Attracting the next generation of professionals
The wonderful Cláudia Teixeira — a senior accounting educator at ISCAP/IPP, shaping the field through scholarship, editorial work, and webinars — is extending an invitation to this webinar. By way of background, this event is exploring the findings of the report of AAAPPC Talent Working Group Attracting the next generation of accounting and finance professionals in Australia (2025). Australian Accounting and Assurance Public Policy Committee on Attracting the next generation of accounting and finance professionals in Australia.
The AAAPPC report identifies a stark problem: a projected shortfall of nearly 30,000 accountants over five years, driven by a 45 per cent decline in domestic higher education enrolments between 2012 and 2021. The pipeline has been constricting for at least a decade, beginning at secondary level where accounting receives minimal curriculum attention, suffers from teacher shortages, and competes poorly against other subjects. Immigration has failed to plug the gap, and retirement and career changes continue to drain qualified professionals from the sector.
The profession’s image problem proves equally troubling. The report reveals that Gen Z students perceive accounting as boring, narrow and bland. This view is reinforced by negative media stereotypes and inadequately challenged by fence-sitting teachers and career advisers.
Key influencers, particularly parents (who rank among students’ top three decision-makers), operate in an information void about contemporary accounting work. In response, CPA Australia and CA ANZ have launched major rebranding campaigns alongside practical interventions:
- Member ambassadors in schools,
- Gamified learning platforms,
- Revised curricula, and
- Flexible entry pathways.
Whether marketing alone can overcome structural barriers in secondary education remains a critical question.
You can get the final report by visiting the AAAPPC’s contact page and requesting it.
Meeting details
This webinar is open to anyone with an interest. There’s no need to register: just copy the link into your calendar and join us there.
Time: 9.30am (BST)
Date: Wednesday, 5 November 2025
Format: Online (Zoom): https://videoconf-colibri.zoom.us/j/99712915667?pwd=c0pRQ00xMmJvY3p1ZkU1ZVJ4eVMwQT09
Speakers: Mary Clarke (DXP Consulting), Garry Carnegie (RMIT University), Rebecca Keppel-Jones (CPA Australia) and Rachael Rankin (Chartered Accountants Australia and New Zealand),
Part of the Events series
© AccountingCafe.org
