Brooklyn College, a public liberal arts college located in Brooklyn, New York, is part of the City University of New York (CUNY). CUNY is one of the largest universities in the country with more than 200,000 students. Brooklyn College has a total student enrollment of about 15,000 students. The accounting program, housed in the Economics Department, offers 535 majors.
The purpose of the current study was to determine the opinions of accounting majors about why students choose accounting as a major, courses students felt were important and unimportant, and expectations regarding work and salary. The student body at Brooklyn College is quite similar to that found at many public colleges; therefore, the findings should interest accountants all over the United States.
The sample consisted of 100 advanced accounting students at Brooklyn College. Fifty-six percent were male, 70.2 percent were between the ages of 20 and 25, 63 percent had family incomes between $25,000 and $79,000, and 77 percent were single. Eightyone percent indicated that that they expected to take the CPA examination and 68 percent were working. Those respondents who indicated they were working averaged approximately 30 hours per week.
QUESTION: "When did you decide to become an accounting major?" "Was accounting your first choice as a major?"
The results show that 32 percent of respondents decided to major in accounting while still in high school; 28 percent during their freshman year; and 19 percent during their sophomore year. Sixty-five percent indicated that accounting was their first choice as a major. Apparently, a significant number of students decided on accounting while still in high school.
QUESTION: "Would you recommend accounting as a major?"
The rating scale employed for this question consisted of the following descriptors:
"Definitely" (16 respondents checked this category), "Probably" (46), "Maybe" (30), "Probably Not" (4), and "Definitely Not" (3) and there was one missing value. It is somewhat surprising that only 16.2 percent of accounting majors would definitely recommend accounting as a major.
QUESTION: "If you were a freshman, and the accounting major required taking a total of 150 credits, would you major in accounting?"
The responses to this question were as follows:
"Definitely" (11 respondents checked this category), "Probably" (30), "Maybe" (25), "Probably Not" (22), and "Definitely Not" (11) and there was one missing value. This may not bode well for the industry. A significant proportion of potential accounting majors may opt for other majors once requirements are raised to 150 credits. Only 41 percent of accounting majors seem reasonably certain that they would remain accounting majors if requirements were raised to 150 credits.
Conclusion
The major findings of this study are:
* A significant proportion of students decide on accounting as a major while still in high school.
* Accounting is selected as a major because students feel that it will lead to a job with good income potential. Accounting majors, on average, expect annual salaries of about $40,000. They want to work for firms that offer good salaries and opportunities for advancement.
* Only 32 percent of accounting majors definitely expect to be working in accounting ten years after they graduate. Many expect to be working in finance, management, or their own business. This may explain why accounting majors feel that corporate finance and investments are important non-accounting courses. Significant proportions expect to go to graduate school and major in Business and Finance.
* Only 41 percent of accounting majors are reasonably sure that they would still choose accounting as a major even if requirements were 150 credits.
P.S.: How about you? Why you chose accountancy as your course?
