In Search of Higher Education

We have seen amazing changes in higher education over the past 10 years within fraud examination and related content. What an exciting time! As recently as 2003, barely a handful of higher-education institutions offered multi-course programs in fraud examination and forensic accounting. Now, professionals interested in academic credentials, achievement and recognition in our growing field have an ever-expanding list of higher-ed options.  

Like many of the recent Fraud EDge columns, this discussion examines where we were and, more importantly, where we are now. We will explore the options available to prospective students who hope to earn degrees in anti-fraud curricula.

The widespread growth of white-collar crime in our interconnected, global economy and new requirements associated with U.S. homeland security have raised both the profile and the demand for the fraud examiner and forensic accountant. Accordingly, the ACFE boasts a membership of more than 55,000 anti-fraud professionals. Furthermore, recent estimates suggest that as many as 30,000 CPAs now provide some type of anti-fraud or forensic accounting service.

A mere decade or so ago, litigation often centered on civil damage claims, despite allegations of fraud. Many professionals simply thought of themselves as "deep dive" geek accountants — people who loved to crawl through books and records (and related case data) trying to resolve what really happened and who did it.

Although the anti-fraud world is now a mainstay for many professionals, it was not that long ago that "litigation support" was an extended audit engagement. Such work was a bit unusual for the audit staff, and many of those assigned felt as if they had been cast to sea without life jackets.

It also was not too far back when the accounting profession did not find fraud; audit practitioners found irregularities. More recently, the accounting profession faces the beast in a more direct manner, thanks in part to the ACFE. "Back in the day" no school provided basic training to those entering the profession. Undergraduate and masters' curricula didn't focus on defalcations of any kind. So where does a budding fraud examiner or forensic accountant get his or her start? Fortunately, much has changed!

In the summer of 2003, West Virginia University (WVU) embarked on an effort to create a multi-course anti-fraud and forensic accounting program. At that time, faculty program creators figured they would do what smart businesspeople do throughout the world: work from existing best practices; they would learn from academic experts in the field. Curriculum creators Googled fraud-related search terms to identify anti-fraud higher education programs, which they then studied. The goal was — in consultation with a few experts in the vicinity (Dick Johnston, Gary Stoops and Mark Gage from the National White Collar Crime Center) — to start a similar anti-fraud and forensic curriculum at WVU based on the best practices in the world.

However, other than a few well-known offerings, such as those at Utica College and Florida Atlantic University, WVU's Internet search indicated that few programs existed. Also, due to program differences, the data to identify best practices in academic programs was lacking.

WVU championed a project, sponsored by the National Institute of Justice, to develop a model curriculum. Then it commissioned numerous efforts to share that curriculum. The ACFE and other organizations participated in the process and provided support along the way.

FROM FEW TO MANY  

This spring, in an effort to determine if the fraud examination efforts in higher education were paying off, we repeated its Google search, using the following search terms in various strings: fraud examination, forensic accounting, white-collar crime and economic crime.

For this open-source investigation, WVU only considered those colleges and universities where at least three courses had been combined with the intent to offer a "program," a degree or some similar academic credential such as a graduate certificate. Such academic programs often require formal admission to the institution, have rigorous admission requirements and are usually recognized on an official transcript or diploma.

Contrasted with the handful of programs identified in 2003, at least 53 multi-course programs are now available. Some of them, such as Genesee and Herkimer County, are offered at the community college level, while other programs are offered at large comprehensive universities, such as New York University and Georgetown University.

ONLINE OR IN PERSON?  

Approximately half of the schools identified have some form of online offering of their programs to allow students more flexibility in scheduling. However, many of the online programs require some period of residency (a short period, maybe a few days, in which some course content is delivered in a face-to-face format on campus) to complete the program. The residencies are necessary because they offer experiences that cannot be replicated adequately in cyberspace, such as face-to-face time with peers and faculty, mock court testimonies and financial crime scene investigations.

TO DEGREE OR NOT TO DEGREE  

Of the 53 programs, 23 were non-degree, meaning that students earned certificates of completion only. Seven non-degree programs were housed in professional and continuing studies units of the college or university.

For the 30 programs awarding a degree (i.e., a bachelor of science or master's degree), 14 were identified as undergraduate programs and 16 were listed as graduate programs.

WHAT IS IN A NAME?  

According to the ACFE's 2004 "Report to the Nation on Occupational Fraud and Abuse," 180 schools participated in the ACFE's Higher Education Initiative. By the fall of 2010, more than 330 participating schools were listed on the ACFE website. One of the requirements for participation is that the school must incorporate the phrase fraud examination in the title of at least one course. Of the 53 programs, 37 use the term forensic accounting in the program title, while eight titled the program fraud examination. (A couple of the programs use both fraud examination and forensic accounting.) One program has financial forensics in the title, and one refers to business forensics. Six others use the term economic crimes. Two make reference to investigative or investigator and forensics or fraud.

THE MBA OPTION  

Of the 53 programs, seven offer their programs as part of a master's of business administration (i.e., track or specialization). With such an option, the fraud examination courses are often one of several tracks in which MBA students can specialize.

EARNING A DOCTORATE  

To date, no college or university in the U.S. offers a doctor of philosophy (Ph.D.) specializing in fraud examination or forensic accounting. Starting in the fall of 2012, WVU will begin admitting students to its newly minted doctoral program in accounting. The university believes that the training, background and interests of the doctoral faculty support behavioral and archival research in fraud, forensics and ethics across the functional accounting areas of information systems, audit, financial, governmental, international, taxation and managerial accounting. Therefore, the most competitive applicants for admission to the program will be those with an interest in fraud, forensics and ethics research.

SCHOOLS HOUSING THE PROGRAM  

Fraud examination encapsulates a number of higher education academic disciplines, including law, computer science, criminal justice, psychology, intelligence, economics, business administration and information systems. Despite this wide variety of schools where multi-course programs could be housed, the vast majority of programs (29) were associated with schools of business (management). Three were located within accounting, which is typically considered a business discipline. Seven programs were located in professional or continuing education groups. Only one was associated with a school of applied arts and technology. Thirteen did not list an affiliation with a specific school or program within the university.

HOW COMPREHENSIVE WERE WE?  

Did our search capture every school and university that offers fraud examination and forensic accounting programs? A good investigation recognizes its limitations — so does good research. As noted above, we used a number of search strings that we believed would identify the vast majority, if not all, of fraud examination and forensic accounting multi-course programs offered in post-secondary education. Regardless, our listing might not be complete. Please contact the authors with information about any other schools or programs.

Higher education has come a long way in offering the specialized skills that tomorrow's fraud examiners will need to fight the good fight. And if the trend continues, generations to follow will be even more equipped to keep would-be white-collar criminals at bay and help businesses stay fraud-free.

Jordan Bable is a recent graduate of the Master of Professional Accountancy program at West Virginia University where he also earned the graduate certificate in Forensic Accounting and Fraud Investigation. He recently began work at the U.S. Defense Contract Audit Agency. 

Timothy A. Pearson, Ph.D., CPA, is the coordinator of accounting graduate programs and past chair of the Department of Accounting and Management of Information Systems at West Virginia University in Morgantown. He is executive director of the Institute for Fraud Prevention, an industry-supported research center founded by the ACFE, which was featured in the cover story of the January/February 2010 edition of Fraud Magazine.  

Richard "Dick" A. Riley Jr., Ph.D., CFE, CPA, is a Louis F. Tanner Distinguished Professor of Public Accounting in the College of Business and Economics at West Virginia University in Morgantown. He is chair of the ACFE Higher Education Advisory Committee and the vice president of operations and research for the Institute for Fraud Prevention.  

Sidebar:

The Role of Research in a Profession  

The field of fraud examination, forensic accounting and financial forensics will only grow and maintain status as recognized specialized professions over the long term if academics have research opportunities and are recognized for their efforts.

Research drives professional innovation. Practitioners in the field implement the products of innovative research (concepts, ideas, theories and evidence) by applying, testing and refining theory and research findings in the "real world." Finally, educators create learning frameworks through which new students can benefit from the combined efforts of experts in practice and research.

To date, auditing and behavioral research focusing on fraud and forensic accounting issues have been published in many outlets and journals. Other related business disciplines, such as economics and finance include forensically grounded research that has been completed, peer reviewed and published. Such efforts need to continue so that individuals interested in both higher education and fraud and forensic practice have viable career opportunities (Rezaee and Riley, Wiley 2010).

One organization dedicated to the connection between academic research and practicing professionals is The Institute for Fraud Prevention (IFP). The IFP is a coalition of private enterprises, government agencies, professional organizations and academic institutions dedicated to multidisciplinary research and education for the prevention of fraud and corruption. Biannually, the IFP members, academics and practitioners meet to examine anti-fraud thought leadership, best practices and recent research findings. The organization also considers research proposals for funding. For more information visit the IFP or contact Tim Pearson, executive director.

As part of our research to identify post-secondary fraud education, WVU attempted to identify outlets for academics and practitioners to publish fraud examination, forensic accounting and financial forensics research. The following provides a listing of those journals that at least occasionally publish articles related to fraud examination and forensic accounting. (As the discipline of fraud and financial forensics continues to evolve, more research will be needed to better understand causes, consequences and solutions to financial misdeeds by fraudsters.)

Accounting Education
Accounting Today
Advances in Accounting Education
Advances in Financial Planning and Forecasting
American Journal of Psychoanalysis
American Sociological Review
Annals of the American Academy of Political and Social Science
Applied Psychology: An International Review
Australian & New Zealand Journal of Criminology
British Journal of Criminology
Business and Politics
Communications of the ACM
CPA Journal
Crime & Delinquency
Criminology & Public Policy
Deviant Behavior
Economic Inquiry
Electronic Journal of Social Sciences
European Journal of Crime, Criminal Law & Criminal Justice
European Journal of Scientific Research
Fraud Magazine
International Communication Gazette
International Journal of Disclosure & Governance
International Journal of Offender Therapy and Comparative Criminology
Issues in Accounting Education
Journal of Accountancy
Journal of Applied Psychology
Journal of Behavioral & Applied Management
Journal of Business and Psychology
Journal of Business Ethics
Journal of Construction Engineering & Management
Journal of Contemporary Criminal Justice
Journal of Criminal Justice
Journal of Criminal Justice Education
Journal of Criminal Law & Criminology
Journal of Education for Business
Journal of Forensic & Investigative Accounting
Journal of Forensic Accounting
Journal of Forensic Psychology Practice
Journal of Forensic Studies in Accounting and Business
Journal of Government Financial Management
Journal of Psychology
Journal of Scandinavian Studies in Criminology & Crime Prevention
Journal of Social Psychology
Law & Policy
Managerial Auditing Journal
Mind, Culture, and Activity
National Public Accountant
Pennsylvania CPA Journal
Personnel Psychology
Revista Academiei Fortelor Terestre
Significance
Social Forces
Social Research
Society
Sociological Forum
The European Journal of Social Science Research
Theoretical Criminology
Trends in Organized Crime
World of Accounting Science

The Association of Certified Fraud Examiners assumes sole copyright of any article published onwww.fraud-magazine.com or www.ACFE.com. ACFE follows a policy of exclusive publication. Permission of the publisher is required before an article can be copied or reproduced. Requests for reprinting an article in any form must be emailed to FraudMagazine@ACFE.com.