The AICPA's National Pipeline Advisory Group (NPAG) has issued a report on the accounting talent shortage, identifying key challenges and proposing solutions.  

The AICPA established the NPAG in July 2023 in order to address the critical shortage of accounting talent and expand the accounting pipeline. The group is a multistakeholder body of accounting professionals, state CPA societies, academics, regulators and others engaged with the profession.

The NPAG report noted that the working-age population grew by only 3 percent from 2010 to 2020. Forbes reported that roughly 340,000 (17.31 percent) of professionals left the accounting profession between 2019 and 2023, according to U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) data. Forbes also reported, based on an AICPA study, that in the 2021-2022 academic year, the number of accounting students also dropped; 7.8 percent fewer students received bachelor’s and 6.4 percent fewer received master’s degrees in accounting.

The exodus of accountants and the declining number of students poses problems for financial and business operations, the NPGA report noted, particularly since the BLS projects a 4 percent growth in job openings for accountants and auditors from 2022 to 2032.

The NGAG report listed six recommendations based on major themes that emerged from its findings. They are:

● Make the academic experience more engaging;

● Address the time and cost of education;

● Grow support for CPA Exam candidates;

● Expand access for underrepresented groups;

● Enhance the employee experience; and

● Tell a more compelling story.

Beyond the numbers reported by the BLS and the AICPA, a barrier to entering the profession is the time and cost of obtaining the additional 30 credit hours required for CPA licensure beyond a bachelor’s degree.  Fully 57 percent of business majors who did not choose to pursue accounting said they did not want to fulfill the 150 hours needed for CPA licensure, according to the report.  And 53 percent of accounting majors  who were not planning to become CPAs pointed to the additional education needed to reach 150 hours as not worth the time investment.

Among all undergraduate business students, only one in nine chose an accounting major, the report found. Of students who declared an accounting major, not all will graduate with a bachelor’s degree in accounting, fewer will go on to earn a graduate-level degree, even fewer will sit for the CPA exam, and even fewer will pass all four sections and become licensed.

The NPAG report also suggested making CPA licensure more accessible through programs that allow students to earn credits through work experience, not just through traditional education systems. It suggested three concepts: “experiential learning that earns college credit on the student’s transcript, delivered by an accredited college or university; "experiential learning that earns college credit off the student’s transcript, most likely delivered by the employer or another third party"; and “a competency-based licensure model that is not based solely on university credit hours or time on the job, although both are likely to contribute in some way.” The report states "this competency-based model would measure outputs (skills mastery, abilities, knowledge and experience) versus time (education hours). This model reimagines the education and experience together and moves the discussion away from hours completely."

Writing in Forbes, Hitendra Patil, president of Global F&A Services, Datamatics Business Solutions, Inc., noted that the NPAG recommendations will take time to succeed, and that, meanwhile accounting firms need staff now. Firms are seeking to end the vicious circle in which staff shortages lead to overwork, prompting staff members to leave, and resulting in more staff shortages. He  suggested that accounting firms consider outsourcing or offshoring, noting that firms looking to outsource in 2024 need to select the right offshoring model, select the right partner and ensure that the current onshore team does not feel insecure.