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EMPLOYMENT OUTLOOK IN ACCOUNTING UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF LA BO R BUREAU OF LA BO R STATISTICS Maurice J. Tobin, Secretary Ewan Clague, Commissioner in cooperation with VETERANS ADM INISTRATION O C C U P A T IO N A L O U T L O O K SERIES Bulletin No. 1048 Employment O utlook in ACCOUNTING Fields of employment Training and qualifications Earnings and working conditions Employment trends and outlook Bulletin No. 1048 UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF LABOR Maurice J. Tobin, Secretary f f I * BUREAU OF LABOR STATISTICS Is Ewan Clague, Com m issioner in cooperation with VETERANS ADMINISTRATION For sale by the Superintendent of Documents, U.S. Government Printing Office Washington D. C. - Price cents 25, 20 \ w 5H LETTER O F T R A N S M IT T A L U nited States D epartment of L abor, B ureau of L abor Statistics, , Washington D . C., November 16, 1951. The Secretary of L abor: I have the honor to transmit herewith a report on employment outlook in accounting. This is one of a series of reports made available through the Bureau’s Occupational Outlook Service for use in vocational counseling of veterans, young people in school, and others interested in the choice of an occupation. This study was financed largely by the Veterans Administration, and the report was originally published as a Veterans Administration pamphlet for use in vocational rehabilitation and education activities. The study was conducted in the Bureau’s Division of Manpower and Employment Statistics under the supervision of Helen Wood. The report was prepared by Cora E. Taylor and Rose K. Wiener. The Bureau wishes to acknowledge the generous assist ance and cooperation received in connection with the study from the Federal Security Agency’s Office of Education, the professional societies in the field, and from other organizations and individuals interested in the accounting profession. Hon. M aurice J. T obin, Secretary of Labor. n E wan C lague, Commissioner. CO N TEN TS Introduction--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Growth of professional accounting___________________________________________________________________ Types of accounting service________________________________________________________________________ Auditing_____________________________________________________________________________________ General accounting____________________________________________________________________________ Cost accounting______________________________________________________________________________ Tax accounting_______________________________________________________________________________ Systems and procedures________________________________________________________________________ Control accounting____________________________________________________________________________ Teaching____________________________________________________________________________________ Fields of employment______________________________________________________________________________ Public accounting_____________________________________________________________________________ Numbers in field__________________________________________________________________________ Number and size of public accounting firms___________________________________________________ Geographic distribution_____________________________ Line of advancement______________________________________________________________________ Private accounting____________________________________________________________________________ Numbers in field__________________________________________________________________________ Where employed__________________________________________________________________________ Line of advancement______________________________________________________________________ Government accounting________________________________________________________________________ Training and qualifications for entrance______________________________________________________________ Types of training_____________________________________________________________________________ Vocational tests_______________________________________________________________________________ The certified public accountant certificate_________________________________________________________ Entrance requirements for major accounting fields_________________________________________________ Employment trends and outlook____________________________________________________________________ Past trends in employment_____________________________________________________________________ Trends in supply______________________________________________________________________________ Employment outlook__________________________________________________________________________ Opportunities for women_______________________________________________________________________ Earnings and working conditions------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Earnings_____________________________________________________________________________________ Working conditions_________________________________________________________________________ Where to go for further information--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Page 1 2 3 3 3 4 4 4 4 4 4 5 5 5 5 5 7 7 7 7 8 9 9 10 10 11 11 11 13 14 15 15 15 16 18 CHART One-half of all certified public accountants arein four States_____________________________________________ 6 TABLES 1. —Estimated number of certified public accountants in the United States, 1900-1951------------------------------2. —Prevailing weekly salaries in public and private accounting in New York City, July 1951---------------------APPENDIXES A. —Technical note on accounting survey___________________________________________________________ Scope and method_________________________________________________________________________ Number of accounting major graduates----------------------------------------------------------------------------------Placement experiences and earningsof graduates majoring in accounting----------------------------------------Private schools of business and junior colleges--------------------------------------------------------------------------Data on women___________________________________________________________________________ Facsimile of questionnaire__________________________________________________________________ B. —Schools of accounting________________________________________________________________________ in 12 16 20 20 21 21 22 22 23 27 EMPLOYMENT OUTLOOK IN ACCOUNTING Introduction Accounting is an indispensable tool of modem business organization and management. Pro fessionally trained accountants (numbering about 300,000 in 1951) set up the accounting systems which make it possible for even the largest cor poration to record, classify, and summarize its myriad daily financial transactions. They also analyze and interpret business records and prepare reports showing companies’ financial standing and the profit or loss on past operations. Financial statements prepared by accountants enable busi nessmen to plan future activities in the light of past experience. Investors frequently rely on accountants’ reports in deciding to buy or sell the stocks and bonds of particular companies. Banks use them as a guide in approving or rejecting applications for loans. Public service com missions find these reports essential in approving or disapproving requests for rate increases from telephone, gas and electric, and bus and streetcar companies. Even the smallest business firms need financial statements prepared in accordance with professional accounting standards in order to compute taxes owed to the Federal, State, and local governments. Accountants also contribute greatly to the efficient operation of the defense program. The need for cost accountants is especially widespread. Companies engaged in defense production must keep detailed cost records and prepare analyses of production costs for review by Government accountants, before final payments can be made on defense contracts. To comply with Govern ment price regulations, business establishments must prepare statements showing the costs of producing or selling goods. Every additional type of Government control, including allocation of scarce materials, wage stabilization, and special taxes, increases the need for accounting services. The demand for accountants is expected to remain high during the entire period of defense mobilization and for a few years thereafter. In mid-1951 there was a scarcity of men qualified for top-level jobs and positions requiring narrowly specialized experience, but there was not as yet any serious general shortage of accountants. Because the supply of accounting graduates is expected to fall sharply, at least until the middle of the decade, it is likely that employment opportunities for new graduates entering this field will improve greatly during the next few years. Over the long run, the profession is likely to continue to grow. Termination of the mobiliza tion program might cause a temporary decline in employment following the disposition of defense contract accounting problems which remain. It is possible, however, that such a decline would be offset by other demands for accountants, as, for instance, by employers newly introduced to the value of accounting services during the mobiliza tion period. Future prospects in the accounting field are discussed in greater detail later in this report. Other sections describe the early growth of the pro fession, the types of work done by accountants, the major fields in which they are employed, and the training and experience required for profes sional positions. The working conditions and earnings in each major field of accounting are also discussed. 1 2 E M P L O Y M E N T O U T L O O K IN A C C O U N TIN G Growth of Professional Accounting Businessmen have always found it necessary to record financial transactions, in order to keep track of their business and their current financial condition. The oldest known accounting records date back to 3600 B. C. in ancient Babylonia. A system of accounting control, or check and coun tercheck, was known to the ancient Egyptians. In the early Greek city-states this system was used in keeping government accounts. Earliest recognition of financial record keeping as a specialized occupation occurred in Venice in 1581, when the first College of Accountants was organized, with power to regulate entry into the field. Its requirements for admission bear an astonishing resemblance to modem regulations licensing public accountants. An applicant was required to submit a certificate of fitness signed by a magistrate, serve a 6-year apprenticeship with a practicing accountant, and finally, pass an exam ination. So long as business enterprises were small and mostly owner-managed, a simple rou tine system of record keeping was sufficient. The individuals preparing these accounts were called accountants or bookkeepers, interchangeably. The development and rapid growth in the nine teenth century of large-scale business and corpora tions created a need for new accounting methods which would enable businessmen to control their complex and far-flung operations. The new cor porations were required by law in some States to submit annual financial statements to their stock holders. Government regulations, beginning with those issued by the Interstate Commerce Com mission in 1906, have made it necessary for enter prises affected with a public interest (e. g., rail roads, public utilities, telephone and telegraph companies, and radio broadcasting companies) to submit annual reports to the government com missions responsible for maintaining fair rates and adequate public service. The imposition of new and more complex taxes—especially following the adoption of the Federal Income Tax Amend ment in 1913—immensely widened the scope of the accountant’s work. An entirely new accounting theory and tech nique has been worked out as a result of these new demands from business and government. The need for record keeping is greater than ever and there is now a separation of the functions of the bookkeeper and the accountant because of the increased complexity of the task. The routine keeping of records has become the job of the book keeper. The professional accountant must know how to keep records but is concerned primarily with the installation of systems of accounting, and with the audit, examination, analysis, and inter pretation of financial operations of business. Because of the public interest in reliable pro fessional accounting service, all of the States and Territories have passed laws providing for the licensing of certified public accountants, commonly called “CPA’s.” A code of professional ethics has been announced by the largest association of CPA’s in the United States, the American Insti tute of Accountants. Some State laws licensing CPA’s follow this code. Some States also provide for the licensing of all public accountants whether or not they are CPA’s. In other States many highly respected and well qualified public ac countants practice without a license. In the private and government accounting fields the great majority of professional accountants are not licensed. A license is a mark of professional attainment but it is not the sole test of compe tence. The distinction between the professional and nonprofessional accountant is not a matter of law. It is not surprising that in an occupation which has attained professional status so recently and which is developing so rapidly, the exact line between the professional accountant and the nonprofessional accountant or bookkeeper should be a matter of dispute among educators and practitioners in the accounting field. A thorough knowledge of bookkeeping is an essential founda tion for the study and practice of accounting. Every young accountant, regardless of his educa tional background, must gain experience as a junior accountant, accounting clerk, or bookkeeper before he can hope to perform truly professional work. Many independent public accountants accept “public bookkeeping” work in addition to their regular accounting and auditing engage ments. In private industry and government, accountants employed at intermediate levels of responsibility often perform both clerical and professional accounting duties. Nevertheless, there is a very real and increasingly important dis- T Y P E S OF A C C O U N TIN G S E R V IC E tinction between the professional and nonpro fessional accountant. Professional accounting work requires judgment of a high order, discretion, and highly specialized knowledge. It can be performed only by in dividuals who have had extensive academic training and have served their apprenticeship in the field or by those whose experience has been of such scope and character as to provide an 3 equivalent background. This report is concerned only with professional accounting and trainee positions leading directly to professional account ing work whether in public, private, or Govern ment accounting. Positions requiring only a limited knowledge of accounting theory and practice are excluded, even though they entail much executive or administrative responsibility. Types of Accounting Service The types of accounting service rendered or functions performed by professional accountants fall generally into seven main classifications: auditing, general accounting, cost accounting, systems and procedures, tax accounting, control accounting, and teaching. Auditing The auditing process is essentially a check-up on accounting. The auditor tries to determine whether the firm’s records and statements give a fair picture of its financial condition and show adherence to accepted accounting principles. He compares entries in the firm’s books with the original records, bills, shipping records, vouchers or receipts, canceled checks and other supporting documents—to make certain that all financial transactions have been correctly recorded and classified. Many business units are so large that the auditor must use a testing and sampling procedure varying in extent according to his judgment of the ade quacy of the system regularly used to control and check the firm’s financial records. He may write to some of the firm’s customers and creditors to verify the records showing money due the company or money owed by it. He may watch the employ ees count, measure, or weigh portions of the goods on hand. Many a young accountant has climbed into remote comers of a warehouse or factory to make sure the company really had the property which its stock and inventory records reported to be in its possession. The audit often brings to light errors in copying or improper classification of accounts; sometimes it reveals fraud. Audits made by public accounting firms are called independent audits because they are the work of accountants who are not on the regular staff of the company under consideration and who may be, therefore, in a better position to make an unbiased examination of the company’s operations. The Securities and Exchange Commission and the New York Stock Exchange require corporations under their jurisdiction to submit financial state ments certified by independent public accountants. Banks and other lending institutions and creditors frequently rely on independent audits in deciding whether or not to make a loan or sell goods on credit to a particular firm. Many large corporations employ their own staff of internal auditors to keep a constant check on the reliability of their regular accounting opera tions from the viewpoint of honesty and accuracy, adherence to company policies and procedures, safeguarding of company property, and general efficiency of company operations. The public accountants and the internal auditors usually dovetail their work to avoid unnecessary dupli cation and yet fulfill their professional obligations. General Accounting The everyday work of keeping records (including the general “ledgers” showing the current status of every item of account) and of preparing reports, constitutes general accounting. Most of the work in general accounting departments is either clerical or supervisory. However, large companies em ploy professional accountants to direct the ac counting department, plan general accounting policies and procedures, and prepare special studies and reports. 4 E M P L O Y M E N T O U T L O O K IN A C C O U N T IN G Cost Accounting Systems and Procedures Cost accountants plan, set up, and direct the operation of accounting systems which make it possible to compute the cost of producing or sell ing an item or service, accounting for the labor, materials, and overhead expenses for each unit of goods produced, and to determine the cost of operating each organizational unit of the business. These findings make it possible to forecast the effect on costs of changes in design, materials, man ufacturing methods,wages, or other factors affect ing the cost of production. Such information aids management in measuring the efficiency of opera tions in each department or section of the business and in taking corrective steps in time to prevent loss. The cost accountant helps management to identify the causes of its profit or loss. Although auditors, general accountants, and cost accountants frequently set up their own systems and procedures, very large companies usually em ploy specialists to perform such work. These specialized accountants plan accounting systems and office procedures which will provide the com pany with needed accounting reports at the lowest possible cost. Their work includes the setting up of standardized procedures and machine methods in the maintenance of accounting records and the preparation of accounting manuals to guide the company’s accounting staff. Tax Accounting The establishment of systems of keeping tax records, the preparation or review of tax returns for Federal, State, and local taxes for business establishments, and the preparation of individual income tax returns are included in tax accounting work. Accountants give advice on the tax con sequences of proposed business transactions and represent their clients or employers in conferences and discussions with tax officials. They must be well-informed, not only on tax laws which change frequently but also on new administrative regula tions and court decisions interpreting the tax laws. In many tax cases legal as well as accounting ad vice is required. The Treasury Department per mits certified public accountants and lawyers to represent their clients before the Department with out the examination required of other applicants for this privilege. Control Accounting The controller of a company is its chief account ing officer. He directs the total accounting pro gram—establishes and coordinates cost standards, expensebudgets, sales forecasts, and profit plans. He compares the performance records of the vari ous departments with the budget estimates. He safeguards company property by establishing systems of internal check and control and internal audit. The controller provides other company officers with the facts, estimates, and analyses needed in planning current and future operations. Teaching Instruction in accounting theory and practice is given in colleges, universities, and private schools of business. Teachers must be capable of training students in any of the types of accounting work described, although they may specialize in one particular type. Accounting teachers often com bine teaching with writing or with an independent accounting practice. Fields of Employment The three major fields of employment for ac countants are public, private, and government accounting. Public accountants offer their serv ices to the general public on a fee basis, in much the same way as do lawyers, doctors, and den tists. A public accountant may be in business for himself, or he may be a partner in an account ing firm. In addition, the larger firms have pro fessional accountants on their staffs, who work for a salary but are also considered public account ants. Traditionally, public accountants offer their services to the public as experts in all types of accounting. However, the two largest areas of public accounting work consist of auditing and tax services. Public accountants serve a wide variety of clients—business enterprises, govern ment agencies, and nonprofit institutions. Private accountants handle the financial records F IE L D S OF E M P L O Y M E N T of a single business enterprise or nonprofit organ ization and work on a salary basis. Tbey are frequently referred to as executive or administra tive accountants. When they work for manufac turing or other concerns, they are often called industrial accountants. In addition, accountants are employed by all branches of Federal, State, and local governments, including governmentowned corporations. Accountants in private and government work customarily specialize in the performance of a single type of accounting serv ice; they may do any of the types of accounting service described previously. They also tend to become specialists in a fairly narrow field of em ployment such as a particular branch of manu facturing, public utilities, or transportation. Public Accounting Numbers in field.—In 1947, about 30,000 account ants and public bookkeepers were probably in business either as “sole proprietors” or as partners in public accounting firms. It is assumed that some of these accountants, including partners and sole proprietors, were practicing on a part-time basis, although sole proprietors earning less than $1,000 a year were excluded from this estimate. Of the total, about 19,000 were sole proprietors; the remaining 11,000 were partners.1 Together they employed about 40,000 professional staff members on a salary basis in 1947. There were about 70,000 employers and professional employees in public accounting in 1947. The number has since increased markedly. The total number of CPA’s in the United States rose by more than a third between 1947 and 1951. There is reason to believe that the number of other individuals en gaged professionally in public accounting increased at least as fast and that the total number probably exceeded 90,000 in 1951. Number and size of public accounting firm s.— Public accounting firms range in size from the great national and international firms, with many partners and hundreds of staff accountants in their several branches, to the small one-man accounting businesses conducted from home on a part-time basis. Of a total of 4,400 partnership firms in the United States, the 370 largest (8 per i Data on partnerships from Press Belease No. S-2645, U. S. Treasury Department, April 4,1951, labeled Summary data; proprietorship figures es timated on the basis of unpublished Treasury Department data. 982372°—52---- 2 5 cent) handled nearly 30 percent of all public ac counting business reported. It is estimated that these largest firms employed more than a third of the staff accountants in the public accounting field, the number per firm varying from about 15 to approximately 1,000. Some 1,474 small firms, on the other hand, (excluding 900 firms with gross receipts under $5,000 which may have included many public bookkeepers and part-time accountants) did only 4 percent of the total gross business in public accounting. They employed little assistance other than secretarial services and part-time or temporary professional help. Geographic distribution.—Half the CPA’s in the United States, and more than half of all public accountants, are located in four States. (See chart.) New York leads by a wide margin, with 28 percent of the total number; Illinois, California, and Pennsylvania together have another 22 percent. Other States with a large number of public ac countants are Texas, New Jersey, Ohio, Michigan, Massachusetts, Missouri, Wisconsin, and Mary land, ranking in the order named. Public accounting firms are most numerous in the large industrial cities, where the most business is found, but they are also located in every medium-size city in the United States and in every small industrial community. Large public ac counting firms frequently have branch offices scattered through a number of States. It has been estimated that a city with a population of 15,000 “together with the business and industry found within a 25- or 30-mile radius is large enough to furnish a modest business for a public ac countant.” i2 Line of advancement.—Employees of public ac counting firms usually begin as junior accountants. College seniors hired by some large firms for a short period of internship training may be called interns but their work is the same as that of the beginning junior accountant. Junior accountants make routine checks of figures, verify additions, and perform other detail work considered essential in auditing. They usually work under close supervision for 2 or 3 years before advancing to the next job level, that of “semi-senior” accountant JTJ. S. Department of Commerce, Public Accounting in Smaller Com munities, Small Business Aids No. 102. Washington, D. C., 1949. E M P L O Y M E N T O U T L O O K IN A C C O U N TIN G 6 One-Half of All CPA's Are In Four States UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF LABOR BUREAU OF LABOR STATISTICS in a medium-size or large firm. In small firms the distinction between the semi-senior and the next or senior level tends to be somewhat blurred. The semi-senior usually works under only gen eral supervision. He performs the more respon sible and difficult detail work. He may even be assigned to make full audits of small firms with simple accounting systems. He consults fre quently with his supervisor but is expected to exercise some initiative and sound judgment in handling his assignments. Usually 2 or 3 years must be spent as a semi-senior before one is considered for a senior position. By the time an accountant has become a semi-senior, he is quali fied to fill a minor executive position in the accounting department of a private or government organization. Many enter such work instead of remaining in the public accounting field. The senior accountant usually takes charge of an entire audit or other assignment. He may have $Oi/rC9: AMERICAN INSTITUTE OF ACCOUNTANTS several juniors and semi-seniors to assist him if the assignment is a large one. He supervises their work, performs the more important audit work, discusses problems with the clients, and prepares the audit report. The senior must be able to write clear and well-expressed reports and to get along smoothly with the clients and the staff. In a small firm, the only higher position is that of partner in the firm. In a very large company, the senior accountant may advance to the position of supervisor. Supervisors, managers, and partners usually have a minimum of 10 years of responsible experi ence in accounting work. They direct the work of senior accountants, are responsible for planning work on large or especially difficult engagements, and make final decisions in accounting procedures. They consult with clients with respect to their general financial and business problems and on tax questions. Partners or supervisors may have F IE L D S OF E M P L O Y M E N T charge of a branch office or work at the home office of the company. Supervisors or managers are first in line for a partnership when the oppor tunity arises. Senior partners in large firms are responsible for the general direction of the accounting staff. They make decisions in matters of policy and finally approve all reports issued by the firm. • A partner in a small firm or an accountant with his own small practice may not have any employees and may himself perform all the func tions usually divided among the staff in larger firms. In that case, his work includes both the clerical duties of a junior and the executive respon sibilities of a partner. The accountant who is starting a practice and trying to build up a cli entele may accept accounts requiring only routine bookkeeping work. As he becomes better estab lished, he will tend to accept only those clients who need and can pay for more specialized pro fessional accounting service. Private Accounting Numbers in field .—Private accounting is the larg est field of work for professional accountants, probably employing at least half again as many as public accounting. The number of private accountants is extremely difficult to estimate because private business firms usually do not differentiate clearly between professional and nonprofessional personnel. Private firms differ widely in their use of job titles to designate accounting and related personnel. Private ac countants with the same job title, working for different firms, may have duties so diverse that one is properly classified as a professional worker, whereas the other is clearly a bookkeeper. In most companies, there are accountants whose duties include both professional accounting work and clerical or bookkeeping functions. Never theless, the available evidence suggests that there were approximately 150,000 professional account ants in the private accounting field in 1951. This figure includes accountants in supervisory and administrative accounting positions in addition to those engaged in purely technical accounting functions. Where employed.—Large-scale business enterprises are the principal employers of professional per sonnel in the private accounting field. The larger 7 and more complex the organization, the greater the need for highly trained accountants. A majority of professional accountants in private industry are in manufacturing. Large numbers are employed in the metalworking indus tries, transportation and communication, public utilities, wholesale and retail trade, finance, and mining. The Controllers Institute of America— with a membership including the controllers of most of the largest business enterprises—reports that more than 60 percent of its members are in manufacturing, 10 percent are in public utilities, and 7 percent are in wholesale and retail trade.3 These membership figures suggest roughly the distribution of professional accounting personnel in industry. Private accountants are employed in every community having large business establishments. Accountants are needed in the branch plants of large companies as well as at the home office, and in many smaller firms. This results in wide spread employment opportunities. The larg est numbers of private accountants are in the States with the greatest number of large manufac turing plants—New York, Pennsylvania, Ohio, Illinois, and Michigan. Line of advancement.—Inexperienced men in pri vate as in public accounting start out by per forming the routine work considered essential in gaining experience for professional and super visory accounting positions. Large companies usually refer to beginners in their general account ing departments as junior accountants. Small companies often consider them junior or assistant bookkeepers. However, a wide variety of job titles may be used depending on the particular accounting assignment and on company policy in establishing job classifications. A small number of outstanding accounting majors graduated by collegiate schools of business are selected each year for accounting trainee positions by very large corporations. These trainees receive special on-the-job training extending from a few months to 3 years or longer. Some companies rotate trainees among the various divisions of the company so rapidly that they spend not more than 2 weeks in any one place. When their training is complete, they are placed* * Controllers Institute of America, Answering Your Questions. New York, August 1950. 8 E M P L O Y M E N T O U T L O O K IN A C C O U N TIN G in junior executive positions or in technical ac counting staff positions. Because higher account ing executives and the senior technical staff are usually chosen from this group, the opportunities for advancement are excellent. For accountants who start in the more custom ary manner as junior accountants or as account ing clerks, promotions are likely to come more slowly. The rate of promotion will depend in part on their ability but still more on the number of openings available at higher levels. The junior accountant who starts in a gen eral accounting department may rise to a po sition as junior executive or section supervisor, or he may become a general accountant with responsibility for the more complex and difficult accounting operations. Eventually, he may reach the position of chief plant accountant, or he may be transferred to the central accounting division. Firms usually select junior auditors for their internal audit staff from among promising trainees on the general accounting staff. Members of the internal audit staff obtain exceptionally broad ex perience, because their work takes them into all departments of the business. From junior auditor the line of promotion is to assistant or senior audi tor and then manager of the auditing division, re sponsible to management for the efficient operation of the company's internal audit program. The junior accountant who begins as a cost clerk may advance to positions where he works closely with plant management in analyzing day to day operational costs. He may then be promoted to cost analyst or cost supervisor, and eventually cost accountant, in charge of the cost work of an entire plant or group of plants. Controllers are senior company executives cho sen for their ability to solve financial management problems of every type. Some controllers are se lected from among certified accountants in public practice; others advance from lower accounting positions within the company. Government Accounting Accountants working for government agencies may be broadly divided into two major groups: (1) Those who, as representatives of government, work on the books and records of private business organizations or individuals; and (2) those who work on the accounting records of government agencies. Among government accountants, there are many types of specialists who work on the books and records of private business organizations. A large proportion are engaged in tax investiga tions—Federal, State, and local; their work in cludes the analysis of tax reports and accounting records of taxpayers. Many accountants make audits or analyses of financial statements of com panies subject to special government regula tions—including banks, insurance companies, pub lic utility and transportation companies, and cor porations which sell stocks to the general public. Other accountants audit the books of firms selling products to government agencies and analyze production costs in connection with contracts let on a cost-plus basis. The regulation of prices on a national scale particularly during a war or de fense period, or on a local or State-wide scale in connection with the regulation of prices of com modities such as milk, requires the services of highly trained cost accountants who are specialists in the particular industry under consideration. All of these accountants share a common back ground of professional training and experience in business accounting procedures and principles. Some government accountants work for govern ment-owned corporations and enterprises of a busi ness character, such as municipally owned and operated water, gas, electric light and power plants, street railways, and federally operated lending agencies and utilities. Such accountants employ the same techniques as those employed by private concerns in similar work. However, most internal government accounting is fiscal in nature, keeping records on the funds received and spent by government agencies and making sure that funds were used as authorized by their budget and by general government accounting regulations. Most employees doing this work need only a knowledge of the laws and regulations affecting government spending. Only at higher super visory levels is professional accounting training and experience of special value. Accountants who plan and establish record keeping systems and who audit government accounts are usually of professional caliber. In the Federal Government an increasingly sharp distinction is being drawn between fiscal T R A IN IN G A N D Q U A L IF IC A T IO N S F O R E N T R A N C E work, which is primarily clerical or administrative, and professional accounting, which relates to the prescription of accounting requirements, the audit and analysis of financial records, and the prepara tion of financial reports in connection with busi ness audits. The Federal Government had fewer than 20,000 employees in professional accounting positions in the spring of 1951. The Bureau of Internal Revenue of the Treasury Department employed the largest number of professional ac countants in Government. The Defense Depart 9 ment was the next largest employer of such person nel. Other agencies making extensive use of professional accountants were: the General Ac counting Office, the Departments of Agriculture and the Interior, the Civil Aeronautics Adminis tration in the Department of Commerce, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, and the Housing and Home Finance Agency. The Fed eral Power Commission, Interstate Commerce Commission, and Securities and Exchange Com mission also employed highly trained accountants. Training and Qualifications for Entrance Types of Training The student wishing a career in accounting can choose from a wide variety of schools in obtaining the necessary educational background. Fouryear colleges and universities train the great major ity of students who plan a professional career in accounting. Several hundred of these institutions of higher learning offer a comprehensive program in business and accounting, leading to a bachelor’s or higher degree in business administration and commerce, with a major in accounting. Many other schools offer professional accounting train ing, even though they have not established a formal major in the field. In addition, there are many business schools offering a 2-year day course or 3-year evening course in accounting and business administration, which forms the minimum training needed for entry into professional accounting work. A few junior colleges also offer 2-year courses in accounting. A number of correspond ence schools have long-established courses in all types of accounting. Schools and colleges differ greatly in the quality of training offered, and the prospective student should weigh carefully all in formation concerning the particular schools which he is considering. A basic course in accounting should include accounting theory and practice, auditing, cost accounting, tax accounting, business law, and business English, including oral and written com munication. The student will obtain much the same training in accounting in the better private business schools as in the colleges. The principal difference is that the business school student does not have the time or opportunity to obtain the broad training in related business subjects, social sciences, English and liberal arts which he may include in a 4-year college course. Nevertheless, the college graduate usually has a considerable advantage over the business school graduate in seeking a job and in competing for promotion later in his career. There has been a great increase in the number of college-trained accounting grad uates since the end of World War II, and employ ers in all accounting fields are placing increasing emphasis on a college degree as a prerequisite for employment. Many large public accounting firms and private business corporations refuse to consider noncollege graduates either for professional positions or for executive and administrative trainee positions in their accounting departments. Representatives of such firms visit leading university schools of business each year to recruit “the cream of the crop” of prospective accounting major graduates. A number of large public accounting firms, and a few large corporations, have established “intern ship” programs in cooperation with certain colleges in order to provide accounting majors in the senior class with some practical experience prior to the completion of their college training. In 1951, the Controllers Institute of America was sponsoring a “college-industry cooperative training (C. I. C. T.) program” which will undoubtedly increase the number of internship opportunities available to college students. Students making a favorable impression during the period of internship are frequently offered permanent positions upon graduation. College training in accountancy is of particular advantage to the student wishing to become a 10 E M P L O Y M E N T O U T L O O K IN A C C O U N TIN G CPA. A substantial majority of the candidates who have succeeded in passing the CPA exami nations since the end of World War II are college graduates,4 although a college degree is not a legal requirement for admission to the examination in most States. candidate to have 2 years of college training or its equivalent, or to pass a written preliminary ex amination. In all other States either high-school graduation was required or there was no educa tional requirement whatever.6 It is interesting to note that the two States requiring college gradua tion had about a third of all the CPA’s in the Vocational Tests country. It is true, also, that many of the States required only high school education or less The American Institute of Accountants has which gave very credit for post-high-school worked out a series of aptitude tests for students education insubstantial lieu of experience. applying for admission to accounting training. Most States required candidates for the CPA These tests help the school and the student to license to have at least 2 years’ experience in public estimate how likely he is to succeed in accounting. accounting or accounting work considered equiv The Institute has also worked out an achievement alent. However, the prerequisites ranged from no test to be given accounting majors near the end of experience requirement State to a minimum their training to show how well they have profited of 3 years’ experience ininone public accounting (in by their instruction. More than 200 colleges and addition to other educational or experience schools of business give these tests and report them ments), in other States. The variations inrequire State very helpful in guiding students. About 1,300 requirements are very great. Detailed informa public accounting firms and individual practitioners tion on requirements in any specific State may be have agreed to give weight to the results of these obtained from any local CPA association or from tests in considering job applicants.5 the State board of accountancy. Although the differences in training and educa The Certified Public Accountant Certificate tion required by various States for obtaining a The certified public accountant license or CPA license appear very great, there is a high certificate is a universally recognized mark of degree of uniformity in the professional attain attainment in accounting. It is particularly valu ments of those who receive it. This has been able in the public accounting field. In some achieved by means of a uniform examination, States it is no longer possible to enter public ac given in all States except Pennsylvania in 1951. counting as an independent practitioner without The examination is prepared by the American Institute of Accountants which has its own board this license. All candidates must pass a difficult series of of examiners. Many of the States also have the examinations. In addition, they must meet cer Institute’s staff grade the examination papers. The standard CPA examination as well as the tain requirements with respect to education, ex perience, or both. Prerequisites for admission to one given in Pennsylvania in 1951 consisted of the CPA examination and for the issuance of the four parts: auditing, commercial law, theory of certificate vary widely among the States. In 1951 accounts, and accounting practices (“practical only two States, New York and New Jersey, re accounting”). Twelve States required candidates quired candidates to be college graduates with a to pass an additional examination, usually in busi major in accounting obtained at a school or col ness economics, taxation or government account lege approved by the respective State boards of ing, although the subjects varied in the different education. A third State, Oregon, will also have States.7 such a requirement beginning January 1, 1955, and The CPA examination is generally considered Florida will be added to this group in 1956. extremely difficult. Only 11 percent of the candi Illinois required candidates to have 20 semester- dates taking the standard examination for the first hours in accounting plus 10 semester-hours in time in May 1949 succeeded in passing all four related subjects. California required the CPA parts of it, according to a sample analysis. Fewer 6Requirements for the C. P. A. and Other Examinations and the Practice of * American Institute of Accountants, Advanced Education in Accounting, Public Accounting. La Salle Extension University, Chicago, 111. (undated). Journal of Accountancy, January 1951 (p. 67). 5 Ankers, Raymond G., Institute’s Vocational Tests Assist in Hiring and 7Buss, L. H., CPA Examination Requirements, American Accounting Association, Urbana, 111., 1951 (pp. 21-24). Promoting Staff Workers, Journal of Accountancy, January 1951 (pp. 86-91). E M PL O Y M E N T T R E N D S A N D O U T L O O K than 20 percent of all candidates, first-time and repeaters, succeeded in passing all parts of the examination. It is customary for candidates pass ing one or more sections of the examination to retain credit for the score for a number of years. Many candidates do not seriously attempt to pass all subjects at one time, but make several tries before achieving final success. The American In stitute of Accountants states that the high percent age of failure is due mainly to insufficient account ing experience and too little education.8 The Institute also points out that 60 percent of the candidates eventually pass all portions of the examination. Entrance Requirements for Major Accounting Fields In 1951 any individual could set himself up as a public accountant in most States although he was not permitted to use the title CPA unless he had been certified by the States in which he was prac ticing. However, 20 States restricted independent public practice to licensed CPA’s and registered public accountants. In one of these States, New Mexico, it was still possible to become a registered public accountant in 1951 by passing an examina tion similar in scope to the CPA examination. In the others, noncertified accountants might register without examination during a specified time limit. In most of these States, the time limit has long expired and in the future all accountants entering practice as independent public accountants will have to become CPA’s. No State requires staff members employed by public accounting firms to be CPA’s, provided they are properly supervised by one. Applicants for junior accounting positions with public accounting firms in New York and New Jersey are usually required to be college graduates with an accounting major, so that they will be able to 8 New Study Reveals Reasons for Failure to Pass Uniform CPA Examina tion, The Journal of Accountancy, June 1950 (pp. 540-542). 11 meet the State standards for admission to the CPA examination. In other States, college graduates are preferred, but applicants with diplomas from reputable private business schools receive consid eration. The extent of accounting education required by private employers varies greatly, depending on the type of work. However, the student hoping to advance beyond routine jobs to executive or ad ministrative accounting positions will find a college education a great asset. The student planning a career in private accounting will find it useful to take more courses in general business management and fewer specialized courses in accounting, than are customary for students planning to become CPA’s. Well-qualified business majors with a fair number of accounting courses will generally be considered for beginning positions with private employers. The United States Civil Service Commission requires a minimum of 3 years of general account ing experience for trainee positions. Additional specialized experience is required for positions at higher levels. However, applicants are per mitted to substitute the study of accounting in resident (not correspondence) schools above the high school level for all or part of the general experience. A college degree with a major in accounting is usually sufficient for entrance to trainee positions in professional accounting work in the Federal Government. For most types of work a minimum of 24 semester hours in account ing is required if no experience is offered; for the position of Internal Revenue Agent, 18 semester hours in accounting is required. A 2-year course in accounting is usually suffi cient for entrance positions in accountancy in State and local government agencies. Specific information about prerequisites for these positions may be obtained from State or local Civil Service Commissions. Employment Trends and Outlook Past Trends in Employment The accounting field has had a remarkably rapid growth both in number and in type of em ployment opportunities. In 1900 there were fewer than 250 CPA’s in the United States. By 1951 this number had grown to approximately 42,000. The number of persons other than CPA’s practicing professional accounting was likewise very small in 1900 and has grown even more rap E M P L O Y M E N T O U T L O O K IN A C C O U N TIN G 12 idly. Probably close to 300,000 persons were working as professional accountants in the United States in 1951. During the early part of the twentieth century, the accounting profession grew slowly. At that time most professional accountants were public accountants engaged in independent practice or employed in public accounting firms. Their principal function was to audit and prepare re ports on the financial condition of large corpora tions for the benefit of investors and creditors. The number and size of large public accounting firms able to serve such clients increased gradually, but there was little growth among smaller firms. A new era in public accounting began in 1913 following the passage of income tax legislation affecting all business firms. For the first time, it became a legal requirement for all businesses, large and small, to maintain adequate accounting records and to prepare annual statements of profit and loss. A vast new field was opened for public accountants, particularly for the individual prac titioner or small accounting firm which could often handle the problems of small businesses more economically and more conveniently than was possible for the large firm. The increase in employment opportunities in the profession was even more rapid after the imposition of wartime taxes in 1917 and was accompanied by a swift expansion in the number of CPA’s. The number quadrupled between 1920 and 1940, and more than doubled again between 1940 and 1951, reaching a total of 42,000. (See table 1.) —Estimated number of certified public accountants in the United States, 1900-1951 T able 1. Year 1900 ______________ 1910 _____ ________. 1920 ______________ 1930________________ Number of CPA’s Year 250 1940________________ 1,700 1946________________ 5,000 1951............................... 13,600 Number of CPA’s 20,000 26,000 42,000 S : Data for 1946 obtained from Requirements for the CPA Certifi cate, U. S. Office of Education, Misc. 3166, Washington, D. C., 1946. All other data supplied by the American Institute of Accountants. o urce No definite information is available on the growth of public accounting before 1939. How ever, a majority of the CPA’s are public account ants and the increase in their number gives some indication of the growth in this field. Reports of the Bureau of Internal Revenue show that the number of independent practitioners in public accounting and public bookkeeping practice tripled between 1939 and 1947; the number of partners rose from 3,750 to 11,184.9 The approximate number of sole proprietors of accounting practices earning $1,000 or more a year increased from 6,000 to 19,000 during the 8-year period.10 These statistics do not, of course, include the staff members employed by these firms. There has been a further substantial increase in the number of independent practitioners and partners since 1947. Private accounting has greatly exceeded public accounting in growth during the past half century, with approximately 150,000 accountants in the private field in 1951. Private accounting received its first great stimulus during World War I, partly because of the need for better methods of control and cost accounting in connection with war production and partly because of the impact of the new methods of scientific management. Some evidence of the growth in the number of private accountants is afforded by the increase in the membership of their professional associations. The membership of the National Association of Cost Accountants, founded in 1919 with 37 mem bers, rose to nearly 14,000 at the beginning of World War II and to 27,500 in 1951. The Controllers Institute of America, founded in 1931, had 3,500 members in 1951, despite extremely rigid eligibility restrictions. The Institute of Internal Auditors, organized in 1941 with equally rigid membership requirements, had over 2,000 members 10 years later. Most of the members of these associations are engaged in private accounting. There has been a considerable increase in the employment of accountants in the Federal Gov ernment during the past 30 years. Before 1920, few accountants were employed in the Bureau of Internal Revenue and in regulatory agencies such as the Interstate Commerce Commission. No great change in employment took place during the twenties, except for a moderate addition to the staff of the Bureau of Internal Revenue early in • Partnership data for 1939 computed from U. S. Treasury Department, Bureau of Internal Revenue, Supplement to Statistics of Income for 1939, Part 1, Washington, D. C., 1949 (p. 82); partnership data for 1947 taken from U. S. Treasury Department, Bureau of Internal Revenue, Press Service Release No. S-2645, Washington, D. C., April 4,1951. io Estimated by the Bureau of Labor Statistics from U. S. Treasury Depart ment, Bureau of Internal Revenue, Statistics of Income for 1939, Part 1, and from unpublished Treasury Department data for 1947. E M P L O Y M E N T T R E N D S A N D O U TLO O K the decade. The number rose steadily in the 1930’s, however, and during World War II the increase was very rapid. Following the end of World War II, there was a marked cut-back in the size of the Federal Government accounting staff. The decline was not fully halted until the needs of the defense production program brought about a slight rise in the number of accountants hired in the latter part of 1950. Early in 1951 there were fewer than 20,000 employees in Federal profes sional accounting positions. 13 the tremendous number of veterans taking com merce training. In 1950 the degrees granted in commerce reached the all-time high of 72,000. About as many commerce degrees were awarded during the 5 years ending June 1951 as during the preceding 27 years. Accounting has always been one of the most important majors in the general field of commerce and business administration. It is assumed, therefore, that the number of graduates majoring in accounting rose sharply along with the total number of graduates in this general field. How ever, figures are not available on the proportion Trends in Supply of graduates who majored in accounting before The great increase in employment of profes World War II. The earliest source of information sional accountants, especially during the past on this subject is a survey by the War Manpower three decades, has been accompanied by a large Commission which showed that 21 percent of all increase in the supply of personnel trained for this commerce graduates during the period December profession. There has been also a steady rise both 1, 1942, to September 30, 1943, were accounting in educational requirements for employment and majors. A survey of colleges which train students in the level of training offered by educational in accounting, conducted by the Bureau of Labor Statistics in cooperation with the United States institutions. Colleges and universities now training the great Office of Education, showed the following propor majority of accounting students have taken the tions of accounting majors among recent graduates lead in this field of education only during the past with commerce degrees: 25 percent in 1948-49, 22 two or three decades. Private business schools percent in 1949-50, and 21 percent in 1950-51.12 dominated the field of accounting education Enrollment figures reported in the survey suggest throughout the nineteenth century and during the that the proportion will be still lower, probably first quarter of the twentieth century. Training about 20 percent in 1951-52. The number of college graduates with a major for accountancy and business administration at the college level was initiated in the United States in accounting reached a peak of approximately in 1881 by the Wharton School of Commerce and 16,000 in the year ended June 30, 1950, according Finance of the University of Pennsylvania. In to data from the same survey. It is estimated that 1900 only 7 colleges and universities provided about 12,000 accounting majors were graduated in organized curricula in this field, and only 34 more 1951—25 percent fewer than in the previous year. were added by 1915. An additional 94 entered The post-World War II increase in college-trained the field during the following 6 years, bringing accountants was accompanied by a sharp rise in the total to 135 colleges and universities in 1921.11 students receiving accounting training in private Since then, the number of such institutions with schools of business where the peak appears to have accounting curricula has approximately doubled. been reached in 1949. Information from private The rise in the number of colleges offering train schools indicates that the number of accounting ing in business administration has been accom major graduates declined in 1950 and dropped panied by a sharp increase in business administra further in 1951. tion graduates and presumably also in graduates The number of college graduates majoring in majoring in accounting. The number of degrees commerce and accounting is expected to fall awarded in commerce and business rose from 1,560 sharply during the early fifties along with a gen in 1920 to a prewar high of 19,000 in 1940 and then eral decrease in college enrollments. However, dropped during World War II to 8,150 in 1944. even at the expected low point in the middle of the After the war, graduations rose sharply owing to decade, there will probably be far more graduates in these fields than in any prewar year, unless there 11Isaacs, Mervln, Professional Accountancy Training in Collegiate Schools of Business, Columbia University, New York, 1933. 982372°— 52--- 3 lJ See appendix A, p. 20. 14 E M P L O Y M E N T O U T L O O K IN A C C O U N TIN G is a substantial change in selective-service policy. A general reduction in the number of college grad uates, particularly men, will occur in the next few years. This decrease will be due in part to a reduction in the size of the population group of college age, resulting from the low birth rate of the 1930’s, and in part to the virtual completion of the veterans training program under the GI Bill of Bights. The number of men graduates will de cline more sharply than total graduations in the near future as the number of veterans leaving col lege is further reduced. This trend will be accen tuated by the draft of young men of college age for the Armed Forces. These factors will affect private schools of business as well as colleges and universities. Employment Outlook Employment of accountants was increasing in 1951 as a result of the mobilization program. The rapid expansion in defense production was making it necessary for both private business and public accounting firms to hire more accountants to meet the resulting demand for accounting services, par ticularly cost accounting. Federal price regula tions and other emergency control measures were raising many new and complex accounting ques tions and adding to the demand. The Federal Government was hiring more accountants to ana lyze and audit the financial statements and reports submitted by industry in connection with the defense program. During the first half of 1951, the heavy increase in demand was met largely by better utilization of accounting personnel and by drawing on the reservoir of recent college graduates trained in accounting, which had been built up as a result of the exceptionally large graduating classes of the past few years. Although there were shortages of accountants capable of filling very high-level positions and positions requiring experience in narrowly specialized fields, there was no evidence of a serious general shortage of accounting person nel. Many large firms were still selecting candi dates for entrance positions from the top 25 percent of the graduating classes or even the top 10 percent. College placement officers reported that the proportion of new accounting graduates accepting bookkeeping positions or entering fields of work not directly related to accounting was approximately the same (one-fourth) in mid-1951 as in June 1949 and June 1950. It is anticipated that the demand for accountants will follow general business conditions, which may mean that it will remain high during the entire period of defense mobilization and for at least a year or two thereafter. This strong demand, coupled with the decline in the number of account ing graduates which began in 1950-51 and which will persist until the middle of the decade, will undoubtedly result in continued improvement in employment opportunities for accountants during the early fifties. Employment prospects for new college graduates in this field will probably be very good during this period. A continued increase in the demand for public and private accountants may be expected over the long run. The need for highly trained accounting personnel is peculiarly a consequence of largescale business operations and the Government’s regulation and taxation of business. It is probable that the further growth of large corporations and the continuance of Federal, State, and local regula tion and taxation of business will create additional demands for professional accounting services. However, the tendency for small local businesses to expand their use of accounting assistance is also likely to increase the demand for accounting personnel. A short-run decline in the number of accountants employed in public and private accounting might result from a reduction in defense production and the elimination of emer gency controls in the event of a return to peacetime conditions. Any such decline would be slow because it would take several years to complete the accounting work required in the settlement of defense matters. It is also possible that such decrease in demand might be offset by an increase in the demand for accounting services for peacetime operations. Many businessmen expanded their use of accounting services during World War II, obtained a better understanding of the contribution accountants make to business efficiency, and in creased their use of accounting services after the war’s end. It is likely that the present defense program will have a similar effect. In government agencies there will probably be a moderate long-run expansion in the employ ment of accountants to provide services needed in normal times. The tendency to make increas ing use of professional accounting personnel has 15 and 6 hundred—were women, and that not more than 10 percent of these had their own independent practice. The number employed as staff account ants by public accounting firms was also very small. In private industry there are somewhat more women in professional positions; some have achieved promotion to technical or junior execu tive accounting work, although the great majority remain at the clerical or semiprofessional level. In the government field, the situation is much the same, with large numbers of women in clerical and semiprofessional jobs and only a few in professional positions. An opinion often expressed by employers in the public accounting field is that women are unable to meet the strain of the work and are unsuited to assignments calling for travel or for work in fac tories. Some employers hesitate to hire women for professional jobs because the men who head their clients’ accounting departments may be unwilling to rely on the judgment of women accountants and greatly prefer to work with men. However, a few leading firms which have employed women report very satisfactory results. Opportunities for women in professional posi tions were better in mid-1951 than at any time since World War II. This was largely because of the strong demand for accountants created by the defense program and the small number of women prepared for professional work. In 1949-50 there were only about 500 women out of a total of approx imately 16,000 college graduates with a major in accounting. Women who plan to enter the pro fession need the best possible training to meet the severe competition in all fields of accounting. E A R N IN G S A N D W O R K IN G C O N D IT IO N S been accentuated in the Federal Government by the passage of the “Budgeting and Accounting Procedures Act of 1950,” which requires extensive changes in Government accounting procedures. In the Federal Government there are likely to be wide fluctuations in the employment of account ants to provide services for the defense program. A return to peacetime conditions would probably sharply reduce the employment of accountants in work relating to defense production and tem porary economic controls. In accounting, as in other fields of work, many employment openings result from vacancies aris ing from death, retirement, or the transfer of accountants to other occupations. In the past the profession has grown so rapidly that most openings have been provided by the increase in new job opportunities. As the profession grows, the need for replacement will be an increasingly important factor. It has been stated by leaders in the accounting field that the average age level of professional accountants was noticeably lowered following World War II and that it is currently much lower than a decade ago. However, in the absence of specific data on the age composition of members of the profession, no estimate can be made as to the probable number of new openings in accounting which will occur as a result of re placement needs. Opportunities for Women Very few women were employed in professional accounting positions in 1951. It is estimated that fewer than 2 percent of the CPA’s—between 5 Earnings and Working Conditions Earnings Beginning salaries of new college graduates with a major in accounting tend to be higher in private than in public accounting. In both fields the average starting salary received, by graduates in the mid-year 1951 class was markedly higher than the averages for June 1949 and June 1950 gradu ates. These conclusions are based on the survey of accounting majors conducted in 1951 by the Bureau in cooperation with the United States Office of Education.13 College placement officers 13 See appendix A, p. 20. were asked to report the starting salaries most often received by the recent accounting graduates for whom they had information. The salary data obtained covered approximately 50 percent of the accounting majors graduating from the reporting institutions and probably reflect, to a considerable extent, the salaries received by the better qualified students. The average starting salary of new graduates entering public accounting (excluding graduates of New York City schools) rose from about $210 a month in the summer of 1949 to $220 the following year and $240 in the spring of 1951, according 16 T a b l e E M P L O Y M E N T O U TLO O K IN A C C O U N TIN G —Prevailing weekly salaries in 'public and private accounting in New York City, Ju ly 1951 2. Title of position and length of experience Senior accountant: 8 or more years’ experience—.......... 5 to 8 years’ experience---------------Semi-senior accountant: 3 to 5 years’ experience___________ 2 to 3 years’ experience—................... Junior accountant: 1 to 2 years’ experience—................... Beginners..................................... . Public accounting firms with— Small audits and write-ups Private business firms Large audits $110 85 $135 110 $135 110 70 60 80 70 80 70 45 35 55 45 60 50 S : Robert Half Personnel Agencies, Prevailing Office Salaries and Current Availability, July 1951,140 West 42(1 Street, New York, N. Y. ource to this survey. The average for graduates enter ing private accounting was approximately $230 in 1949 and about the same in 1950; however, by early 1951 it had risen to about $260 a month. Salary levels varied widely among schools, depend ing on the size of the institution and various special factors affecting the demand for graduates of particular schools. The lowest figure cited by any college as the most usual starting salary for mid1951 graduates entering public accounting was $108 a month; the highest was $275. For gradu ates entering private accounting, the salary figures cited ranged from $195 to $298. Public accounting firms customarily pay lower starting salaries than do private business firms to new graduates with equivalent qualifications, because initial experience in public accounting is widely held to be a form of apprenticeship training. Competition is usually keen for positions in this field because such experience is so often a prereq uisite for the CPA license and for advanced positions in other accounting fields. Salaries tend to be considerably higher in public accounting firms that specialize in making audits for large companies than in accounting firms that either audit small companies or perform public bookkeeping (often referred to as “write-ups”). The latter firms usually pay lower salaries for ac countants at all levels of responsibility than those customarily paid to men with comparable experi ence in private industry. As a rule, the large accounting firms start new graduates at lower sal aries than those paid by private business firms, but there is reason to believe that the salaries paid to semi-senior and senior accountants are just as high as those received by experienced accountants in private industry. The relative earnings of accountants employed in firms of each type and the approximate increase in salaries expected as they gain experience and achieve promotion to higher positions are sug gested by a survey of public and private account ing in New York City in July 1951. (See table 2.) The earnings of independent practitioners, partners, or sole proprietors depend to a large extent on the type of service rendered and the size of the company serviced. The average annual net income of partners in 1945 was well over $10,000 a year. The average dropped to $8,600 in 1947, but this drop was probably due to the tremendous increase in the number of new firms and new partners who had not yet had time to become fully established.14 The income of indi vidual practitioners is ordinarily much lower than that of partners. Nevertheless, some accountants in business for themselves, as well as a consider able number of partners, have net annual incomes of $25,000 to $50,000 or even more. The beginning salary for trainee positions in professional accounting with the Federal Govern ment was $3,410 a year in late 1951. The Bureau of Internal Revenue, which does not have a specific trainee grade, starts its agents at $4,205 a year. The majority of Government accountants earned between $3,825 and $5,350 a year in mid-1951. Only about 1 percent earned $10,000 or over a year, and accountants earning such salaries usually carried responsibilities as great or greater than those of senior partners in the large national public accounting firms. Working Conditions Working conditions in accountancy depend to a great extent on the field of employment. In general, public accounting jobs are more varied in character, involve more irregular hours of work, and are more taxing physically than either private or government accounting positions. Public accounting is a service performed largely at the times and places dictated by the client’s needs. This factor determines the amount of travel, the physical working conditions, and the 14 Partnership data were computed by the Bureau of Labor Statistics from U. S. Treasury Department, Bureau of Internal Revenue, Press Service Release, No. S-2253, Feb. 16,1950, and Press Service Release No. S-2645, Apr. 4,1951, Washington, D. O. E A R N IN G S A N D W O R K IN G C O N D IT IO N S hours of work of the accounting staff. It accounts, too, for the seasonality of such work and is partly responsible for the very high turn-over rate of public accounting personnel. Most public accounting work is done in the offices of the firm’s clients. Accountants who work for large firms with clients in many parts of the country may be expected to spend a consider able amount of time away from home. The amount of travel has been much reduced, however, as a result of the establishment of local branch offices by many such firms. Those working for smaller companies seldom have to be away over night as their firms’ clients are usually located within commuting distance. The physical con ditions under which accountants work vary with each client. Sometimes an accountant may work in a luxurious office with every modem conven ience, including plenty of working space, modem office equipment, and good fighting. At other times he may be compelled to work in some cramped comer of a factory, with all the noise and dirt of the manufacturing operations around him, often with poor fight, and with little or no office machinery to speed his routine tasks. Hours of work are extremely irregular in most public accounting firms. The busy season usually extends from late November to March. The staff accountant may work overtime frequently during this period and in some weeks may put in as many as 50 to 60 hours, working with great concentration and under tremendous pressure. During the sum mer season he may have very little accounting work and may spend most of his time clearing up detail work and studying new tax laws, court decisions, or other accounting developments in order to keep abreast of the constant changes which take place. There are two major reasons for the seasonal peak in accounting business which occurs in the winter months: (1) Most firms end their business year on December 31, and want a final report on the year’s operations at the earliest possible date thereafter. (2) Federal income tax returns must be filed not later than March 15, and it is not possible to prepare such reports until the year’s business has drawn to a close. Accounting firms have used much effort and ingenuity in trying to distribute the workload throughout the year, but with only moderate success. The pressure of work during the busy season 17 is so great that many firms hire additional per sonnel on a temporary basis. In years when ac countants are readily available, some firms increase their professional staffs by as much as 25 to 50 percent during the busy season and then discharge the extra employees when the slack season begins. However, in years when the demand for account ants is so heavy that they can easily find steady jobs, firms tend to keep a larger staff of employees on a year-round basis and seasonal lay-offs are reduced or eliminated. This was the situation during World War II and for several years there after. In 1949 and 1950, as competent profes sional personnel became more readily available, there was a temporary return to the old pattern of increased hiring in the winter months and lay offs in the spring. But this tendency has been checked once more by the increased demand for accountants in 1951. Public accounting has an extraordinarily high rate of turn-over among its professional staff, re sulting in part from the irregularity of employ ment in this field. However, there are many other factors contributing to this turn-over rate. A re port published in April 195115 disclosed that only 58 percent of the 1,167 college trainees chosen by 247 public accounting firms over a period of 13 years were considered suitable for the work after a year or more of training. Yet these trainees were the “cream of the crop” and were chosen after careful interview and examination of their personal qualifications. It is a matter for serious concern both to the employer and to accountants entering the field that approximately 40 percent of the junior staff in these firms had to be replaced each year because they were found unsatisfactory. The rate of employee turn-over is also increased by the fact that many well-qualified trainees ac cept public accounting positions only to gain the experience required for the CPA license, or to get the more varied experience which 2 or 3 years in this field give, as compared with the same length of time in the usual beginning position in private accounting. After a few years, many young ac countants resign to enter private or governmental accounting work. The loss of excellent employees to private business firms, which are often able to offer higher salaries, is particularly heavy. 15 McMurry, Robert N., Study of Personality Traits May be the Key to Choosing the Valuable Accounting Junior, The Journal of Accountancy. April 1951 (pp. 604-609). E M P L O Y M E N T O U T L O O K IN A C C O U N T IN G 18 Most large accounting firms are constantly on the alert for outstanding new professional person nel. Many firms believe that an accountant un able to progress at a reasonably rapid pace is not worth keeping. There is steady pressure on staff members to go “up the ladder” or out of the firm. Therefore, those staff accountants who can meet the exacting requirements of public accounting may look forward to rapid promotion, based pri marily on merit, rather than length of service. Many will achieve independence either as partners in public accounting firms or as principals at the head of their own business. Working conditions in private business are usu ally the same for accountants as for all other office personnel. Most accounting departments have a standard 40-hour workweek. However, some firms require their accountants to work overtime at the end of each month in order to get their monthly statements and reports completed on time. It is customary to pay all junior accounting personnel at the rate of time and a half for over time. Few private accountants are required to do much traveling in connection with their work. Employees on the internal audit staffs of compa nies with branch offices, however, may have to travel constantly between branches. The private accounting field offers greater job security than does public accounting. Seasonal lay-offs, which are so common in the latter field, are rare in private accounting. On the other hand, promotion may be comparatively slow be cause of low turn-over in higher level positions. Accountants working for large private corpora tions are also more likely to have the protection of company-wide group insurance and pension plans which supplement the social-security benefits required by law. Federal Government accountants have the same working conditions, including pension, vacation, and sick leave benefits, as other Government workers in white-collar jobs. More than 80 per cent of the accounting positions in the Federal Government are outside Washington, D. C., and many positions require a considerable amount of travel. Although there are no seasonal fluctua tions in employment, job security in Government is greatly influenced by legislative changes in the annual appropriations. W here To G o for Further Information Information on the accounting profession, par ticularly on certified public accountants, may be obtained from: American Institute of Accountants 270 Madison Avenue New York 16, N. Y. The Committee on Selection of Personnel of the above organization will provide information on the aptitude and achievement tests now given in many schools and by many public accounting firms. Current information on the requirements for the CPA license in specific States may be obtained by writing to the Secretary of the State Board of Accountancy at the State capital. Information on specialized fields of accounting may be obtained from: National Association of Cost Accountants 385 Madison Avenue New York 17, N. Y. Controllers Institute of America One E. 42d Street New York 17, N. Y. The Institute of Internal Auditors 120 Wall Street New York 5, N. Y. Many articles of general interest and informa tion on job opportunities are published in periodi cals devoted to the accounting profession such as The Journal of Accountancy and The Accounting Review. Information on entrance requirements to schools offering training in accountancy may be obtained directly from the schools. A partial list of collegelevel institutions is contained in appendix B (p. 27). Information on private schools of business may be obtained from: American Association of Professional Schools of Ac countancy 1100 Sixteenth Street, NW. Washington, D. C. 19 Information on government jobs may be ob tained from the State or municipal civil-service authorities or from the United States Civil Serv ice Commission, Washington 25, D. C. Notices of civil-service jobs and examinations are posted in local post offices from time to time. W H E R E TO GO F O R F U R T H E R IN F O R M A T IO N National Association and Council of Business Schools 2601 Sixteenth Street, NW. Washington, D. C. Local offices of the State employment services affiliated with the United States Employment Service assist applicants in obtaining positions in accounting. APPENDIXES Appendix A .— Technical Note on Accounting Survey Scope and Method Most of the statistical data in this report per taining to number and placement experiences of college graduates majoring in accounting, pro spective supply of such graduates, and earnings of recent graduates are based on a survey of colleges and universities conducted by the Bureau in cooperation with the United States Office of Education. The questionnaire (see facsimile, p. 23) was mailed on May 8, 1951, to all of the 585 colleges and universities which conferred degrees in com merce in 1948-49, as listed in Office of Education report, Earned Degrees Conferred by Higher Educa tional Institutions , 1948-49. This list was be lieved to include all institutions offering an accounting major. Questionnaires were returned by 289 institutions, or 49 percent of the total mailing list. Of these, only 129 institutions offered an undergraduate major in accounting. The remainder offered only a graduate major in accounting (3 schools) or reported no accounting major (157 schools). A large number of schools not offering a specifi cally defined accounting major do train account ants. However, in the absence of any generally accepted standard of requirements for an ac counting major, the analysis of changes in the supply of accountants trained has been limited to students who completed or planned to complete a specific undergraduate accounting major sequence as defined by the colleges that answered the ques tionnaire. Graduate students were also eliminated from consideration because their number was too small to affect substantially the supply of ac counting personnel or to justify detailed analysis. The number of usable answers in the question naires received from the 129 schools with an under graduate accounting major varied with the 20 questions asked as indicated in the following tabulation: It e m N um ber of u s a b le r e p o r t s On commerce and accounting graduates______ 124 On commerce and accounting majors enrolled__ 74 On placement of accounting majors____________ 64 On earnings of recent accounting major graduates_______________________________ 46 Information is available through reports of the Office of Education on the numbers of commerce majors graduated in 1949 and 1950, but ndt on the proportion of that group who had majored in accounting. The data from the special survey made it possible to estimate the total number of accounting majors by applying the same propor tion of accounting majors to commerce majors, as reported in the survey, to the total number of commerce degrees conferred by institutions offer ing an accounting major. A master list of institu tions believed to offer an accounting major was constructed for this purpose. It included all institutions which returned questionnaires stating that an undergraduate accounting major was offered. It also included those institutions which failed to respond but were listed in one or both of two recently published directories purporting to contain fhe names of all institutions offering specialized accounting training. The directories used to construct the master list were as follows: Good, Carter V., A Guide to Colleges, Universities and Professional Schools in the United States, Amer ican Council on Education, Washington 6, D. C., 1945. Pendergast, Mary M., Directory of Colleges, Uni versities and Professional Schools Offering Training in Occupations Concerned with Business and Indus try, Institute of Women’s Professional Relations, Research Headquarters, Connecticut College, New London, Conn., 1947. A P P E N D IX E S The master list of institutions included 207 schools, which conferred 80 percent of all commerce degrees awarded in 1948-49.1 An additional 6 percent of all commerce degrees awarded in that year were conferred by institutions which returned questionnaires stating that they did not offer an accounting major. Because very few institutions (only one in four) not listed in either of the two directories reported that an accounting major was offered—and the number of accounting majors in these schools was usually very low—it is believed that the master list is sufficiently comprehensive to be used as a basis for estimating the total num bers of such graduates. The master list device was used to avoid an undue upward bias in the estimate which would probably have occurred, if the survey results had been applied instead to the entire group of schools offering commerce degrees. It is likely that institutions offering an accounting major responded in proportionately greater num bers than did other schools. 21 rate of drop-outs between the junior and senior class to the number of juniors enrolled in 1950-51. The drop-out rate was calculated on the basis of the change in the number of juniors in 1949-50 compared with the number of seniors in the fol lowing year. No data from other sources were available for use in testing the reliability of the enrollment data obtained. Seniors majoring in accounting, how ever, comprised 24.5 percent of all commerce ma jors in 1949-50 according to the survey returns. Accounting major graduates received 22.2 percent of all commerce degrees conferred in that year, according to the more extensive returns received on this question. The similarity of the results suggests that the enrollment data were roughly representative of the total group, despite the smaller number of returns obtained. Placement Experiences and Earnings of Graduates Majoring in Accounting Colleges were requested to report the placement experiences and monthly earnings for June 1949, The reliability of the returns on the number of June 1950, and mid-term 1951 accounting major graduates in the survey was tested by comparing graduates who found within 1 month after the increase in the number of commerce majors graduation. A reviewjobs of the questionnaire re between 1948-49 and 1949-50 as shown in the sponses makes it seem doubtful that time limit survey with the total increase in commerce majors was observed; probably the reportedthedata repre reported by the Office of Education. In both sent all placements of accounting majors for whom cases the increase was 17 percent, which indicates information was available. that the respondents are probably representative The data on placement experiences were too of the total. scanty to do more than indicate broad tendencies The numbers of accounting major graduates in in the placement accounting majors. Data as 1950-51 and in 1951-52 were estimated from the to the type of jobofplacement were reported by 64 enrollment data reported by 74 institutions. The institutions for both June 1949 and June 1950 percent of change in the enrollment of seniors in graduates. Forty-five of the 64 institutions also commerce and in accounting, respectively, between provided data on placements of mid-1951 grad 1949- 50 and 1950-51, as shown in the survey, These institutions had approximately 25 was applied to the total numbers of such gradu uates. percent of graduates majoring in accounting in ates in 1949-50 to obtain the estimated totals for June 1949 all and June 1950; no percentage is avail 1950- 51. A similar method was used to estimate able for mid-1951. placement data submitted the data for 1951-52, except that the number of covered 2,174 out The of 4,046 majors seniors in 1951-52 was estimated before proceed graduated in June 1949, or 54accounting percent; half ing. The estimated number of seniors in the lat total June 1950 accounting major graduates, the or ter year was computed by applying the expected 2,134 out of 4,225, were included. Placement 1The master list included 149 out of 158 institutions whose names had been information was available for only 41 percent of obtained from the two directories mentioned. Reports were received from 84 of these schools, showing that one had dropped its accounting training the mid-1951 graduates of the reporting institu program, 3 offered only a graduate major, and 5 offered professional training tions (663 out of 1,596 accounting majors). in accounting but no major during the period under survey. Number of Accounting Major Graduates 22 E M P L O Y M E N T O U T L O O K IN A C C O U N T IN G About 46 schools provided data showing earn ings of June 1949 and June 1950 graduates in the public accounting field and 26 showed earnings of mid-1951 graduates. Forty-two schools submit ted data on earnings of June 1949 and June 1950 graduates entering the private accounting field; 28 of these institutions provided data on earnings of mid-1951 graduates in this field. Data on earnings in other types of accounting were too scattered to be usable. Schools were asked to report the “ most usual monthly starting salary” of graduates placed in each field of employment in each period. The estimated average salary in each category was determined by obtaining the arithmetic mean of the salaries reported, with the number of students placed used as weights. It is believed likely that the earnings arrived at by this method are some what overweighted by earnings of the better stu dents who are the first to be placed, and also the ones about whom the college is most likely to have information (many probably having been placed directly by the college). However, the trend shown is believed to be representative of actual changes. Only 80 of the 384 private schools of business (about 20 percent) returned questionnaires, and the number submitting usable returns on the num ber of graduates was even smaller. Although the over-all trend of enrollments and graduates re ported by these institutions was believed to be representative of the broad trend, the data were considered insufficient for the purpose of arriving at any specific estimates of the numbers of students in such institutions or specific changes in the supply of accounting personnel trained by such schools. Twenty junior colleges, 40 percent of the total receiving questionnaires, sent in replies. Only 10 of the schools replying stated that they offered a 2-year accounting major sequence and the total number of such graduates in all 10 schools was less than 150. The number of junior college ac counting graduates appears to be so low that it is unlikely that the over-all supply of trained accounting personnel would be much affected; therefore, no further attempt was made to analyze returns from these schools. For the same reason no reference is made to the data on this subject in the main body of the report. Private Schools of Business and Junior Colleges Data on Women It is recognized that a good many private schools and some junior colleges train accountants. There fore a questionnaire, similar in design to the one mailed to the colleges, but slightly modified to meet differences in educational organization, was mailed to some 384 private schools of business and to some 50 junior colleges. The private schools included all institutions listed in the Directory oj Business Schools in the United States 2 and offering a 2-year course in accountancy, plus several widely known schools of accountancy not listed in this directory. It is believed that the mailing list included about 95 percent of all private schools offering training above the bookkeeping level. The list of junior colleges was selected by the Junior College Specialist in the Office of Education, and was believed to include all such institutions offer ing comprehensive training in accountancy.* Specific data on the number of women who received degrees with a major in accounting and the number enrolled in this field were requested in parts IV and V of the questionnaire. Schools which sent in usable returns on the total numbers of students in these categories customarily stated the number of women, if any. It is believed, therefore, that the survey returns are represent ative and that the estimates are sufficiently reliable for use in the report. Because the number of women graduates and women seniors with account ing majors were only about 3 percent of the total, no further analysis was considered feasible. The questionnaire did not provide space for the inclusion of placement data on women, but the schools were requested in the covering letter to provide any data which they had. A few schools sent in general comments on their experiences in placing women, but no specific data were provided. Therefore, no statistical analysis of the placement experiences and earnings of women could be made. * Noflsinger, J. S., Directory of Business Schools in the United States, National Association and Council of Business Schools, Washington, D. C., 1950. 23 A P P E N D IX E S Facsimile of Questionnaire U. S. DEPARTMENT OF LABOR BUREAU OF LABOR S T A T IS T IC S in cooperation with Washington 25, D. C* FEDERAL SECURITY AGENCY OFFICE OF EDUCATION Washington 25, D. C. To the Dean of the Department o f Business and Commerce: Your, cooperation is requested in a survey of the numbers of students recently prepared for professional accounting positions and of their place ment experience. The survey, which is being conducted by the Bureau o f Labor Statistics in cooperation with the United States Office o f Education, is part of a program of studies designed to provide information on manpower require ments and on the present and prospective supply of personnel in occupations of importance in the defense program. The information will contribute also to a study of the long-range employment outlook in accountancy, which is part of the Bureau of Labor Statistics* continuing program of occupational outlook stuuies for u s e in vocational guidance, and to the basic educational statistics compiled by the Office of Education. No over-all statistical information is available on the number of college graduates who have specialized in accounting. Furthermore, data on the employment experience of such graduates are fragmentary. Your response will provide basic data for estimating the supply o f trained personnel and will indicate recent changes in the employment situation in the accounting field. Educators, employers, executives of the professional accounting societies, and other leaders in the accounting field, with whom this project has been discussed, have uniformly agreed that there is a real need for such data. It is believed that most of the data on enrollments and on the number of graduates can be readily supplied. The section on placement in this questionnaire is intended as a guide to the information needed. Data on the placement experience o f accounting students are o f great significance in analyzing the demand for personnel and in determining the kind of educational background preferred by employers for different types of jobs. For these reasons it will be appreciated if you will provide us with any recent place ment Information you may have available. Data relating specifically to the placement of women accounting majors would be very helpful. Please indicate in all cases which figures are actual and which are estimated. If you cannot conveniently fill out the placement questionnaire, you may attach an additional sheet with your data. Any comments or published reports which you believe helpful should also be included. E M P L O Y M E N T O U T L O O K IN A C C O U N T IN G Your immediate response will aid greatly in the early publication o f the results. Please fill out the white copy of the questionnaire as completely as possible and return it in the enclosed self-addressed envelope which requires no postage. The information will b e held strictly con fidential and reported in such manner as to preserve its anonymity. Your assistance in this survey will be greatly appreciated. Very truly yours, Ewan Clague Commissioner of Labor Statistics U .'S * Earl J. McGrath Commissioner of Education 25 A P P E N D IX E S B.L.S. 2232 Return white copy to address below. The green copy is for your files. U. Budget Bureau No. 44-5119 Approval expires August 30, 1951 S . DEPARTM ENT OF LABOR B ureau o f L a b o r S t a t i s t i c s Washington 25, D. C. SURVEY FEDERAL SECURITY AGENCY O f f i c e o f E d u c a tio n Washington 25, D. C. in cooperation with OF BUSINESS AND COMMERCE MAJORS Number and Placement Experience o f Students Prepared in Colleges and Universities for Professional Accounting Positions I. II. III. Yes No Does your school prepare students for professional accounting? If "no," please check here and return the unfilled questionnaire. □ □ Do graduates of your school customarily take the CPA examination without further education? □ □ □ □ Does your school offer an accounting major? If "yes," please fill out entire questionnaire; if wno , n fill out only, lines A. 1 and B. 1 in Section IV and complete Section VII. IV. Degrees Conferred Number of persons receiving degrees in period July 1948June 1949 Major field of study Total A. Women Women Accounting majors only M a s t e r ’s d e g r e e s 1. All b u s i n e s s and c o m m e r c e m a j o r s 1 a. Accounting majors only V. Number of Students Enrolled Total number enrolled . in business and commerce 1 Class level Total 1949-1950 Total Women 1950-1951 Total Women Number enrolled as accounting majors 1949-1950 Total Women enrolled 1. Graduate 2. Seniors 3. Juniors 4. Others 2 students 1 Include accounting majors as well, as otber subject majors in business and commerce, o Total All b u s i n e s s and c o m m e r c e m a j o r s 1 a. A. Total July 1950Mid-year 1951 B a c h e l o r ’s d e g r e e s 1. B. Women July 1949June 1950 Include freshmen, sophomores, and special students. 1950-i951 Total Women 26 E M P L O Y M E N T O U T L O O K I N A C C O U N T IN G VI- Note: Placement Experience of Graduates With Major In Accounting (for Non-Accounting Majors see Section VII) If you are unable to supply all of the following data, please give as much in formation as you can. Any deviations from the dates or job classifications listed should be explained on the form or discussed on an attached sheet. Class graduated in— June 1949 Placement status within one month after graduation date Number A. Total number placed 1 1. P u b l i c June 1950 Most usual monthly starting salary Number Mid-year 1951 Most usual monthly starting salary Number Most usual monthly starting salary XXX XXX XXX XXX XXX XXX XXX XXX XXX XXX XXX XXX a c c o u n t i n g ............__ 3. P r i v a t e a c c o u n t i n g ............... 3. G o v e r n m e n t a l acc o u n t i n g , F e d e r a l ___________________________ 4. G o v e r n m e n t a l acc o u n t i n g , S t a t e a n d l o c a l ____ ___ _ 5. B o o k k e e p i n g ________1________ _______ 6. All o t h e r e m p l o y m e n t 2 ____________ B. Number proceeding post-graduate C. Employment with full-time education status unknown ( i n c l u d e u n e m p l o y e d ) ... ...... ..... Total ( i n c l u d e A, VII. B, C ) ...........— Placement o f Non-Accounting Majors in the Professional Accounting Field Class graduated in June 1950 Placement rtatus 6 months after graduation N umb e r A. Number placed in p u b l i c B. C« Number placed Number placed in p r i v a t e a c c o u n t i n g _______ i n g o v e r n m e n t a l accounting.. D# Number proceeding with graduate * 2 « education 3 Most usual monthly starting salary accounting-... ..... full-time in a c c o u n t i n g _________ Include all students regardless of source of placement. Include all positions not clearly belonging to tbe job classifications listed above. Such jobs as cashier, teller, statistician, and accounting clerk as well as jobs of an entirely different nature, such as salesman or advertising solicitor belong here. Specify number or enter "none" or "unknown." R e p o r t p r e p a r e d b y ____________________________________ _______________________________________________ (Naae) Check here survey if you wish an a n n o u n c e m e n t o f t h e p u b l i s h e d (Title) report (O&te) giving the results o f this □ labor - 0. C. <BL$ 5i-37$8> A P P E N D IX E S 27 Appendix B.— Schools of Accounting Accountancy is taught in many types of schools— colleges and universities, business col leges, private schools, evening schools, and through correspondence study. The institutions listed below are all on the college level, award degrees in accountancy or in business administration, and are approved by one or more accrediting agencies. This list of 153 colleges was prepared by Dr. Walter J. Greenleaf, Specialist, Occupational In formation and Guidance Service, United States Office of Education. Some colleges which offer accounting training have been omitted because they lack accreditation or because information was not readily available on their course offerings in accounting. Private schools of business in cluding correspondence schools have also been omitted although many of them offer excellent training in accountancy. In States requiring courses above the high school level for the CPA license, it is desirable that the student write to the State Board of Education at the State capital to find out if the school of his choice offers courses accredited for this purpose. All institutions listed here have acceptable ac creditation. Institutions indicated with the sym bol (f) are members of the American Association of Collegiate Schools of Business. Those with the symbol (*) are registered with the New York State Education Department for certified public accountant preparation. All others have general accreditation from their respective regional accred iting associations, and offer work in accountancy. Schools Offering Accountancy— 1951 (Approved by one or more accrediting agencies) Alabama Florence— Alabama State Teachers College Spring Hill— Spring Hill College* University— University of Alabama*! Arizona Tucson— University of Arizona! Arkansas Fayetteville— University of Arkansas! California Berkeley— University of California*! Chico— Chico State College Los Angeles— Loyola University (men) — University of California at Los Angeles*! — University of Southern California*! San Francisco— University of San Francisco San Jose— San Jose State College Santa Clara— University of Santa Clara (men) Stanford— Stanford University*! Colorado Boulder— University of Colorado*! Denver— University of Denver*! Connecticut Storrs— University of Connecticut* District of Columbia Washington— George Washington University* — Georgetown University* — Howard University (Negro) — American University Florida Coral Gables— University of Miami Gainesville— University of Florida*! Georgia Athens— University of Georgia! Emory University— Emory University*! Idaho Moscow— University of Idaho Illinois Chicago— De Paul University — Loyola University — University of Chicago (graduate)*! Evanston— N orthwestern University * ! Peoria— Bradley University Rock Island— Augustana College Urbana— University of Illinois*! Indiana Bloomington— Indiana University*! Collegeville— St. Joseph’s College (men) Indianapolis— Butler University* Notre Dame— University of Notre Dame (men)* Valparaiso— Valparaiso University Iowa Davenport— St. Ambrose Marycrest Des Moines— Drake University*! Iowa City— State University of Iow a*! Kansas Emporia— Kansas State Teachers College Lawrence— University of Kansas*! Manhattan— Kansas State College* Wichita— Municipal University of Wichita Kentucky Lexington— University of Kentucky*! 28 E M P L O Y M E N T O U T L O O K I N A C C O U N T IN G Louisiana Baton Rouge— Louisiana State University f Lafayette— Southwestern Louisiana Institute New Orleans— Tulane University t Ruston— Louisiana Polytechnic Institute Maryland Baltimore— Loyola College (men) College Park— University of Maryland*! Massachusetts Boston— Boston University*! — Northeastern University* Cambridge— Harvard University (graduate)*! Chestnut Hill— Boston College* Worcester— Clark University Michigan Ann Arbor— University of Michigan*! Detroit— Detroit Institute of Technology — University of D etroit*! — Wayne University* East Lansing— Michigan State College* Marquette— Northern Michigan College of Education Minnesota Minneapolis— University of Minnesota*! Mississippi State College— Mississippi State College* University— University of Mississippi! Missouri Columbia— University of Missouri*! St. Louis— St. Louis University*! — Washington University! Montana Bozeman— Montana State College! Missoula— Montana State University*! Nebraska Lincoln— University of Nebraska*! Omaha— Creighton University*! New Hampshire Hanover— Dartmouth College*! New Jersey Jersey City— St. Peter’s College (men)* New Brunswick— Rutgers University * ! Newark— University of Newark* Trenton— Rider College* New Mexico Albuquerque— University of New Mexico New York Brooklyn— Long Island University* — St. John’s University* Buffalo— Canisius College* — University of Buffalo*! Hempstead— Hofstra College* NewYork — Continued. Ithaca— Cornell University (graduate)*! Loudonville— St. Bernardine of Sienna College* New Rochelle—'Iona College* New York—'College of the City of New Y ork *! — Columbia University*! — Fordham University*! — Manhattan College*! — New York University*! — Pace College* Niagara University— Niagara University* Potsdam— Clarkson College of Technology* Rochester— University of Rochester* St. Bonaventure— St. Bonaventure’s College* Syracuse— Syracuse University*! NorthCarolina Chapel Hill—'University of North Carolina*! Durham— Duke University* NorthDakota Ohio University— University of North D akota*! Akron— University of Akron Athens— Ohio University Bowling Green— Bowling Green State University* Cincinnati— University of Cincinnati*! — Xavier University (men)* Columbus— Ohio State University*! Dayton— University of Dayton Kent— Kent State University Oxford— Miami University*! Wilberforce— College of Education and Industrial Arts (Negro) Oklahoma Norman— University of Oklahoma*! Stillwater— Oklahoma A & M College* Tulsa— University of Tulsa*! Oregon Corvallis— Oregon State College Eugene— University of Oregon*! Pennsylvania Bethlehem— Lehigh University*! Grove City— Grove City College* Lancaster— Franklin & Marshall College Lewisburg— Bucknell University Philadelphia— Drexel Institute of Technology* — St. Joseph’s College — Temple University*! — University of Pennsylvania*! Pittsburgh— Duquesne University — University of Pittsburgh*! Scranton— University of Scranton (men) * Selinsgrove— Susquehanna University* State College— Pennsylvania State College* Villanova— Villanova College (men)* A P P E N D IX E S RhodeIsland SouthDakota Tennessee Kingston— Rhode Island State College* Vermillion— University of South Dakota f Cookeville— Tennessee Polytechnic Institute Knoxville— University of Tennessee * f Texas Austin— University of Texas *f College Station— A & M College of Texas* Dallas— Southern Methodist University f Denton— North Texas State College Nacogdoches— Stephen Austin State Teachers College Waco— Baylor University! Utah Virginia Salt Lake City— University of Utah*! Blacksburg— Virginia Polytechnic Institute* Charlottesville— University of Virginia*! Lexington— Washington and Lee University! 29 Virginia — Continued. Richmond— University of Richmond — Richmond Professional Institute (College of William and Mary) Williamsburg— College of William and Mary* Washington Pullman— State College of Washington*! Seattle— University of Washington! WestVirginia Wisconsin Institute— West Virginia State College (Negro) Madison— University of Wisconsin*! Milwaukee— Marquette University*! Wyoming Laramie— University of Wyoming* •Registered b y the New Y ork State Education Department for C P A preparation. tM em ber American Association of Collegiate S chools of Business. O ccupational O u tloo k Publications of the Bureau of Labor Statistics Studies of employment trends and opportunities in the various occupations and pro fessions are made available by the Occupational Outlook Service of the Bureau of Labor Statistics. These reports are for use in the vocational guidance of veterans, in assisting defense planners, in counseling young people in schools, and in guiding others considering the choice of an occupation. Schools concerned with vocational training and employers and trade-unions interested in on-the-job training have also found the reports helpful in planning programs in line with prospective employment opportunities. Two types of reports are issued, in addition to the Occupational Outlook Handbook: Occupational outlook bulletins describing the long-run outlook for employment in each occupation and giving information on earnings, working conditions, and the training required; and special reports issued from time to time on such subjects as the general employment outlook, trends in the various States, and occupational mobility. These reports are issued as bulletins of the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Most of them may be purchased from the Superintendent of Documents, Washington 25, D . C., at the prices listed with a 25-percent discount on 100 copies or more. Those reports which are listed as free may be obtained directly from the United States Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics, Washington 25, D. C., as long as the supply lasts. Occupational Outlook Handbook Employment information on major occupations for use in guidance. Bulletin 998 (1951 Revised edition). Price $3. Illus. Includes brief reports on more than 400 occupations of interest in vocational guid ance, including professions; skilled trades; clerical, sales, and service occupations; and the major types of farming. Each report describes the employment trends and outlook, the training qualifications required, earnings, and working conditions. Introductory sections summarize the major trends in population and employment, and in the broad industrial and occupational groups, as background for an understanding: of the individual occupations. The Handbook is designed for use in counseling, in classes or units on occupations, in the training of counselors, and as a general reference. Its 600 pages are illustrated with 103 photographs and 85 charts. Occupational Outlook Bulletins Employment Opportunities in Aviation Occupations, Part li— Duties, Qualifications, Earnings, and Working Conditions. Bulletin 837-2 (1946). Price 30 cents. Illus. Employment Outlook in Foundry Occupations. Bulletin 880 (1946). Price 15 cents. Ulus. Employment Outlook for Business Machine Servicemen. Bulletin 892 (1947). Price 15 cents. Illus. 30 A P P E N D IX E S 31 Occupational Outlook Bulletins— Continued Employment Outlook in Machine Shop Occupations. Bulletin 895 (1947). Price 20 cents. Illus. Employment Outlook in Printing Occupations. Bulletin 902 (1947). Price 20 cents. Ulus. Employment Outlook in the Plastics Products Industry. Bulletin 929 (1948). Price 20 cents. Illus. Employment Outlook in Electric Light and Power Occupations. Bulletin 944 (1948). Price 30 cents. Illus. Employment Outlook in Radio and Television Broadcasting Occupations. Bulletin 958 (1949). Price 30 cents. Illus. Employment Outlook in Railroad Occupations. Bulletin 961 (1949). Price 30 cents. Illus. Employment Outlook in the Building Trades. Bulletin 967 (1949). Price 50 cents. Illus. Employment Outlook for Engineers. Bulletin 968 (1949). Price 55 cents. Illus. Employment Outlook for Elementary and Secondary School Teachers. Bulletin 972 (1949). Price 40 cents. Illus. Employment Outlook in Petroleum Production and Refining. Bulletin 994 (1950). Price 30 cents. Illus. Employment Outlook in Men’s Tailored Clothing Industry. Bulletin 1010 (1951). Price 25 cents. Illus. Employment Outlook in Department Stores. Bulletin 1020 (1951). Price 20 cents. Illus. Employment Outlook for Earth Scientists. Bulletin 1050 (1951). Price 30 cents. Illus. Employment Outlook in the Machine Tool Industry. In press. Employment Outlook in the Merchant Marine. Bulletin 1054 (1951). Illus. Employment Outlook in Electronics Manufacturing. In press. Occupational Outlook Supplements Effect of Defense Program on Employment Outlook in Engineering (1951). (Supplement to Bulletin 968, Employment Outlook jo r Engineers.) cents. Price 15 Effect of Defense Program on Employment Situation in Elementary and Secondary School Teaching (1951). (Supplement to Bulletin 972, Employment Outlook jo r Elementary and Secondary School Teachers.) Price 15 cents. E M P L O Y M E N T O U T L O O K IN A C C O U N TIN G 32 Special Reports Occupational Data for Counselors. A Handbook of Census Information Selected for Use in Guidance. Bulletin 817 (1945). (Prepared jointly with the Occupational Information and Guidance Service, U. S. Office of Education.) Price 20 cents. Factors Affecting Earnings in Chemistry and Chemical Engineering. Bulletin 881 (1946). Price 10 cents. Occupational Outlook Information Series (by States). VA Pamphlet 7-2 (1947). Price 10 cents each. or States desired.) (When ordering, specify State Employment, Education, and Earnings of American Men of Science. Bulletin 1027 (1951). Price 45 cents. Fact Book on Manpower (1951). Free. Employment Opportunities for Student Personnel Workers in Colleges and Universities (1951). Free. Elementary and Secondary School Principalships— Chief Advancement Opportunity for Public School Teachers (1951). Free. Employment Opportunities for Counselors in Secondary and Elementary Schools (1951). Free. Occupational Outlook M ailing List Schools, vocational guidance agencies, and others who wish to receive brief sum maries of each new occupational outlook report, usually accompanied by a wall chart, may have their names placed on a mailing list kept for this purpose. Requests should be addressed to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, U. S. Department of Labor, Washington 25, D. C., specifying the Occupational Outlook Mailing List. Please give your postal zone number. U. S . 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