Abstract
This study aimed to investigate the accounting students' awareness, interest, and intention to pursue the Certified Internal Auditor (CIA) qualification and career. This study examined the driving factors (attitude, social norms, and perceived behavioral control) on the intention to pursue the CIA. This study was based on the Theory of Planned Behavior (TPB) and utilized an online questionnaire to survey 243 accounting students from eleven (11) universities in Malaysia. It found that ACCA, CPA, and CIA are the main qualifications they intend to pursue. This finding showed that most accounting students are aware of the internal auditing (IA) certification. Based on the regression analysis, social norms and perceived behavioral control impact the students' intention to pursue the CIA and IA career. This study could help universities and the Institute of Internal Auditors Malaysia (IIAM) develop interest among accounting students to see the benefits of CIA and career in IA.
Highlights
In Malaysia, there are issues with professional accountants having any professional certificate
This study found that 74.42% have interest in ACCA, followed by 81.48% in Certified Public Accountant (CPA), 62.14% in Certified Internal Auditor (CIA), 64.20% in tax certification, and 60.91% in Institute of Chartered Accountants England and Wales (ICAEW)
These are the five main certifications of interest among future graduates. They are least interested in Certified Information Systems Auditor (CISA), Certificate in Risk Management Assurance (CRMA), and Chartered Alternative Investment Analyst (CAIA), as shown by the low mean scores
Summary
In Malaysia, there are issues with professional accountants having any professional certificate. Based on [2], the professional accounting market had expressed concern about the shortage of talented educational bodies in various countries, including Malaysia, producing graduates in accounting-related fields. Research identifying the intention of graduates to pursue professional certificates, the CPA, ACCA, CIMA, and ICAEW, are plenty. These studies [e.g., [4], [5], [1], [6], [7]] showed that Malaysian accounting undergraduates do intend to pursue professional certificates. There are limited studies in Malaysia on the CIA certification and being professionally certified internal auditors as a career. [9] mentioned that the CIA is important to those planning to become internal auditors.
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