Expectation-Performance Gap in Knowledge and Competencies in Accounting Graduates: Evidence from Tunisia

Abstract

The aim of this paper is to investigate the gap between the competencies which employers expect and those acquired by accounting graduates. We adopted the framework of (Bui &Porter, 2010) to examine the causal factors that contributed to this gap. A questionnaire survey was distributed to accounting professionals and educators. Furthermore, we analyzed data collected by non-parametric tests: the Wilcoxon signed-rank test and the Mann-Whitney test. Findings indicate the constraints within universities as contributing to the failure of accounting education to provide accounting graduates with the competencies expected by accounting professionals. This study contributes to the literature as one of few studies that examine expectation-performance gap in Tunisia.