firms are being contacted to participate.
by 卡塔尔世界杯常规比赛时间 research
as the leaders of cpa firms know quite well, the pipeline of incoming professionals has slowed to somewhere between a trickle and a drip.
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the causes are many:
- the cost of higher education
- misconceptions about the profession
- the difficulty of the cpa exam
- competition from other professions
- competition from corporations needing accountants
but not to worry! the american of institute of cpas is on the case!
quick action
a new aicpa document, “pipeline acceleration plan,” states the seriousness of the problem:
“the accounting profession is grappling with a talent shortage. meaningful, quick action is needed.”
the plan presents several forms of quick action. one of direct interest to cpa firms large and small is the experience, learn & earn (ele) program, which could soon be feeding thousands of recent graduates into practices desperate for staff.
starting with a pilot program this fall, ele will put recent college graduates to work with a blend of salaried experience at firms and online accounting courses aimed at completing the 30 hours of education required for certification in public accountancy.
the program aims to clear up some of the clogs in the pipeline by
- easing the cost of education,
- directing recent graduates into the cpa field,
- helping new professionals pass the cpa exam and
- demonstrating that accountancy can be an interesting and challenging profession.
it’s a job
the pipeline plan emphasizes that this is neither an internship nor an apprenticeship. it’s a salaried, first-year job for the recent graduate with a track toward certification.
ele participants will
- work while pursuing certification,
- begin to recoup the cost of education as a paid staff member,
- work a flexible schedule that allows for online studies and
- complete the credit hours necessary to continue their journey to certified public accountancy.
once fully deployed, the ele program will place thousands of qualified professionals into an industry scrambling for personnel.
1,000 in the pilot program
participating firms will be expected to allow these new staff members a year of flexible scheduling. while they might be expected to be on the job full time during the busy season, for example, they would be allowed time off later to focus on their online courses.
the online accredited courses will be offered by a university at a price at or below the average cost of community college courses. the projected cost of 30 credits is expected to be around $4,500, or $150 per credit. the program is a track toward certification, not a master’s degree.
ele will launch as a pilot program in the fall of 2023, opening opportunities for up to 1,000 students. outreach to firms to secure pilot participation is already under way.
the pilot program will involve only one university, but requests for proposals for post-pilot participation in 2024 will be sent to other colleges and universities this summer.
the pipeline acceleration plan also includes 11 other initiatives, including
- firm culture and business model changes
- a 30-hour communication campaign
- extending the 18-month exam window
- examining uniform accountancy variances
- high school and college strategies
- stem recognition
- scholarships and funds for cpa exam costs