Bhattacharyya ( 2010 ) had stated that the accounting profession is one of the most critical and of import profession. Although with the rough state of affairs in the current economic when many people had lost their occupation, accounting is the lone one sector that is still traveling strong and making occupation chance. Further to that accounting profession is besides of import in guaranting the success of a concern because indirectly accounting cognition is required every facet of the determination doing made by the direction. A Chief executive officer or top director must be able to understand and analyse information obtained from the fiscal statement before doing any determination which reflecting the company ‘s public presentation. But what most critical is for the company to hold person with a good background in accounting. Here is where the accounting profession comes in ready to hand.
IFAC President Goran Tidstrom stated during the gap of WCOA 2010 in November 2010, comptrollers need to play more outstanding function in the growing and sustainability of the economic particularly during the fiscal crisis. This was due to the addition duties of an comptroller with the promotion of the engineering, globalisation, multidisciplinary economic environments and alterations in the concern environment ( AP, Walker, 2004 ) . Accountants today are non simply responsible in merely making the clerking but had move frontward as a profession that able to assist transform the human resource accomplishments by bridging the spread between theoreticians by economic sciences and land degree execution. This position was shared by Andrew Sheng, China Banking Regulatory Commission ‘s Chief Advisor during the Institute of Certified Public Accountants ( MICPA ) 51st Anniversary Commemorative Lecture held in Kuala Lumpur on April 2010. He farther stated that comptrollers played a major function in the cognition economic system from informations categorization to data analysis.
However, it can be seen from old survey done that in recent old ages assorted parts of the universe had been sing uninterrupted lessening in accounting programmes enrolment ( Albrecht and Sack,2000, Marshall,2003, Jackling, 2002 ) . During the WCOA 2010, Organizing Chairman Dr. Y. C. Lee had stated that presently in Malaysia there are an estimated of 26,000 comptrollers but the figure is still deficient to run into the demands of industry and authorities due to the rapid development of concern. One of the grounds why this had happen is because many of these comptrollers had moved into different maps from accounting profession. The Malayan Institute of Accountants ( MIA ) , a statutory organic structure responsible to modulate and develop accounting profession in Malaysia had reported statistically the figure of registered member continuously worsening although the entire members is increasing as shown in the tabular array below.
Table 1.0: Statistic of Number in Membership for MIA
Year
2006
2007
2008
2009
2010
Registered members for the twelvemonth
1,494
1,427
1,501
1,269
1,266
Entire Registered members
22,459
23,558
24,719
25,526
26,250
Beginning: MIA Annual Report ( 2006 – 2010 )
There are many factors contribute to the lessening in the rank of MIA. One of the many is the perceptual experiences of single towards the accounting profession. Percepts towards the accounting profession is important as it can act upon the determination to prosecute accounting as future calling ( Mladenovic,2000, Pollock et al.,2002, Byrne and Willis,2005, Hartwell et al.,2005 ) . To pull more people to major in accounting is by cognizing this perceptual experience and alteration it towards more positive in related to the profession ( Seamann and Crooker,1999, Geiger and Ogilby, 2000 ) .
In this survey, the research worker want to research and understand what is the perceptual experience of the pupils presently taking accounting programmes towards the accounting profession and their purpose to prosecute as future calling. Kota Kinabalu had been chosen as the survey country as most of the public universities and private colleges are situated in this country. Different geographical and cultural have a different perceptual experience towards the profession ( Auyeung and Sands,1997, Germanou et al,2009 ) .
1.1 Problem Statement
Declared in the Vision 2020, it is a call for the state to accomplish a self-sufficing industrialised state which covered every facets of life such as economic prosperity, societal wellbeing, educational world-class, political stableness and psychological balance ( Mohamed Jawhar, 1994, Jeong, 2007 ) . There are many cardinal participants in accomplishing this vision and one of them is the accounting profession. With the execution of New Economic Model ( NEM ) , accounting profession is important in this country as they are the cardinal map that needed to transform the economic system to be more crystalline, accountable and ability to put to death. The president of MIA, Abdul Rahim Abdul Hamid besides reference in his president ‘s statement ( MIA Annual Report, 2010 ) , function of comptroller in the present corporate had extended beyond the backroom number-cruncher. The credibleness of this profession in the eyes of the populace is indispensable as one of facets to guarantee success. Barsky and Catanach ( 2001 ) found in their survey that many pupils and their parents do non understand the function of an comptroller had changed enormously from adviser of micro affairs to the adviser on broad-based direction issues.
Changes in the concern and public accounting environment had created a sensed demand for an expanded accomplishments set among accounting practicians which focus more on the quality of pupils taking this field. Before speaking about “ altering ” the pupils, it is of import to cognize why they select the plan at the first topographic point, is their perceptual experiences towards the profession had made them decided to prosecute or non to prosecute accounting profession as their hereafter calling. Jackling and Calero ( 2006 ) noted that the pupils ‘ motive to prosecute an accounting calling was influenced by their intrinsic involvement and perceptual experiences. For the profession to pull pupils, it must seek to act upon pupils ‘ perceptual experiences of accounting by supplying them with realistic expose of the work ( Bryne and Willis, 2005 ) . Previous surveies conducted reveal negative perceptual experiences by implementing different measurings such as features of comptrollers and their occupations, costs and benefits, perceived accomplishments required and stereotypes of comptroller ( Mladenovic,2000, Coate et al.,2003, Chen et al.,2008 ) . Germanous et Al. ( 2009 ) said that the losing elements in the old surveies are the measuring of the perceptual experience of the accounting profession based on a normally recognized theoretical model.
Personal perceptual experiences that people hold towards accounting profession varies harmonizing to cultural and environment they were brought up ( Auyeung and Sands,1997, Tan and Laswad, 2006, Sugahara et al. , 2008, Germanous et al.,2009, McDowall and Jackling,2010 ) . Individualism- Bolshevism dimension tends to polarise Australian pupils comparative to Hong Kong and Chinese pupils ( Auyeung and Sands,1997 ) . Chinese pupils who possess different cognitive manners compared to Australian domestic pupils have chosen an accounting majorA ( Sugahara et al. , 2008 ) . Local pupils in Australia have a more positive attitude towards accounting profession comparison to the international pupils ( McDowall and Jackling,2010 ) . From the old surveies, it can be indicated that pupils presently taking accounting programmes in Kota Kinabalu country will ensue in different perceptual experiences due to the different cultural and geographical country. This survey is to supply the consequence of findings whether it contribute the same position as the old surveies and their purpose to prosecute accounting profession as their hereafter calling.
1.2 Research Aims
For the intent of this survey, the research inquiries will be as follows:
To place the relationship between the pupils ‘ perceptual experience towards the accounting profession and the purpose to prosecute as future calling.
To look into whether there is a important relationship between the purpose to prosecute accounting profession as future calling and the extrinsic dimension
To look into whether there is a important relationship between the purpose to prosecute accounting profession as future calling and the prestigiousness dimension
To look into whether there is a important relationship between the purpose to prosecute accounting profession as future calling and the intrinsic dimension
To look into whether there is a important relationship between the purpose to prosecute accounting profession as future calling and the societal dimension
1.3 Scope of the Study
The research worker is trying to place the important relationship with the perceptual experiences toward accounting profession held by the pupils presently undergoing the accounting programmes and their purpose to prosecute as future calling. Specifically Kota Kinabalu country is selected as most of the public universities and private colleges are within this country. Furthermore the pupils ‘ population is higher in this country comparison to the remainder of the country in Sabah.
1.4 Rationale and Significant of Study
It is really of import to place the grounds for the positive or negative perceptual experiences of the pupils towards the accounting profession as the figure in employment for this profession is diminishing and to accomplish Vision 2020 more comptrollers will be needed. IFAC President Goran Tidstrom commented that the ratio of comptrollers needed to be increased to back up the alterations in the concern environment ( i.e. advanced engineering, globalisation ) and broader functions of comptrollers to back up the direction in doing certain the concern is successful.
The findings of this survey will assist to supply the penetrations of the pupils ‘ perceptual experience toward this profession and necessary actions could be taken. Draw a bead oning the Gen Y to enable them to turn fond of accounting profession by giving them the cognition of accountant functions, giving direct unmasking to the comptrollers ‘ universe and seeking to make chance for them by showing the broad countries of accounting activities. MIA, Ministry of Higher Education ( MOHE ) , academicians and pedagogues should work manus in manus to guarantee that the classs embedded in the current curricular for accounting programmes are in line with the current evolvement of the profession by taking into consideration on the factors that give negative perceptual experiences on the profession. CPA Australia has taken the enterprise by affecting straight in determining the planetary way for the accounting profession and the same clip lends their custodies to developing states for promotion.
Germanous et Al. ( 2009 ) reference in their survey that it will be of import to place the grounds why pupils get impersonal or negative purposes to prosecute accounting as their hereafter calling although they already prosecute an accounting grade with some shed of visible radiation from the cultural positions, business/economics conditions and socio-political system differences.
1.5 Definition of footings used
The followers are some definitions of the footings used in this survey.
Malayan Institute of Accountants ( MIA ) – statutory organic structure who regulates and develops the accounting profession through instruction & A ; development, the publicity of attachment to professional criterions and patterns and eventually, surveillance and enforcement.
Percept as define in Wikipedia – the procedure by which an being attainsA awarenessA orA understandingA of its environment by forming and construing sensoryA information.
Accounting Profession – referred to as linguistic communication and psyche of a concern with stipulated organic structure of regulations, conventions and general criterions to be adhered.
Ministry of Higher Education ( MOHE ) – statutory organic structure who develop and supervise the higher instruction environment to follow and accommodate with the current alterations with updated information and cognition.
1.6 Learning establishments
Learning establishments comprise of the public universities and private colleges who offer higher instruction at sheepskin and above degree in Kota Kinabalu country. The acquisition establishments in the context of this survey which offered accounting programme are listed as below.
University of Malaysia Sabah ( UMS ) – Degree in Accountancy
University of Technology Mara ( UiTM ) – Diploma and Degree in Accountancy
Politeknik Kota Kinabalu ( PKK Sabah ) – Diploma in Accountancy
Cosmopoint Sdn Bhd – Diploma in Accountancy
University of Tun Abdul Razak ( UniRazak ) – Diploma in Accountancy
1.7 Summary and Organization of Research
Chapter 1 give the debut of the research subject whereby it explain the job statement, research inquiries, range of survey, important of the survey, definition of few footings that is being used and the acquisition establishments that is traveling to be involvement in the survey.
Chapter 2 exhaustively clear up on the literature reappraisal and the theory underpin used which explain farther from the old surveies done in the same country of subject particularly on the perceptual experience of pupils towards the accounting profession.
Chapter 3 is the research methodological analysis applied in this survey. The instrument for measuring is adopted and modified from Germanou et Al. ( 2009 ) . It further explicate the content of the research design, theoretical model, hypotheses derived and the techniques analysis used to deduce to findings and decisions.
