SYNOPSIS The market for professional accountants has changed a great deal in recent years. Accounting enrollments have declined, and accounting firms have had difficulty recruiting entry-level staff with the appropriate skill sets. Both of these trends can be traced to changes in the demographics and expectations of university-age students as accounting competes for students with other professions. Some commentators blame this on the introduction of the 150-Hour Rule for accounting education, but there are numerous drivers that may be affecting the market for accounting labor over the long term: (1) the nature of the work/life experience in accounting, (2) the changing economics of accounting firms, (3) the challenges of refreshing the curriculum of traditional accounting programs, (4) the impact of rapidly changing technology, and (5) the influence of regulation on the entry of new students to accounting. I end with a discussion of some ideas for the future of the profession. JEL Classifications: M4.
W. Robert Knechel (Sun,) studied this question.