Forensic Accounting Education - A study of curriculums in consideration of employer expectations

Sammanfattning: Purpose - To investigate if the forensic accounting education offered by universities provides the knowledge and skills that are required by the forensic accounting profession. Methodology - First, a qualitative content analysis of curriculums, with a mix between a deductive and inductive approach, is conducted. Second, an inductive quantitative content analysis of job advertisements is administered. Theoretical perspectives - The collection of data follows a framework that was developed through the literature review on previous studies about the educational field of forensic accounting, the skills and knowledge of practitioners, job-related activities etc. Subsequently, the framework was adjusted to consolidate relevant factors that were identified during the data collection process. Empirical foundation - 1. The curriculums of graduate and postgraduate forensic accounting degrees, which were retrieved through the universities' websites, from the United States (US), the United Kingdom (UK), Australia and China, 2. The job advertisements of forensic accounting related jobs in the US, UK, Australia and China, which were retrieved from the job search engine 'indeed.com' Conclusions - 1. Although the degrees provide a strong theoretical background, they lack the development of practical skills which are required by the profession. 2. While bachelor programs provide more practical courses and basic accounting courses, the master degrees focus on the forensic accounting knowledge. Overall, they both lack the development of practical attributes. 3. The US curriculums are the most adapted and closest to professional requirements since the forensic accounting field is the most developed in the US.