Students' Attitudes towards the Adoption of International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) in Kuwait

Abstract

The purpose of this paper is to examine the perceptions of a sample of Kuwaiti students about their knowledge and interest on the adoption of International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) and the usefulness of learning IFRS. A questionnaire survey is used in this study to identify the attitudes of the students towards adoption IFRS in Kuwait. Questionnaires were distributed to 350 students who study in colleges of business administration in Kuwait. They were asked to express their perception about the adoption of IFRS. 228 questionnaires returned completed resulting in 65% usable response rate. The surveyed students gained knowledge about IFRS through their academic program. Most of the surveyed students knew nothing about IFRS before taking an accounting course that addresses the IFRS Standards. They became interested in learning more about IFRS after studying an accounting course. The surveyed students demonstrated that they acquired information about IFRS through formal academic lectures and the Internet. Yet, they prefer to study more about IFRS through formal lectures, practical case studies applied to Kuwaiti companies and seminars. There is consensus among the respondents that the business administration academic program must have more about IFRS offered as elective courses. Although Kuwait was one of the Middle Eastern countries that adopt IFAS, the vast majority of the students who took part in survey indicated that they were not aware of this. This gives clear indication that the financial reporting courses offered in business colleges in Kuwait are theoretical and hardly use the financial reports of companies listed on the national stock exchange as cases studies. The respondents believe studying IFRS helps in mastering accounting measurements and disclosure and this would help in proceeding in their studies and support them in developing their future career.