Oklahoma City University is the first university in the region to offer a master’s-level certificate program in financial fraud and forensic accounting – a niche program only a handful of universities in the nation offer. The program is set to begin this fall.
The certificate program focuses on the development of student competencies in white-collar crime prevention and detection, including forensic and investigative principles/practices in accounting, economics, finance and digital devices. Students will be prepared for other internationally-recognized professional certification testing in fraud examination, forensic accounting and business valuation.
Spearheading the development of the fraud and forensic program is Eddward Herron, associate professor of accounting at OKCU’s Meinders School of Business. Before earning his Ph.D. in accounting, Herron worked for 22 years in regulatory auditing, banking supervision, fraud examination and bank consulting — both domestically for the Federal Reserve and internationally for the International Monetary Fund. He says the specialized branch of financial fraud investigation is critical to protecting the interests of society.
“The national and international financial systems are complicated, and fraud is possibly the fastest growing industry in the world,” Herron said. “Schemes are only limited by the ingenuity of people who want to steal from others, so it’s important to have more people who can root them out.”
The 15-hour master’s level certificate program can be completed in one year and offers evening classes.
