Ernst & Young Helps Universities Address International Accounting Standards

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Ernst & Young LLP (EY) is stepping up to help universities across the country modify accounting curriculum to prepare students for a new world of accounting. It’s a world of international accounting standards and EY is supporting faculty through their Academic Resource Center (EYARC). This month they released the second phase of International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) curriculum and teaching materials, as well as a national training session for professors.

US Lags the World in Adoption of IFRS

According to EY, the US is now the only industrialized country that hasn’t adopted IFRS or set a “date certain” for adoption. In November, the SEC issued a roadmap proposing the adoption of IFRS in the US beginning in 2014, but this plan is currently open for comment before mandatory adoption is initiated.

“Given the roadmap issued by the SEC and the probability of mandatory adoption of IFRS in the US in the relatively near time frame, we believe it’s a matter of when — not if — schools will need to realign their educational programs to address IFRS learning,” said Ellen Glazerman, Ernst & Young LLP, Americas Director of University Relations. “Even though IFRS is not currently mandated in the US, most of our multinational clients report under IFRS in some capacity, therefore demanding that knowledge from our professionals and the new campus recruits that we hire. We, along with universities, have a shared responsibility in accounting education.”

Ernst & Young, a top accounting and consulting firm that employs 130,000 people worldwide, has invested $1.5 million in EYARC, which is a collaborative effort of faculty and professionals dedicated to helping the next generation of accounting professionals meet the fast-changing needs of the global financial markets.

Students Will Demand IFRS Education

The further down the road to IFRS we travel, the universities will need to offer a comprehensive international accounting program in order to remain competitive. Accounting students will demand it. And according to Catherine Banks, EYARC Program Director, students will not only benefit from the technical knowledge, but their overall critical skills will be improved by the expanded curriculum as well.

“Students who have an understanding of IFRS will distinguish themselves in the hiring process and will likely have increased career and mobility opportunities. Learning IFRS requires students to build more critical-thinking skills to better understand the substance of transactions, which should make them better accountants.”  

What Resources Are Available?

The first phase of IFRS curriculum was released in January of this year. The second phase of curriculum provides additional IFRS resources intended to supplement typical US university financial accounting coursework. EYARC’s curriculum is unique as it includes comprehensive and flexible materials that compare IFRS with US Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (GAAP), including a user guide, lecture notes, presentation slides, homework problems, illustrative disclosures, case studies and international spotlight features.

EYARC held its first national IFRS training session in Cleveland last week for more than 60 faculty attendees from across the country. James Wahlen, Professor of Accounting and Chairman of the MBA Program at the Kelley School of Business at Indiana University said,

“The EYARC IFRS faculty training was an outstanding experience. Several accounting faculty and retired partners assembled a comprehensive and detailed set of materials that will help me and accounting faculty members all over the country incorporate an understanding of IFRS into our courses. This training is a great example of how practice and academia can partner for the benefit of our students, our teaching and research, and our profession.”

Jennifer Blouin, Assistant Professor, University of Pennsylvania Wharton School of Business said,

“Making an effort to maximize pedagogical flexibility, EYARC offered faculty extensive training and materials useful for developing IFRS curriculum at both the undergraduate and graduate levels. The class notes, cases, and high level spotlights on convergence issues created by EYARC’s team of academics and practice professionals will be invaluable as I incorporate IFRS into my syllabus.”

Faculty who are interested in obtaining access to the private EYARC site should contact Catherine Banks at catherine.banks@ey.com. On this site, faculty have access to not only the EYARC curriculum materials but many other firm resources on IFRS, accounting, auditing and tax. 

More information about IFRS, and the ‘roadmap’ to adoption is available from the AICPA at http://www.ifrs.com/.