Students Shouldn't Ignore 150-Hour Rule
Re: Advice to Accounting Students: Smile at the Big Five But Look Elsewhere for a Job
From: Dennis Beresford, professor, University of Georgia

I have just a couple of comments in response to Professor Ketz's piece. First, at the University of Georgia we continue to have excellent success in placing our accounting graduates with Big 5 firms, many other regional and local firms, and a number of corporations. Our program hasn't increased in size in the last five years or so, but it has maintained about the same level of accounting majors and the firms and corporations would love it if we could produce twice as many graduates.

While I am not necessarily a big fan of the five year program, it is required in Georgia and most other states in order to sit for the CPA exam. Students following Professor Ketz's advice to not take a 150 hour program will not only limit their opportunities for immediate employment, they will be sorely disappointed in years to come that they missed the chance to try for the CPA designation, still the way in which the accounting profession distinguishes between the outstanding people and all of the rest. I am not aware of Big 5 firms that are "willing to negotiate" with candidates as Professor Ketz suggests. Perhaps the occasional Joe Superstar could get away with that but hardly anyone else could.

At the Tull School of Accounting we are taking a hard look at our accounting curriculum. And we are taking action to recruit as many outstanding students as we can to become accounting majors. Any outstanding program needs to continue to improve and not rest on its laurels. However, we don't subscribe to the crisis scenario described by Ketz.

Dec. 20, 2000