Global Courant 2023-04-17 18:05:28
Accountancy firms are facing a major shortage of staff.
Between the long hours, stressful deadlines and unflattering stereotypes, more people are quitting the profession then go into it.
Instead, students coming straight out of college choose to pursue careers in related fields such as investment banking, consulting, or data analytics. The extra credit hours required to earn a Certified Public Accountant (CPA) license don’t help either.
To tap into the next generation of number-crunchers, The Deloitte Foundation, a national nonprofit that supports education, research, and curriculum innovation in accounting and business, is trialling a new strategy to address the talent pipeline problem — by directly appeal to teenagers.
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Together, Deloitte, Urban Assembly and Outlier.org, which is partnering with schools to offer college credit online courses, are launching a dual enrollment pilot program in New York City.
Beginning in the fall, some public high school juniors and seniors may participate Introduction to Financial Accounting and earn three college credits through the University of Pittsburgh, which they can then transfer to the university of their choice.
Although it’s been around for decades, dual enrollment has only recently begun to catch on as a way to cut some credits while you’re still in high school, according to one report from the National Student Clearinghouse Research Centershowing a jump in the number of students completing courses in this way.
unlike Advanced Placementthese programs are not limited to high school students on a specific – and often accelerated – academic track.
“I teach accounting through the lens of fraud and true crime to show students the side of this industry that is exciting and requires real persistence and skill,” said Kelly Richmond Pope, a professor of accounting at DePaul University and the associate professor of the class.
The goal is to inspire more diverse students to consider accounting careers and potentially replicate this model in school districts across the country, said Outlier’s CEO Aaron Rasmussen.
“It will help bring accounting to a diverse audience in an exciting way,” he said.
The lack of diversity in the profession is another reason why the industry has failed to attract young talent studies show.
To date, only 2% of CPAs are Black and 5% Hispanic, despite significant job openings in the field, according to a recent AICPA Trend Report.
According to others, accounting is often among the top jobs with the best prospects and six-figure salaries reports.
