RESEARCH NOTE Accountants' attitudes to extending accounting degrees to four years: a research note

Abstract

A proposal to extend existing three year accounting degrees at universities in Australia to four years, proposed and supported by the accounting profession of Australia, is controversial. The Australian government will not pay for a fourth year and there is public criticism of the training of accountants. This study investigates the attitudes, feelings and behaviour intentions of 583 practitioner accountants in Perth, Western Australia, and their views about three important aspects of the proposed change. It shows that practitioner accountants belonging to the profession are split about the value of implementing the change.

Keywords:

• Accounting
• Change
• University
• Education