Raising accounting’s profile through social media

“It’s the students, they’re the ones that are active on social media, they’re the ones that are probably going to influence the profession in the future, so why not give them a stronger voice.”

The program, Student Associations Collaboration Program, encourages accounting students at university and accounting student societies to expand their social media presence on LinkedIn and post more content about their experiences studying accounting.

“Students are looking for internships and employment. That comes up a lot when I’m connecting with students, they’re asking, can we place them into an internship or get them some experience? That probably comes up more than most issues; they’re looking for experience,” Kaleb said.

Currently, the accounting profession faces talent shortages.

MYOB research indicated that seven in 10 (72 per cent) of accounting professionals felt that there was a talent shortage in the sector, with CA ANZ last year finding that taxation accountants were at the highest risk of a talent shortage, estimating a 6,000-accountant shortfall by 2030. Demand for accountants, auditors, and finance roles is also forecast to rise by approximately 28,000 roles by 2029. 

Adding to the talent shortage, the impacts of AI on the profession – increasingly capable of carrying out tasks of an entry-level accounting role – are another concern accounting students face, Kaleb said.

“Graduates, they’re fearful that AI is going to take away a lot of the lower-entry work that graduates used to do – the data entry and the reconciliations. That’s where you got your grounding in prior years, when entering the profession, but now technology and AI is doing all of that work,” Kaleb said.

“Students are fearful that there might be less positions available when they graduate, so the key is to get them experienced while they’re still at university rather than waiting until they graduate. Because by then they’re already behind the eight ball with students that have had the experience over the course of their degrees.

“That’s the ultimate outcome for students is to place them in employment and to gain experience as well as being a voice for the profession.”

Through this program, Kaleb told the brand that he is aiming to strengthen the future of the profession.

“I think a good way of doing that is to give students a much stronger voice in shaping the future of the accounting profession,” Kaleb said.

Kaleb told the brand that the program will provide a broader platform that connects the students and associations with each other and the accounting profession.

“We’re happy to promote their associations, promote them on LinkedIn as much as we can, and give them more of a profile. Because that’s the key to getting the job, to have a bigger social media profile, particularly on LinkedIn,” Kaleb said.

“The Make Accounting Great Again Student Associations Collaboration Program is designed to build a global network of university and college accounting and business student associations to promote the profession, strengthen connections between campuses and create links between students and potential employers,” the Make Accounting Great Again website said.