Does Gender Affect the Academic Performance of Transfer Students Compared to Native Students in Accounting?

• In Event: Public Interest 2

Abstract

Over the past several decades, the number of female accounting graduates has steadily increased in a formerly male dominated academic environment and profession. Female students comprise a significant number of the accounting student population at four-year institutions. Likewise, a significant number of students have chosen to enroll and earn associate degrees at a community college, and subsequently transfer to a four-year college or university. According to the National Center of Education Statistics, more than half of the students enrolled in two-year institutions were female. This study provides empirical data on the interaction between gender and transfer versus native accounting students in their academic performance at a liberal arts undergraduate college in the Northeast United States over a four-year period. The results of this study indicate that female and male transfer students do not perform equally compared to their native counterparts, that is—female transfer students performed better than male transfer students in this study when they were compared to their native counterparts. These findings may have practical implications for administrators and accounting departments since male transfer students appear to need more assistance to absorb transfer shock when they join four-year colleges.

Authors

• Hossein Nouri, The College of New Jersey

• Maria Domingo, The College of New Jersey