Changes in workplace expectations and attitudes towards the accounting profession for undergraduate accounting students and the effect it may have on job satisfaction.

Abstract

This thesis reports the results of a study which examined the effects of university studies on the workplace expectations and attitudes of accounting students to public accounting. Previous research has suggested the expectations and attitudes have a significant effect on the levels of job satisfaction and employee experiences. This research also showed that job satisfaction can be a major influence on the decision to leave an employer. Employee turnover represents a major issue facing public accounting firms. Previous studies have provided a limited understanding of the role that universities play in shaping student expectations and preparing them for the reality of the workplace. This thesis provides additional understanding of these issues. Drawing on the “met expectations hypothesis” and the “accounting attitude scale,” a series of hypotheses were developed in this thesis. Data were collected through a survey that was administered to commencing and completing accounting student cohorts at two Australian universities, and to accountants recently employed in public accounting firms. Using factor analysis, previous studies identified three components that explained a significant amount of the variance in expectations studies: (1) comfort, (2) reward, and (3) responsibility. Analyses in this thesis confirmed the presence of these three factors but also identified “the ability to earn a high income” as a fourth factor. Previously, this factor had been captured in the “reward” variable. This thesis suggests that the generational difference between the respondents to the prior research and those to this study is a possible explanation for this observation. This thesis also confirmed the previously understood relationships between expectations and job satisfaction, and between job satisfaction and turnover intention. Moreover, this thesis identified several changes in expectations and attitudes of students during their time at university. Demographic factors associated with these changes include the respondents’ age, their gender, and the university which they attended. Furthermore, there was a significant statistical difference between students who had studied accounting at high school and those who had not. Previous research in the United Kingdom suggested differences in attitudes between students studying at “traditional” universities and those studying at “new” universities. Differences between university cohorts were also observed in this thesis, but were due to demographic differences in the universities’ student profiles per se rather than the universities themselves. Overall, the results suggested that younger students enter university with higher expectations and a more positive attitude than their older counterparts. During their time spent at university, student expectations were reduced to the point where there was no difference between the age groups. This was particularly noticeable amongst those students who studied accounting at high school. While subject to some methodological limitations, this thesis has identified the impact that study has on accounting students and the implications it has for both educators and employers in public accounting firms.