Accounting Majors Surge at UA

College graduates have been struggling to find jobs in their fields of study ever since the economy took a sharp turn for the worse in 2008. According to the U.S. Bureau of the Census, just 27 percent of college graduates had jobs closely related to their majors in 2010.

Not all students have to worry as much as their peers, though. There are some jobs — like those in accounting — that will always be in demand. The Bureau of Labor Statistics projects a 16 percent growth for accountants between 2010 and 2020, much faster than the average growth for most other professions.

Students at the University of Arkansas are catching on, and as a result, accounting majors at the Sam M. Walton College of Business have increased by about 10 percent, from 493 in fall 2012 to 543 students this semester.

The department also recently welcomed its largest ever cohort into the integrated Master of Accountancy program (iMAcc).

“We are really excited,” said iMAcc Student Advisor JaLynn Thomas. “We have 26 this year.”

The three-year-old iMAcc program allows students to earn their bachelor’s of business administration degree in accounting and the iMAcc degree in a five-year period.

“You apply for the iMAcc your junior year, and then you get accepted and you know that you are in the MAcc program your senior year,” said iMAcc student and graduate assistant Lindsey Bolen. “The iMAcc turns into the MAcc, but with the integrated program you can start taking graduate classes your senior year, and you get to keep your in-state tuition.”

Bolen said the tuition waiver is just one of many things she loves about the programs, so she gets involved in as many ways as she can.

Bolen serves as president of Beta Alpha Psi, an accounting, finance and information systems organization that allows students network opportunities with employers, among other things.

“We have different accounting firms come in each week, including all of the Big Four,” Bolen said, referencing the four largest public accounting firms of Deloitte, PwC, Ernst & Young, and KPMG. “They come in and provide dinner, and then they talk about opportunities with their company, how to advance yourself as a professional and other things to just get students interested in the accounting industry.”

Employers see UA MAcc and iMAcc students as valuable potential employees, according to department chair Vernon Richardson, and there really are not enough to go around.

“The big accounting firms would pretty much take as many [graduates] as we could produce,” Richardson said. “So what happens is, [the graduates] just all get placed and they wish we had more.”

One clear benefit of the iMAcc program for employers is it prepares students to take the Certified Public Accountant (CPA) exam by equipping them with all the requirements needed.

MAcc program director Dr. Gary Peters said while not all employers require students to pass the exam, it still represents an important credential. All students are encouraged to take it, and about 90 percent of them do, according to Peters.

“In the industry [the CPA] is highly sought after, they feel like you are more driven if you have it,” Bolen said. “It’s a hard test, so it is a very desired designation that employers look for.”

UA MAcc and iMAcc students that do not take or pass the CPA are still ahead of the game, though. It is possible for an accounting graduate to have only a bachelor’s degree and still be successful, so holding a master’s is already a step above the rest.

Richardson said the accounting department places nearly 100 percent of UA Master of Accountancy graduates.

“If you graduate with a master’s, you pretty much have a job waiting for you,” Richardson said.

Because of the department’s increasing success and growing numbers, it has gained a reputation among other colleges.

According to Public Accounting Report’s 32nd Annual Professors Survey, the UA’s undergraduate accounting program was ranked No. 6 and the master’s program was ranked No. 7 among public institutions of similar size.

Hundreds of professors from nearly 200 U.S. colleges and universities participated in the 2013 survey, which was conducted in May and June.

The PAR has been the independent newsletter of the accounting procession since 1978.

“A big part of the rating has to do with exposure of the school among peer professors,” Peters said. “They are recognizing that there are exciting things happening at the University of Arkansas. It has definitely been on the rise.”

If the department maintains this trend — accounting majors are up at the UA by approximately 30 percent in the last year — the excitement will only continue to rise in coming years.

 “Our department has been very stable, it has gained a reputation, and we offer a higher quality program,” Richardson said. “Each year is even better, and the students are seeing that.”