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Professional Insights

Should accountancy be a STEM subject?

Sep 12, 2023 · 2 min read · AICPA & CIMA Insights Blog

September is a big milestone in the lives of many young people in England, Wales, and Northern Ireland as they enter the final year before sitting their General Certificates of Secondary Education (GCSEs). For many of them, this represents the first big step on the path to the world of work.

Results of an AICPA & CIMA survey are raising questions whether they are equipped with the right skills to make a success of it.

Conducted at the end of 2022, the survey found four out of every five small and medium sized enterprise (SME) employers say there are skills gaps in their workforce. Employers are particularly looking for a workforce with more digital skills, more financial literacy and numeracy skills, and more communication skills. It is widely recognised that there is a particular shortage of STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Maths) skills. The Institution for Engineering and Technology estimated that there is currently a shortfall of more than 173,000 workers in the STEM sectors.

New technologies like artificial intelligence will mean the demand for a STEM-literate workforce will increase further in the future. Happily, government figures show an increase in the number of young people studying STEM subjects. It is clear that those young people are responding to the demands of the modern labour market and giving themselves the best possible chance to succeed in the world of work.

Technological advances are affecting our work as well. Accountancy is now a digital profession. Many traditional tasks are being automated, opening up avenues for more purpose-driven work. For example, management accounting, with its focus on business performance, data, and value creation, is playing an expanded role beyond financial management to solve business and societal problems, such as optimising healthcare provisions and assessing environmental impacts and risks.

With the seismic changes affecting our profession, it is time to advocate for adding accounting to the list of STEM subjects taught in the United Kingdom. Its grounding in business, finance, and technology would further strengthen career prospects for many and help equip the United Kingdom’s future workforce with the skills it needs to drive a modern, entrepreneurial, and productive economy.

The Accounting for Growth All-Party Parliamentary Group recently issued a call for evidence to look into this issue. I would encourage you to contribute your views to their inquiry via accountingappg@aicpa-cima.com. I look forward to reading the findings.

By Andrew Harding, FCMA, CGMA, Chief Executive — Management Accounting at the Association of International Certified Professional Accountants, representing AICPA & CIMA.

Andrew Harding, FCMA, CGMA

Andrew Harding FCMA, CGMA, is the Chief Executive of the Management Accounting PU at the Association of International Certified Professional Accountants. Andrew leads all management accounting activities for the Association, develops plans and strategies, manages relationships and delivers results for members. He is also focused on driving value for members, firstly by globalizing Continuing Professional Development (CPD). Andrew is a Deloitte alumnus, having started his career in the mid-1980s as a trainee auditor. He progressed into training and development from there, and then began professional body work in 1991. He joined CIMA in 2009, originally as Executive Director for Global Markets, and became Managing Director in 2011—a position he held until 2016. Andrew served as Non-Executive Chairman of GTS Chemicals PLC, a Chinese company listed in London, from 2014 to 2016. Andrew was born in London. He holds an MBA from Henley Business School at the University of Reading, and a BSc (Economics) from the University of Bristol.

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