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Accountant shortage adds up for graduates
The end of the first quarter of the 06/07 Financial Year is here already and as thousands of Coast businesses prepare their BAS statements, the shortage of accountants will once again be under the spotlight.
Accountants are listed as a profession in limited supply on the ’Official List of Skill Shortages in the Workplace’ issued by the Department of Employment and Workplace Relations and, as a result, accounting graduates from the University of the Sunshine Coast enjoy a 100 per cent employment rate.
“The employment rate of USC graduates is among the highest in Australia and it is not uncommon for the majority of our third-year accounting students to be offered employment prior to the completion of their degree studies,” Associate Professor of Accounting, Dr Chris Lambert said.
While traditionally accounting may have been focussed on ‘number crunching’, in today’s climate accountants are viewed as valuable business advisers and strategic planners.
“The University of the Sunshine Coast seeks to prepare students to become professional accountants and emphasises the importance of developing thinking skills as well as the necessary technical skills,” Dr Lambert continued.
The USC undergraduate accounting degree was also recently ranked first in Queensland and sixth nationally by an independent Course Experience Questionnaire in performance against other institutions on the overall satisfaction index.
“My choice of profession has allowed me to obtain one of the most highly regarded degrees at the University of the Sunshine Coast,” says Philip Maley, a 2004 USC graduate who now works as a tax agent for Mooloolaba firm, Geitz & Associates.
“This then gave me the opportunity to continue my professional career with an excellent local company which keeps me close to friends, family and the surf! Accounting is a challenging and ever-changing profession and the nature of my position ensures that no two days are ever the same.“
The profession is not only in demand locally and nationally but also internationally as the shortage of qualified accountants increases around the globe.
“Many students take the opportunity to travel and experience other cultures by securing employment with the multi-national accounting firms and moving to international offices or simply finding employment abroad,” Dr Chris Lambert said.
Skills students can expect to acquire during the three-year degree include financial management, business consulting and financial advising which are becoming increasingly important in today’s corporate and small business environments.