Graduate Curriculums
Waivers, Substitutions, Appeals
As part of your acceptance to Bentley, Graduate Admission will list which courses you are eligible to waive. If you'd like to have a course re-evaluated or if you have courses to add, the course must be completed within the past 5 years with an earned grade equivalent of B or better (3.0 on a 4.0 scale), the course must have been taken at an undergraduate institution with U.S. regional, AACSB, EQUIS, or AMBA accreditation, and detailed documentation must be provided.
As stated in the academic catalog, “No waiver appeals will be accepted once a student has completed his/her first semester of study at Bentley. Exceptions to this will be at the discretion of the program directors, but such exceptions should be rare and should be reserved for situations that are out of the student’s control.”
Pre-program foundation course waivers will be granted if the applicant earned a grade of B (3.0 out of a 4.0 scale) or better from the undergraduate equivalent courses listed below. Each course must be completed within the last five years at Bentley University or at an AACSB or EQUIS accredited institution.
Pre-program foundation course waivers will be granted if the applicant earned a grade of B (3.0 out of a 4.0 scale) or better from the undergraduate equivalent courses listed below. Each course must be completed within the last five years at Bentley University or at an AACSB or EQUIS accredited institution.
*For students who started Bentley undergrad Fall 2022 and after only*
MSAA pre-program foundation course waivers will be granted if the applicant earned a grade of B (3.0 out of a 4.0 scale) or better for GR521 and a B- (2.7 out of 4.0 scale) or higher from the remaining Accountancy undergraduate equivalent courses listed below when taken at Bentley. A MSAA course substitution will be granted if the applicant earned a grade of B- (2.7 out of 4.0 scale) or higher from the undergraduate equivalent course listed below when taken at Bentley or a B (3.0 out of 4.0 or better) when taken at another AACSB or EQUIS accredited institution. Each course must be completed within the last five years.
MSA pre-program foundation course waivers will be granted if the applicant earned a grade of B (3.0 out of a 4.0 scale) or better for GR521 and GR524.
MS in Accounting Substitutions
An MSA course substitution will be granted if the applicant earned a grade of B- (2.7 out of 4.0 scale) or higher form the undergraduate equivalent course list below when taken at Bentley or a B (3.0 out of 4.0 or better ) when taken at another AACSB or EQUIS accredited institution.
- 1 If you took AC 440 in undergrad, meet with an advisor or with the Program Director to discuss alternatives.
- 2 If you took AC 475 in undergrad, your substitute for AC 741 will be AC 744 only. You cannot take AC 742.
- 3 If you took AC 472 in undergrad, your substitute for AC 741 will be AC 742 only. You cannot take AC 744.
MSA course substitutions will be granted if the applicant earned a grade of B- (2.7 out of 4.0 scale) or higher from the undergraduate equivalent courses listed below when taken at Bentley or a B (3.0 out of 4.0 or better) when taken at another AACSB or EQUIS accredited institution. Each course must be completed within the last five years.
- 1 If you took AC 440 in undergrad, meet with an advisor or with the Program Director to discuss alternatives.
- 2 If you took AC 475 in undergrad, your substitute for AC 741 will be AC 744 only. You cannot take AC 742.
- 3 If you took AC 472 in undergrad, your substitute for AC 741 will be AC 742 only. You cannot take AC 744.
For the MSF & MSFA courses listed below, applicants will receive course substitutions to satisfy these graduate course requirements if they earn a B- (2.7 out of 4.0 scale) or higher in the following undergraduate course equivalents taken at Bentley University within the last five years.
MSDI course substitutions will be granted if the applicant earned a grade of B- (2.7 out of 4.0 scale) or higher from the undergraduate equivalent course listed below when taken at Bentley. This course must be completed within the last five years.
Former Bentley undergraduates who have taken CS 350 (and achieved a sufficiently good grade) as part of their ug degree (the course is popular among a variety of majors) and enter the grad school for a degree that requires CS 605 should be allowed to substitute a more advanced database course (primarily CS 650 or CS 753) for CS 605.
Detailed Documentation includes the following:
- the course syllabus/description
- list of textbooks used
- transcript from the school
- your reason for why the course should be waived
If you believe relevant work experience qualifies for a waiver you may also include a resume and a detailed job description
Ready to get started with your waiver request?
Follow the corresponding process below!
- Log into your applicant portal and navigate to the "Application Status" page
- At the top of the page click the "Waivers" tab. Here, you will see your waivers along with the “Waiver Review” section
- In the “Waiver Review” section, complete the form “Petition for Review of Additional Waivers and Substitutions” and submit it with your detailed documentation (see above)
NOTE: Students should not contact program directors directly to ask about appeals during this time and program directors should refer all requests in this timeframe to Graduate Admission. Graduate Admission will continue reviewing appeals until the start of classes.
Submit your detailed documentation and completed Waiver Appeal form (below) to the departmental representative
- Note: you must complete a separate form for each contact person if requesting more than one waiver
Students should not contact Graduate Admission to ask about appeals after courses have begun
Waiver Appeal Form
GR 521 Assessment Module
The GR 521 Assessment Module is an online tutorial administered through Hawkes Learning. The module is offered only three times each year and should be completed prior to your enrollment at Bentley, as it may impact your course selections.
If you are interested in completing the Assessment Module, you must perform the following steps in order:
- Carefully read the attached GR 521 Assessment Module instructions
- Complete the GR 521 Module Request Form to select a module session
- Register with Hawkes Learning and pay the non-refundable fee to access your module and study materials
- Common Questions Asked
Note: The module can be taken only once and you must earn a passing score of 80% on all topics to receive a GR 521 waiver.
A required fee covers the cost of the assessment and includes study materials and sample questions to help you prepare; this fee is non-refundable under any circumstances, so be sure to carefully read all instructions prior payment.
Questions about the module or the Hawkes Learning materials may be directed to Professor Luke Cherveny