IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/eee/joaced/v69y2024ics0748575124000356.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

STEM designation for accounting programs: Insights from accounting department directors

Author

Listed:
  • Simmons, Valerie
  • Kogan, Gregory
  • Boyle, Douglas M.
  • O’Hara, Richard C.

Abstract

With the increasing demand for tech-savvy accounting graduates, numerous accounting programs are considering the value of obtaining STEM designation. We conduct semi-structured interviews of fourteen accounting department directors with STEM-designated graduate programs. The interviews encompass three broad themes: (1) Motivation for pursuing STEM designation and expected benefits; (2) Process for acquiring the STEM designation, including curriculum modifications and related challenges; and (3) Resources, faculty training and hiring, and outcomes of STEM designation. The interviewees submit that STEM programs are vital for attracting international students. They report other advantages, including increased program visibility, greater interest from domestic students in STEM programs, and enhanced career opportunities for students from a curriculum focused on data analytics. In addition, some interviewees report that their technology programs are the only ones gaining students. Participants further reveal that international students graduating from STEM accounting programs are securing employment with Big Four, regional, and local accounting firms. Finally, we relate the findings to change theory and discuss recommendations for university accounting programs.

Suggested Citation

  • Simmons, Valerie & Kogan, Gregory & Boyle, Douglas M. & O’Hara, Richard C., 2024. "STEM designation for accounting programs: Insights from accounting department directors," Journal of Accounting Education, Elsevier, vol. 69(C).
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:joaced:v:69:y:2024:i:c:s0748575124000356
    DOI: 10.1016/j.jaccedu.2024.100919
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0748575124000356
    Download Restriction: Full text for ScienceDirect subscribers only
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1016/j.jaccedu.2024.100919?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to search for a different version of it.

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Andiola, Lindsay M. & Masters, Erin & Norman, Carolyn, 2020. "Integrating technology and data analytic skills into the accounting curriculum: Accounting department leaders’ experiences and insights," Journal of Accounting Education, Elsevier, vol. 50(C).
    2. Pincus, Karen V. & Stout, David E. & Sorensen, James E. & Stocks, Kevin D. & Lawson, Raef A., 2017. "Forces for change in higher education and implications for the accounting academy," Journal of Accounting Education, Elsevier, vol. 40(C), pages 1-18.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Susanne Leitner-Hanetseder & Christoph Eisl & Carina Knoll & Othmar M. Lehner, 2021. "Need For Advanced It Skills For Accountants €“ What Does Accounting Education Literature Tell Us?," Business Education and Accreditation, The Institute for Business and Finance Research, vol. 13(1), pages 57-69.
    2. Xu, Hui & Liu, Yuebing & Krahel, John Peter, 2024. "Faculty intention to implement data analytics in the accounting curricula," Journal of Accounting Education, Elsevier, vol. 66(C).
    3. Carla Carvalho & Ana Carlos Almeida, 2022. "The Adequacy of Accounting Education in the Development of Transversal Skills Needed to Meet Market Demands," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(10), pages 1-18, May.
    4. Apostolou, Barbara & Dorminey, Jack W. & Hassell, John M., 2021. "Accounting education literature review (2020)," Journal of Accounting Education, Elsevier, vol. 55(C).
    5. Emilio Abad-Segura & Mariana-Daniela González-Zamar, 2020. "Research Analysis on Emerging Technologies in Corporate Accounting," Mathematics, MDPI, vol. 8(9), pages 1-29, September.
    6. Marshall, Thomas E. & Drum, Dawna & Morris, Steven & Lambert, Sherwood Lane, 2021. "Leveraging research within a pedagogical protocol for enhanced integrated-competency student learning," Journal of Accounting Education, Elsevier, vol. 56(C).
    7. Drum, Dawna & Hoelscher, Jamie, 2024. "Was it miss appropriate in the theater with the cash register? An employee fraud case," Journal of Accounting Education, Elsevier, vol. 69(C).
    8. Porter, Jason C., 2019. "Beyond debits and credits: Using integrated projects to improve students’ understanding of financial accounting," Journal of Accounting Education, Elsevier, vol. 46(C), pages 53-71.
    9. Berry, Reanna & Routon, Wesley, 2020. "Soft skill change perceptions of accounting majors: Current practitioner views versus their own reality," Journal of Accounting Education, Elsevier, vol. 53(C).
    10. Apostolou, Barbara & Dorminey, Jack W. & Hassell, John M. & Hickey, Anna, 2019. "Accounting education literature review (2018)," Journal of Accounting Education, Elsevier, vol. 47(C), pages 1-27.
    11. Hamood Mohammed Al-Hattami, 2021. "University Accounting Curriculum, IT, and Job Market Demands: Evidence From Yemen," SAGE Open, , vol. 11(2), pages 21582440211, April.
    12. Andiola, Lindsay M. & Masters, Erin & Norman, Carolyn, 2020. "Integrating technology and data analytic skills into the accounting curriculum: Accounting department leaders’ experiences and insights," Journal of Accounting Education, Elsevier, vol. 50(C).
    13. Sarkar, Sumantra & Gray, Joy & Boss, Scott R. & Daly, Emmet, 2021. "Developing institutional skills for addressing big data: Experiences in implementation of AACSB Standard 5," Journal of Accounting Education, Elsevier, vol. 54(C).
    14. Ahmad Saiful Azlin Puteh Salin & Naimah Ahmad Yahya & Maizura Meor Zawawi & Naimah Zaini, 2024. "Impact of Fintech Revolution on Accounting Profession and Future Accounting Graduates," International Journal of Research and Innovation in Social Science, International Journal of Research and Innovation in Social Science (IJRISS), vol. 8(9), pages 2742-2751, September.
    15. Covaleski, Mark A. & Earley, Christine E. & Zehms, Karla M., 2021. "The lived reality of public accounting interns," Journal of Accounting Education, Elsevier, vol. 56(C).
    16. Komarev, Iliya & Preobragenskaya, Galina, 2022. "A framework of market-relevant accounting competencies for the Gulf Cooperation countries (GCC)," Journal of Accounting Education, Elsevier, vol. 59(C).
    17. Nickell, Erin Burrell & Schwebke, Jason & Goldwater, Paul, 2023. "An introductory audit data analytics case study: Using Microsoft Power BI and Benford’s Law to detect accounting irregularities," Journal of Accounting Education, Elsevier, vol. 64(C).
    18. Stancu Mirela Simina & Duţescu Adriana, 2021. "The impact of the Artificial Intelligence on the accounting profession, a literature’s assessment," Proceedings of the International Conference on Business Excellence, Sciendo, vol. 15(1), pages 749-758, December.
    19. Dickson-Deane, Camille & Edwards, Miriam, 2021. "Transcribing accounting lectures: Enhancing the pedagogical practice by acknowledging student behaviour," Journal of Accounting Education, Elsevier, vol. 54(C).
    20. Onesmus Ayaya & Marius Pretorius, 2021. "The State of Business Rescue Practitioners Professional Accreditation," SAGE Open, , vol. 11(4), pages 21582440211, October.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:eee:joaced:v:69:y:2024:i:c:s0748575124000356. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Catherine Liu (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://www.journals.elsevier.com/journal-of-accounting-education .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.