Factors affecting accounting students’ career choice

Abstract

This study aims to investigate the major factors affecting business students', especially accounting students' career choices in China. A questionnaire was designed by previous research to collect data in traditional Chinese universities and Sino-Foreign cooperative universities. A Pearson correlation analysis and a stepwise regression analysis was conducted based on the type of universities the respondents from. Firstly, instructors' influence and earning expectations that play a role in choosing a career have a positive significant association with traditional Chinese students' academic performance. Earning expectations also significantly predict their accounting grade. Secondly, earning expectations, job opportunities and social status for a future career have a significant association with the academical performance of students in Sino-Foreign cooperative universities. Family influence and social status in choosing a career significantly predict their academic performance. The findings are important for the accounting profession area to guide more accounting students to choose work in the accounting field.