What a pleasure it was to meet in person at the recent ICAEW HEI Conference! The value of face-to-face connection was immediately evident in the quality of our discussions and the energy in the room. There's something irreplaceable about being together physically that enhances our sense of community and shared purpose.
What a pleasure it was to meet in person at the recent ICAEW HEI Conference! The value of face-to-face connection was immediately evident in the quality of our discussions and the energy in the room. There's something irreplaceable about being together physically that enhances our sense of community and shared purpose.
The conference itself provided rich insights into the evolving landscape of our profession. From learning about the new ICAEW syllabus to exploring the implications of AI and embedding sustainability, we grappled with fundamental questions about the attractiveness and future direction of the accounting profession. We were delighted to represent the Academia & Education Community in our talk about the profession, higher education, communities and individual responsibility, and how educators find their place within the communities where they feel they most belong.
Three key insights we noted were:
- The profession will see increased demand for new work in areas such as sustainability and AI assurance. … But, there's likely to be a permanent and significant decline in entry-level and graduate-level positions.
- Accounting education institutions have a collective duty of care to give students qualifications that are fit for purpose. This means developing critical thinkers, agile problem-solvers and effective communicators. …But without losing the fundamental knowledge, skills, practices and values.
- The future of accounting looks different from how it is today and that will have an impact on us as individuals. …What should I be doing to prepare myself?
We were also engaged by the trailer for "Crossing the Line," ICAEW's audit training film, which all partner institutions can use for free – a valuable resource for bringing real-world scenarios into our classrooms.
Our roundtable discussions revealed the ongoing challenges many of you are navigating firsthand. The conversation around maintaining academic integrity in the age of AI continues to evolve, while concerns about student numbers and potential redundancies create very real pressures. We discussed the impact of high cohort sizes on education quality and the sense of belonging our students experience – challenges that feel particularly acute given the recent changes to apprenticeship funding, now restricted to under-21s.
Perhaps most importantly, we acknowledged the personal finance challenges that both students and academics may be facing in the current climate. These aren't abstract issues – they're affecting real people in our community, and recognising this shared experience is the first step toward finding meaningful support.
The richness of these conversations reinforced why gathering in person matters so much. While we don't have all the answers, we're committed to facing these challenges together and supporting one another through this period of change as accounting educators.
*the views expressed are the author's and not ICAEW's