A practical take on fortifying anti-fraud training

In my November/December 2017 column I wrote that academia should expand traditional forensic accounting programs so our future professionals can respond well to contemporary fraud issues. Many universities do include additional training on identifying and understanding fraudulent activities and are hiring more instructors with practical experience.

Diane Jamieson, a student experience leader at Sheffield Hallam University in the U.K. (and a member of the ACFE Anti-Fraud Education Partnership), has taught forensic accounting to graduate students for nearly 10 years and undergraduates for six years. She helped establish both programs, which meet the criteria required by the U.K.’s Quality Assurance Agency for Higher Education.

When Jamieson joined the university in 2010 she discovered she needed to redesign both existing programs because previous instructors, who didn’t have any practical experience, could only teach theory and not its application. She drew on her 17 years in forensic accounting at KPMG to include the practical aspects of fraud examination and dispute resolution topics in the programs’ designs to ensure students receive the anti-fraud education they’ll be able to apply when they graduate.

Jamieson faced several challenges in developing and expanding the two programs. Few students, in the beginning, wanted to enroll in the specialized courses.

“Our class rosters were very limited in the beginning due to students not knowing that they could take courses on these anti-fraud subjects or their desire at the age of 18 to not specialize too early,” according to Jamieson. She also suspects that U.K. accountants are less driven to acquire anti-fraud qualifications than in other countries because they aren’t required to have specialized training.

A need for a twist to usual accounting courses

Sheffield Hallam University’s undergraduate degree in forensic accounting is directed at students who show an interest in accounting but with a twist. “It’s something different from the usual accounting courses offered within the U.K. because it covers electronic crime, dispute resolution work and, of course, fraud awareness and interviewing techniques, all taught with an applied and case study approach,” she says.

The postgraduate degree, which attracts more global students and many that are partially or fully qualified accountants, follows a similar approach with regard to its content. As a separate degree, the Bachelor of Arts (Hons) in Accounting and Finance offers students an elective in forensic and fraud examination, which Jamieson also teaches.

“I agree that introducing anti-fraud education to all business courses can broaden the students’ skill sets, but we aren’t there yet,” says Jamieson. However, the university now has several more experienced forensic practitioners and lecturers than when Jamieson arrived who are further broadening its anti-fraud courses. “Students will only become effective fraud examiners if the accountancy courses teach such skills as report writing, communication and critical thinking,” Jamieson says.

“To place their work in context, students need to understand how different businesses and industries operate globally and to be aware of relevant legislation and the workings of law practice,” says Jamieson. But above all, the future fraud examiners need to have “the confidence to challenge what they see and not accept matters at face value,” she says.

Instructors in Sheffield Hallam University’s anti-fraud program help their students connect with the professional world. As part of their final-year curriculum, undergraduate students act as consultants to external clients from the industry on projects specific to their study areas. Also, students can take yearlong placements or internships at forensic accounting firms in between their second and final years of study. These connections with practicing professionals, of course, help accelerate students’ careers.

Anti-fraud program improvements and cooperation with the ACFE

Sheffield Hallam University’s alumni program is a vehicle for former students to suggest improvements in the anti-fraud program. “Feedback from our past students is important for further development of our courses,” Jamieson says. “And we have an active student voice process to ensure we gather information and comments from students while they’re still studying with us." 

Instructors also use materials and published articles available through the ACFE Anti-Fraud Education Partnership so they can have a greater practical approach to fraud examination.

Jamieson says she’s always looking for case histories that are relevant to European students. “Many of the basic fraud examination techniques are evident in all cases, irrespective of how old they are (and Enron is still a good case to study),” she says. “But the anti-fraud world has moved on, and students are always asking for more recent cases with which to explore their understanding.”

Brexit and future European anti-fraud education

Since the U.K.’s referendum result to leave the European Union, the impact of Brexit on higher education is still unknown, but I’m certain we’ll feel some affects. (Three out of seven European participating universities and colleges in the ACFE Anti-Fraud Partnership program come from the U.K.) But what does Brexit also mean for Sheffield Hallam University’s anti-fraud program? “That is the million-dollar question!” says Jamieson. “Only time will tell.”

During this period of uncertainty, overseas students might be reluctant to study within the U.K. “However, once the details of the exit from the EU are communicated and understood, I’m sure we’ll be able to reassure prospective students that our courses are what they’re looking for,” Jamieson says. “My colleagues and I won’t cease in our drive to educate the anti-fraud professionals of the future.”

Regardless of the future that Brexit will bring to higher education, European universities need to step up in building their anti-fraud programs. Unless we make such investments, the statistics on fraudulent activities could be even worse than they are today.

Over the past few columns, I’ve shared some ideas on anti-fraud training and related issues from European professionals and academia. In upcoming columns I’ll discuss some good practices of anti-fraud programs and related training from our colleagues in Africa.

Sandra Damijan, Ph.D., CFE, is lecturer and program coordinator of the Corporate Integrity Academy at the Faculty of Economics, University of Ljubljana. She's the former forensic leader at PwC Slovenia and investigator at Slovenian Anti-Corruption Commission. Reach her at: sandra.damijan@ef.uni-lj.si.