{ Accounting Education | Real-world experiences }
Bridging the Gap: How Real-World Experiences Bring Accounting to Life
W
hen it comes to preparing students for the challenges and opportunities of the accounting profession, my role as a professor isn’t just about being a coach, counselor or mentor. It’s about facilitating opportunities for students to build the essential By Daniel J. skills they need to become successful Nugent, CPA, JD professionals. Sure, learning the rules and crunching numbers are essential, but my goal is to help students understand that accounting isn’t just about numbers. Accounting is really about understanding how organizations work, communicating crucial information and making strategic decisions. While classroom instruction provides students with a good foundation, I believe learning should extend beyond it. That’s why I’m dedicated to creating opportunities for students to connect academic knowledge with real-world experiences. Whether through meeting professionals, attending conferences on emerging trends in accounting or networking with industry experts, these experiences help students become more adaptable and prepared to thrive in an ever-evolving profession.
Learning from firsthand experience While textbooks are essential, they don’t always capture the realities of accounting and the nuances of working in the field. This is especially true in my Governmental and Nonprofit Accounting course, which is why every semester I organize a field trip to the Wisconsin Capitol to give students a behind-the-scenes look at how accounting theory and concepts come to life. We kick things off with a session led by Sen. Howard Marklein, CPA, CFE, who co-chairs the legislative committee overseeing state appropriations and revenues. His talk offers an insider’s in-depth look at Wisconsin’s budget process, demonstrating how the textbook concepts students have learned are applied in the real world to shape public policy and impact the community. Additionally, he shares his
36
On Balance
November | December 2025
Sen. Howard Marklein, CPA, CFE, co-chairs the legislative committee overseeing state appropriations and revenues.
“
I’m dedicated to creating opportunities for students to connect academic knowledge with real-world experiences. personal journey, explaining how his background in forensic accounting at Baker Tilly equipped him with the skills to ask insightful questions and analyze evidence, ultimately helping his colleagues in the legislature make more informed decisions about allocating public funds. Students then attend a joint event hosted by the State Controller’s Office and the Legislative Audit Bureau, where they meet the CPAs responsible for managing Wisconsin’s
wicpa.org