Report: Undergraduate Enrollment in Accounting on the Rise

February 11, 2025 By Bryan Strickland, Journal of Accountancy (Feb 5, 2

Undergraduate enrollment in college accounting programs increased during the fall semester to its highest level in four years, a 12% increase from the previous fall based on National Student Clearinghouse Research Center data.

The longtime not-for-profit partner to the nation's colleges and universities reported an undergraduate enrollment in accounting of 267,278 students last semester, an increase of nearly 29,000 students from the previous fall. The figure was the highest observed by the research center since the fall of 2020.

"Strong accounting enrollment is heartening," Sue Coffey, CPA, CGMA, the AICPA's CEO–Public Accounting, said in a news release. "The larger undergraduate student body presents a bigger opportunity to demonstrate to students the dynamic, rewarding career opportunities accounting can deliver."

Graduate accounting enrollment fell 2.8% from the previous fall to 25,472. Still, combined undergraduate and graduate accounting enrollment rose 10.5% year-over-year, significantly outpacing the 4.5% enrollment increase observed across all majors.

"There is much work to do to increase awareness and interest in accounting as a major and to sustain that interest through college and into the workplace as students begin their careers," Coffey said. "This ongoing work will be even more critical in the coming years as demographic shifts reshape education and the workforce."

As a member of the National Accounting Pipeline Group (NPAG), Coffey contributed to the group's recent release of the Accounting Talent Strategy Report, a project aimed at tackling the pipeline challenges facing the accounting profession. Nearly 1,000 people have signed NPAG's Pipeline Pledge to connect with students and share their career experiences.

Other pipeline programs underway across the profession include:

• The Center for Audit Quality's Accounting+ campaign, which has reached 130,000 students in 3,000 schools across the country.
• The Accounting Opportunities Experience program. In November, volunteers supported by their state CPA societies delivered more than 1,000 presentations to 40,000 students.
• Efforts by the American Accounting Association in conjunction with the Future Accountants Sponsoring Organizations to reignite student interest through innovations in the classroom, partnerships with high schools and community colleges, and branding activities.
• The Experience, Learn and Earn program, developed jointly by the AICPA and the National Association of State Boards of Accountancy (NASBA) to provide a less costly, more flexible way to meet final education requirements for CPA licensure.
• Initiatives by CPA firms, the AICPA, NASBA, state societies, colleges, state boards of accountancy, and others to provide greater support for candidates taking the CPA Exam.
• Various efforts to help address the time and cost of education and initial licensure through scholarships and alternative paths to licensure