Supply and Demand is one of the most basic economic principles. So what happens when the accounting profession as a whole faces a growing demand while supplies decrease? We’ll find out in the next few years as the industry takes on a looming shortage of accounting professors.

In a recent study, the AICPA and American Accounting Association found that over the next decade, between 500 and 700 accounting faculty will retire – per year. With the average accounting PhD program graduating 140 students annually, and student enrollment in college accounting programs at an all time high, the shortfall is painfully obvious.

Fortunately, corrective steps have already been put into motion. In June 2008, more than 65 of the nation’s largest firms and over 35 state CPA societies (including the MACPA) joined together to fund the Accounting Doctoral Scholars (ADS) Program. The program, which is administered through the AICPA Foundation, provides financial support to help accountants with recent experience in auditing and tax to obtain their doctorates in order to teach and conduct research at the university level.

Challenges and Rewards
The biggest challenge for a prospective PhD candidate is the time investment. According to an article in the Journal of Accountancy, most doctoral programs take from three and a half to six years to complete. However, the rewards for completing the program can be well worth the time, including high starting-salaries, the opportunity to do research and the satisfaction of contributing to the profession’s future, one student at a time.

MAPCA member Colleen Boland, a PhD candidate at Michigan State University, agrees. “I find the research component very exciting and appreciate the opportunity to interact with young adults as they are developing their life path,” she said. “I really enjoy coaching and mentoring students to help them learn how to learn new concepts. It is gratifying to see the ‘light bulb’ go on.”

Depending on the university, accounting research may make up more of an academic’s career than is commonly thought. Boland has some advice to offer CPAs who may be considering a move to academia: “I would encourage seasoned CPAs to consider this change in career path; but, to understand that while some of the underlying skills are the same, the perspective and competencies are very different. Analytical skills used as a CPA are not based in mathematical concepts but are critical to the career of a researcher.”

Venky Nagar, Director of the Accounting Area PhD Program at the University of Michigan, explained the relationship between academic research and real-world accounting. “Professional accountants examine problems of individual clients; accounting research examines classes of problems, i.e. problems that pertain to large groups of firms,” he said. “As a result of this abstraction, the tools we use and the problems we find interesting are different than the tools and problems in a professional accountant’s universe.”

Boland suggests that anyone interested in pursuing a PhD should take the time to determine an area of accounting to focus on – financial, managerial, audit or tax accounting – before applying to a PhD program. She said finding an institution that mirrors your areas of interest is critical. “There is nothing more important than a good match,” she emphasized.

For more information on accounting doctoral programs, visit the ADS website at www.adsphd.org.