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Volume
7, Issue 1
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January
2007
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Accounting
is thrilling!
Interested in qualifying for a scholarship to help you pay for school? You only have a little more than a month to get those applications in! All applications for VSCPA Educational Foundation scholarships are due by February 15, 2007. Check out these great scholarship opportunities: The application form for the first three scholarships is available here (.PDF). Click here (.PDF) for the Goodman & Company Scholarship application.
Students at two Virginia schools — the University of Virginia and James Madison University — are more likely to pass the Exam than most other schools in the nation, according to the National Association of State Boards of Accountancy. In a list of the 25 schools nationwide with the highest percentage of first-time CPA Exam passers, U.Va. tied for 22nd with the University of Kentucky among students without advanced degrees, and JMU ranked 25th. The average national pass rate is 29.95 percent; comparatively, U.Va.'s is 47.8 percent and JMU's is 46.3 percent. The school boasting the highest pass rate? The University of Michigan at Ann Arbor, with 87 percent of first-time Exam takers passing the test.
Good news! The starting salaries for entry-level accounting professionals continue to grow. According to Robert Half International's 2007 Salary Guide, entry-level professionals at small firms can expect an average 5 percent increase in starting salaries, in the $38,000–$44,000 range. Firms are also offering other perks, such as flexible work arrangements and signing bonuses. Learn more on 2007 salary projections (.PDF) from New Accountant magazine.
Did you know that some CPAs spend their days sleuthing? They're called forensic accountants, and they sniff out red flags of corporate fraud. Forensic accountants combine investigative prowess with keen financial skills to discover fraudulent activities, such as embezzlement. Learn more about forensic accounting and what it takes to become a "business detective." This is an exciting and growing field! U.S. News & World Report calls forensic accounting one of the "20 hot job tracks of the future," and nearly 40 percent of the top U.S. accounting firms offer the service. Many CPAs working in forensic accounting also obtain the Certified Fraud Examiner (CFE) designation from the Association of Certified Fraud Examiners. The CFE designation demonstrates an ability to conduct complete, efficient, thorough and ethical fraud investigations. There's a ton of information out there on corporate fraud detection and prevention. The American Institute of CPAs even has a special practice section devoted to this area, called the Business Valuation and Forensic & Litigation Services Center.
To prepare for the CPA Exam, many candidates take a structured Exam review program, either in a classroom, online or through a self-study product. How do you decide what's right for you? With such a wide array of products, it's important to do your research. Learn more about various providers and products from this Journal of Accountancy article. Don't forget: As a VSCPA student member, you receive these great discounts:
Many CPAs
find that having an advanced degree makes them more competitive,
whether it's an accounting specialty or a Master of Business
Administration (MBA). Learn
how a master's degree could help your career (.PDF),
as well as more on specific master's degree options, such as
an MBA or Master of Accounting.
When sifting through résumés, the candidates who hold leadership positions stand out, employers told the National Association of Colleges and Employers in its 2007 Job Outlook survey. Results reveal that only the candidate's major was as influential on employers' decisions as leadership. Check out which candidate attributes, in addition to leadership, weigh heavily when employers fill entry-level positions.
Accounting
professors around the country rate the program at the University
of Texas at Austin the best, according to the 25th Annual Survey
of Accounting Professors, conducted by CCH,
a Wolters Kluwer business. UT has come in first since
2001, thanks to the strength of both its undergraduate and graduate
programs. The top five behind UT are: Brigham Young University,
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, University of Notre
Dame and University of Southern California. Learn
more about the survey. | ||||||||||||||||
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