Master in the Study of Tax Law

Offered through the school’s renowned Graduate Tax Program, our Master in the Study of Tax Law is a 24-credit program designed to provide foundational tax law training to aspiring and current accountants, auditors, and other business professionals. Building on the foundation of the Graduate Tax Program, program students have access to one of the most comprehensive curricula for advanced tax studies in the country. Our graduates—over 3,000 strong—have consistently told us that their BU Law LLM in Taxation degree has been an essential ingredient to their professional success, and we could not be more excited to open the program to a wider audience of tax professionals.

Careers and Community

The Master's Program offers the following professional opportunities every year:

• on and off-campus recruiting events with all of the “Big 4 accounting firms”: Deloitte, EY, KPMG, and PwC;
• proprietary job postings;
• tax careers luncheon;
• lecture series on cutting-edge issues;
• advising events with alumni;
• visits to observe proceedings in the U.S. Tax Court; and
• skills workshops on tax research databases and Excel;

Our social events include Boston team sporting events, pub nights, and a spring reception at a local restaurant. Online students are included in all event invites and many make at least one trip to Boston during their studies. We also do some major celebrating at our graduation weekend events.

Students will demonstrate:

• A foundational understanding of the US tax system, law, and procedures.
• Skills in tax research and draftsmanship.

The Master in the Study of Tax Law (MSL-Tax) is designed for non-lawyers who seek advanced training in the complexities of tax law. It draws a broad range of students—from recent college graduates to seasoned accountants, wealth managers, and tax advisors from both the public and private sectors.

Degree Requirements

The MSL-Tax requires successful completion of 24 credits. Students enrolled in the full- or part-time program must complete six required courses, satisfy the tax ethics requirement, and are encouraged to choose electives that suit their personal, academic, and professional needs. A full-time student completes the degree requirements in one academic year; a part-time student must complete the degree requirements within four years. Upon request, a student with the appropriate tax background may be excused from taking a required course or a prerequisite or corequisite course in order to take additional elective courses.

Students must fulfill a writing requirement consisting of a research paper of at least 7,500 words (typically completed as part of TX 982). Additionally, a student may supplement the program with courses at other Boston University graduate or professional programs such as the Questrom School of Business or Metropolitan College. Upon approval, credit for these courses may be applied toward the MSL-Tax degree.

An individual who has completed graduate work in taxation at another American Bar Association–approved law school may, upon application, be granted advanced standing in the full- or part-time residential program. However, a minimum of 18 credit hours must be completed at BU Law.

Required Courses

• Federal Income Taxation I
• Federal Income Taxation II
• Introduction to Corporate Tax
• Partnership Tax I
• Tax Ethics Seminar (0 cr) OR Tax Practice and Procedure
• Two of the following three courses:
• Tax Research
• Tax Seminar
• Writing for Tax Practice

Elective Courses*

• Business Succession Planning
• Comparative Income Tax
• Comparative Value Added Tax
• Consolidated Corporations
• Corporate Reorganizations
• Criminal Tax
• Elder Law
• ERISA Regulation of Retirement Plans
• Estate and Gift Taxation
• Estate Planning
• Estate Planning: Advanced
• Estate Planning & Drafting
• Executive Compensation
• Exempt Organizations
• Inbound International Taxation
• International Estate Planning
• International Information Reporting and Withholding
• Life Cycle of a Business Venture
• Outbound International Tax
• Opportunity Zones
• State and Local Taxation
• Tax Law of Accounting Methods
• Tax Accounting for Financial Statements
• Tax Aspects of Buying and Selling a Business
• Tax Aspects of Charitable Giving
• Tax Aspects of International Business
• Tax and Technology
• Tax Fraud and Technology
• Tax Seminar
• Transfer Pricing & Supply Chains
• Taxation and Regulation of Cryptocurrency
• Taxation of Bankruptcies and Workouts
• Taxation of Financial Products: Policy and Theory
• Taxation of Intellectual Property
• Taxation of S-Corporations
• Taxation of Trusts and Fiduciaries
• US and International Tax Policy
• US Transfer Pricing
• World of Limited Liability Companies
• Writing for Tax Practice

Concentrations and Emphasis Areas

MSL-Tax students are free to specialize their learning according to their own interests through concentrations and emphasis areas. Concentrations are composed of a certain number of required and elective courses, and the completion of a concentration is reflected on a student’s transcript. An emphasis area, on the other hand, is a series of courses that center around a particular theme in tax law but does not have required courses and is not listed on a student’s transcript.

Estate Planning

Students must complete all three of the required courses and any of the three listed electives to earn a concentration in estate planning. Students merely interested in learning more about estate planning but not willing to fulfill the requirements of the concentration should look at the courses in the estate planning emphasis area.

Required Courses

• LAW TX 904 Estate and Gift Taxation
• LAW TX 935 Estate Planning
• LAW TX 937 Taxation of Trusts and Fiduciaries

Elective Courses

• LAW TX 918 Life Cycle of a Business Venture
• LAW TX 920 Tax Aspects of Buying and Selling a Business
• LAW TX 930 Partnership Tax I
• LAW TX 933 Introduction to Corporate Tax
• LAW TX 934 Estate Planning—Advanced
• LAW TX 950 Tax Aspects of Charitable Giving
• LAW TX 958 International Estate Planning
• LAW TX 969 Business Succession Planning
• LAW TX 975 Estate Planning and Drafting
• LAW TX 977 Elder Law

General Business Taxation

A student who has a background in basic federal income taxation and corporate taxation and who wishes to concentrate on business tax issues should consider the following elective courses:

• Consolidated Corporations
• Corporate Reorganizations
• Executive Compensation
• Life Cycle of a Business Venture
• State and Local Taxation
• Tax Accounting for Financial Statements
• Tax Law of Accounting Methods
• Tax Aspects of Buying and Selling a Business
• Tax and Technology
• Taxation of Bankruptcies and Workouts
• Taxation of Intellectual Property
• World of LLCs

Estate Planning

Students not able to commit to the full concentration in estate planning but interested in learning more about it should consider the following elective courses:

• Elder Law
• Estate and Gift Taxation
• Estate Planning
• Estate Planning: Advanced
• Estate Planning & Drafting
• Executive Compensation
• Life Cycle of a Business Venture
• International Estate Planning
• Tax Aspects of Charitable Giving
• Taxation of Trusts and Fiduciaries
• Business Succession Planning

International Taxation

Students interested in international tax should consider the following elective courses:

• Comparative Income Taxation
• Comparative VAT
• Inbound International Taxation
• International Information Reporting and Withholding
• Outbound International Tax
• Tax Aspects of International Business
• Tax Fraud and Technology
• Taxation of Intellectual Property
• Transfer Pricing & Supply Chains
• US Transfer Pricing
• US and International Tax Policy

Note: Classes are subject to change and may not be offered every semester.