MINDFULNESS, PERCEPTION AND BEHAVIOR OF ACCOUNTING STUDENTS IN HIGHER EDUCATION TOWARDS PROFESSIONAL ACCOUNTANCY QUALIFICATIONS

Abstract

The purpose of this paper is to investigate the accounting students’ awareness, perception and behaviour towards Professional Accountancy Qualifications (PAQ). The focus is on undergraduate accounting students at Universiti Selangor (UNISEL). The questionnaire, which has been categorised into awareness, perception and behaviour category, was distributed and the data received were analysed using the descriptive statistics of frequency distributions and percentages. The finding of this study shows that majority of accounting students are generally aware of PAQ but they have insufficient information about it. The analysis from students’ perceptions indicates that salary and job opportunity to advance are among the most significant motivational factors for students to pursue PAQ. Additionally, the behavioural analysis found that the majority of the students display a positive attitude towards PAQ. However, accounting students would prefer to get hired rather than pursuing PAQ, regardless of their knowledge and awareness to attain such qualifications. The findings of this study cannot be generalized due to different environment and situations. Nevertheless, the research outcome has contributed to the existing accounting education literature by exploring the awareness, perception and behaviour of accounting students towards PAQ in private higher education institution