principles of International Taxation
· TA 350A Taxation of Foreign Persons with US Activities
· TA 350B Taxation of US Persons with Foreign Activities

ELECTIVES - 6 units

Two of the following:
· TA 350D Transfer Pricing
· TA 350E International Mergers, Acquisitions and Joint Ventures
· TA 352 Taxation of Electronic Commerce and Remote Sellers

Qualified students may earn a graduate certificate in taxation. Students must have earned an undergraduate degree from an accredited institution with at least a 3.00 grade point average. Individuals with an undergraduate GPA below 3.00 are welcome to apply and will be considered for admission based on employment history and professional accomplishments.

The certificate courses are available at each of our locations. In addition, the entire graduate certificate in taxation may be taken over the internet in highly interactive web-based classes.

All courses must be completed at Golden Gate University with a B average (3.00 grade point average) or better. Please note that some courses taken as part of certificate programs will have prerequisites. These prerequisites must be satisfied (through transfer of equivalent course work or through taking the courses at Golden Gate University) before the certificate courses can be completed.

REQUIRED COURSES - 15 units
· TA 318 Advanced Federal Income Taxation
· TA 329 Tax Research & Decision Making
· TA 330 Property Transactions
· TA 338 Tax Timing
· Three units of any course(s) with a TA prefix.

The graduate certificate of advanced studies in taxation is for tax professionals who already have a graduate tax degree, but who wish to update and broaden their knowledge of tax law.

The certificate requires completion of 12 semester units in the graduate taxation program. This course of study must be completed within a five-year period, and the student must maintain an overall B average (3.00 grade point average) in all courses taken in satisfaction of the certificate requirements. Please note that some courses taken as part of certificate programs will have prerequisites. These prerequisites must be satisfied (through transfer of equivalent course work or through taking the courses at Golden Gate University) before the certificate courses can be completed.

Qualifying courses include all those leading to the MS in taxation at the university. With the dean's approval, students may repeat up to two 3-unit courses that were previously taken as part of the student's graduate degree curriculum.

Admission to the advanced studies in taxation program is open to those individuals who have received an MS or MBA in taxation or an LLM (Tax) degree from Golden Gate. Admission for those students whose graduate tax degrees were obtained from schools other than Golden Gate University is conditional upon prior approval of the dean.