In line with reports that “thousands” of accounting graduates are under-qualified, one software firm believes that tertiary education for accountants is being taught on outdated technology systems, which is having a ripple effect into business mindsets and employability.
Australian TAFE colleges and universities are, by and large, still teaching the students on desktop accounting systems, with very few providing adequate training on cloud-based technologies, according to Trent McLaren, senior BDM at Intuit.
“Then, in the real world, nobody uses that technology anymore. So they’ve been set up for failure from the get-go, and would be relying on the accounting firm they go into to be progressive and tech-savvy,” Mr McLaren told AccountantsDaily.
“It’s across the board in Australia,” he added. “Most of these younger people coming through are learning about [technology] from their peers, in forums, via blogs – but they’re not learning it from the education sector, not really.”
This potentially has a flow-on effect to the business mindset these graduates enter the workplace with, which is particularly problematic if they’re not engaging with-forward thinking firms, Mr McLaren suggested.
These comments follow a report from recruitment firm Hays, which said a significant chunk of graduates entering the accounting space lack the necessary skills to secure employment.
Being tech-savvy, in particular, was flagged as a requisite for success in an accounting graduate’s job search.
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