Monday, April 28, 2003
AACSB International accredits accounting programs
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The graduate and undergraduate accounting programs in the University of Southern Indiana School of Business have received separate accreditation by the AACSB International—The Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business. “The School of Business earned AACSB accreditation in 1997 and the Department of Accounting and Business Law has been working toward the goal of separate accreditation for the accounting programs since that time,” said Dan Wade, director of accounting programs. He added, “It is a measure of quality at a point in time.” The accreditation process included a self review by the accounting department. That review found that the primary mission of the accounting faculty is to teach. Faculty research takes on importance as it relates to effective teaching. There are 10 faculty members in the department. They also are involved in service to the University, the community, and the accounting profession. Processes were put in place to assure that continuous improvement will continue in the future. The Accounting Circle, an advisory board of professional business leaders, was a partner in the accreditation process. Initiatives the board helped implement are the faculty internship program, Toastmaster’s Club for students, graduate scholarship fund, Accountant in the Classroom program, accounting major recruitment programs, and ongoing program review efforts. The curricula in the programs include a master’s degree in accounting which supports Indiana’s 150-hour law for students expecting to take the certified public accounting exam. A revised undergraduate accounting program became effective last fall. Currently about 350 students are majoring in accounting at the undergraduate level and over 50 students graduate each year. “This accreditation lends even more credibility to the program,” said Eric Otto, director of Admission. “When we make presentations to students who are considering majoring in accounting, this is something we will tell them.” Otto called it the “icing on the cake” for the academic programs. USI joins three other Indiana universities with the same accreditation. The schools are Ball State University, Notre Dame University, and Indiana University, which also received accreditation this spring. |
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