Abstract The article presents information about curriculum environment factors that contribute to problems related to accounting education and the role of the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants (AICPA) to address the issues. The AICPA has cooperated in a number of ventures to assist the educational community but generally has followed a hands off policy regarding what happens on campus. A number of recent events signal a change in direction and clearly indicate that the AICPA is going to be a major player in accounting education. First, a significant problem was exposed by the Future Issues Committee which concluded, the present process is not sufficiently dynamic to achieve timely changes in accounting education programs in response to rapidly changing demands. This was followed by a revision of the Albers Committee report that presented the need for broadly educated professionals who are technically knowledgeable and who have the analytical abilities, communication and interpersonal skills, and the cultural awareness that will enable the profession to fill its broader role. It is hoped that these moves will be welcomed by the educators and that all elements of the profession can work together to best prepare future CPAs for the challenge of the next century.
Amy Nelson (Wed,) studied this question.