Ready, Set, Sit!
Keeping CPA exam candidates on track. What are firms doing to help? Join the survey; get the results.
by Rick Telberg/At Large
It’s too early to celebrate, but there are signs that the profession’s talent shortage may be poised to ease.
A record number of new graduates are flowing into the market, CPA firms are hiring more employees than ever and the number of CPA exam candidates is returning to historical levels. To be sure, the talent pinch remains acute and the forecast for headcount growth could yet be clouded by the economic slowdown.
But 203,000 college students are majoring in accounting today, up 19 percent from three years ago, according to the AICPA. Last year, more than 64,000 students graduated with bachelor or master’s degrees in accounting, About two-thirds of those graduates, some 43,000, went to work at public accounting firms. Many colleges and universities are churning out accounting grads as fast as they can, hobbled only by the next shortage — a shortage of instructors. READ MORE →
