Ilitch School ranked fourth in the country for publishing research for accounting professionals

The Wayne State University Mike Ilitch School of Business was ranked fourth in the country amongst leading colleges and universities for publishing articles in practitioner journals according to a recent article in Issues in Accounting Education.

The article, “The Intersection of Academia and Practice: Publishing in Leading U.S. Accounting Organizations,” examines top contributors to five practitioner journals published by leading U.S. accounting practitioner or professional organizations, based on an analysis of the authorship of more than 1,000 main articles for a period from 2013 to 2017.

The top five practitioner journals, according to the article, are Journal of Accountancy, The CPA Journal, Strategic Finance, Management Accounting Quarterly and Internal Auditor.

According to the study, “Our authorship analysis reveals that the leading academic institutions and academic authors in practitioner journals are more likely to be top 100 in accounting education research, rather than in traditional academic accounting research. Most of the academic authors are tenured faculty members, and many have extensive practice experience.”

The work of Professor of Business Law and Ethics William Volz, George R. Husband Endowed Professor of Accounting Alan Reinstein and Professor of Accounting B. Anthony Billings were instrumental in this ranking.

“This achievement speaks to the depth and experience of the accounting research faculty here at the Mike Ilitch School of Business,” said Department of Accounting Interim Chair Matthew Roling. “It’s terrific to see Professors Billings, Reinstein and Volz recognized for their tremendous contributions.”

The ranking demonstrates that Wayne State’s accounting department is as committed to advancing accounting as a profession as well as a purely academic discipline.

“At Wayne State, we want our scholarship read by people who make a living in accounting,” Volz said. “We value placing high-level thinking in front of people who are practitioners.”

Wayne State accounting students benefit directly from this focus, according to Volz.

“We try to make Mike Ilitch School of Business accounting graduates attractive to top public accounting firms,” Volz said. “When we write articles for practitioner journals, it’s part of a larger strategy for our graduates to remain on the radar for those firms as well as other top employers." 

View all news stories