The sky is the limit with a Graduate Certificate in Government Financial Management.

By Mikhail Pevzner, Professor of Accounting, University of Baltimore

Knowledgeable government accounting and finance professionals are essential to the thousands of entities that require regular auditing, including government contracting firms, municipalities, counties and even the federal government.  So essential, in fact, that Big4 and non-Big4 accounting firms perform plenty of government auditing and consulting work, especially in the Baltimore-Washington metropolitan area.

Some of the largest government consultants and auditors in the area are Deloitte, EY and KPMG. In Baltimore, CliftonLarsonAllen is heavily involved in government audit work and SB & Company audits the City of Baltimore. Internal audit jobs are also in demand in government agencies such as Maryland Office of Legislative Auditor or Baltimore’s City Auditor’s Office. The opportunities for career growth within these careers are many, and they often provide excellent benefits and work-life balance. Accounting and finance careers are a good fit for non-traditional students, career-changers and professionals seeking to reach the next level in their career.

The University of Baltimore’s Graduate Certificate in Government Financial Management—offered at both the Universities at Shady Grove and UB’s Baltimore campus—is specifically designed to prepare you for a career in government accounting and finance by focusing on the content of Certified Government Financial Manager (CGFM) exam. And, most courses are offered online or in hybrid formats.

For those who complete the Certificate and want to continue to deepen their accounting education, you can add several more courses and complete your Master’s in Accounting and Business Advisory Services degree, which is offered completely online or at UB’s Baltimore campus. You can also pursue graduate certificates in internal audit services or business valuation to further or enhance your skill-set and employability.

There are minimal prerequisites for the certificate, which makes it achievable even if you don’t have an accounting background. With some basic accounting and finance courses and a bachelor’s degree from an accredited university or college, you’ll be well on your way to a new (or greater) fulfilling career in government accounting and finance.

Ready to get started? Contact Mikhail Pevzner, professor of accounting and the Ernst and Young chair in accounting, at the University of Baltimore, at mpevzner@ubalt.edu or 410-837-5862.

About the Author

Mikhail Pevzner is a professor of accounting at the University of Baltimore and academic program director for the Graduate Certificate in Government Financial Management. He also holds the E&Y Chair in Accounting. His research interests include empirical archival capital markets research, empirical archival auditing, disclosure, international accounting and finance. In academic year 2016-17 Pevzner was a visiting academic fellow, U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, Office of Chief Accountant. He returned to the S.E.C. during academic 2018-2019 as visiting economist in the Division of Economic and Risk Analysis. Pevzner earned his Ph.D. at Washington University in St Louis.