The Accounting Doctoral Shortage: Accounting Faculty Opinions on Hiring JD-CPAs as Accounting Educators

Abstract

Objectives: Prior studies have noted that the number of PhDs in accounting are far below the number needed to meet program hiring needs. This paper reviews how the JD-CPA alternative credential is viewed by three academic accreditation bodies (SACS, ACBSP, and AACSB), the American Bar Association (ABA), and current accounting faculty at SACS-accredited institutions of higher education. Methods: An online survey was distributed to accounting educators at 439 institutions accredited by SACS, with 248 complete responses received. Individual demographics and institutional information were summarized statistically. Responses to two questions assessing inclination to hire an otherwise-qualified JD-CPA candidate using a 5-point Likert scale were analyzed by multiple regression with individual and institutional variables as predictors. Results: The study found that JD-CPA accounting educators are widely present in accounting faculties. Responses to the opinion questions indicated a substantial willingness to hire JD-CPAs, albeit with significant differences based on institution type, faculty rank, and possession of a PhD. Conclusion: This study demonstrates general willingness among current accounting faculty to consider JD-CPAs for tenure-track accounting faculty positions while still expressing a preference for candidates with a PhD and with notable reservations from certain demographic segments of the accounting academe.

Identifying risk factors for compassion fatigue in psychologists in Aotearoa, New Zealand, during the COVID-19 pandemic.

“…NZ shares common challenges with other developed countries, including limited public health funding, increasing demands for mental health care, and a small psychology workforce. Mental health professionals report unsustainable demand and insufficient workforce to meet the needs of the community (Cardwell, 2021). Waitlists are continually increasing, with reports of psychologists in private practice closing their books, while clients wait months for appointments in the public sector where too few mental health professionals are available to meet the demand (Meier & Lourens, 2022; Skirrow, 2021).…”

“…Clients are presenting for psychological therapy with increasingly severe problems, while private and community psychologists report unmanageable caseloads and waitlists, with a limited public mental health system for severe cases (Skirrow, 2021). Delays and barriers for care lead to increased severity and risk for clients, compounding demand for crisis and hospital services (Cardwell, 2021; Jatrana & Crampton, 2021; New Zealand Government, 2018). While research has recognized increases in mental health difficulties among other health workers during the pandemic (e.g., Bell et al, 2021), this has not been specifically considered for psychologists, despite increasing demand and limited resources during this period.…”

The COVID-19 pandemic, psychologists’ professional quality of life and mental health

“…While the pandemic has since eased, with the government of Aotearoa, NZ, removing the last of the public health orders ( Government NZ, 2023 ), ongoing pressures continue for the mental health sector. Frequent reports emphasize shortages of psychologists ( Psychology Workforce Task Group, 2016 ; Skirrow, 2021 ), psychiatrists ( Thabrew et al, 2017 ), increases in demand ( Every-Palmer et al, 2022 ), difficulties with access ( Officer et al, 2022 ), and waitlists ( Cardwell, 2021 ). Arguably, this is causing a worsening cycle of severity in the community—services triage patients and see the most severe cases first, leaving those with mild-to-moderate concerns without help.…”

The Ethics of Tax Evasion: Relevant Demographic Variables within the scope of Higher Education Students and Professors.

“…Thus, we questioned the respondents about their level of agreement with each of the statements, with scores from 1 to 5 (1 = "totally agree"; 5 = " totally disagree") on the Likert scale. This scale was also used by other authors, some of them in very recent studies [16][17][18][19][20], including studies on the perceptions of students and professors regarding ethics, accounting and education issues. Hence, the Likert scale seemed to be appropriate for our data collection instrument.…”