Big Four firm PricewaterhouseCoopers has pledged a $1 million donation to the University of Alabama to support accounting education at its Culverhouse College of Commerce and Business Administration.The donation is intended to help the university improve its staff, offer more services to accounting majors, and decrease the shortage within specialty accounting practices, including auditing, tax, and teaching professions.Out of 187 students nationwide expected to receive doctoral degrees in accounting this year, only 22 expressed interest in teaching in those two areas, according to the pr

While many workers are having a tough time finding suitable employment in today's uncertain economy, companies also face challenges finding highly skilled people.

Morningstar, the global investment research firm has published its annual list of the best and worst 529 plans – when it comes to earning long-term returns for college savers – and the overall opinion smacks of optimism. Some of the worst plans from years past have folded up and gone away, while others continually strive to improve. Here are the criteria that separate the best plans from the worst: Flexibility. As Morningstar points out, no savings plan is one-size-fits-all.

The CPA profession has created an Accounting Doctoral Scholars program to help reverse a shortage of Ph.D. accounting faculty in U.S. colleges and universities. The new program is being spearheaded by the largest accounting firms and will be administered by the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants Foundation. To date, more than 70 of the country’s biggest firms, along with several state CPA societies, have committed a total of $15 million to the program.

This month, almost 2 million first-year students will head off to college campuses around the country. Most of them will be about 18 years old, born in 1990 when headlines sounded oddly familiar to those of today: Rising fuel costs were causing airlines to cut staff and flight schedules; Big Three car companies were facing declining sales and profits; and a president named Bush was increasing the number of troops in the Middle East in the hopes of securing peace.

Being a consultant sounds like an enviable job that comes with a great deal of freedom and respect, and possibly a lot of money. That may all be true, but keep in mind it doesn't come without earning the title. After all, when you're the pro that business owners call in, you're expected to be well worth your fees. Obviously you have to start with a formal accounting education. Once that's under your belt, you need time to build a solid foundation of knowledge, preferably in public accounting where you can gain broad experience.

Eric Fox, an accounting graduate of California State University, Los Angeles, has been awarded Beta Alpha Psi's first Medal of Inspiration Award. The award, which is sponsored by the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants (AICPA), includes a $5,000 cash stipend, which Fox plans to use when he begins his MBA program this fall. The award is given to a student who has experienced extreme hardships in his or her life and who has demonstrated an unusually high level of success in spite of that adversity.

The Sleeter Group has announced that a trial version of QuickBooks software will be included with the company's three college textbooks. Students taking courses in QuickBooks are often required to pay hundreds of dollars for a fully-functional version of QuickBooks.