Universal Journal of Educational Research 8(3): 1078-1091, 2020 http://www.hrpub.org DOI: 10.13189/ujer.2020.080343 Belief, Preference and Constraint Factors Influencing Malaysian Accounting Students' Intention to Pursue Professional Qualification Hani Hamizah Nor Hashim, Erlane K Ghani * Faculty of Accountancy, Universiti Teknologi MARA, Malaysia Received December 3, 2019; Revised January 21, 2020; Accepted February 7, 2020 Copyright©2020 by authors, all rights reserved. Authors agree that this article remains permanently open access under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License 4.0 International License Abstract This study investigates the factors influencing accounting students’ intention to pursue a professional qualification upon graduation. By employing the Belief, Preference and Constraint (BPC) Model from the Behavioral Decision Theory (BDT), the study utilized the quantitative method by sampling 245 final year accounting students from Malaysian public universities. This study shows that students’ preference to hold a professional membership, as well as their job prospect beliefs, social beliefs and capability beliefs are all positively and significantly associated with their intention to pursue a professional qualification. Findings further indicate that the constraints faced by the students have a negative but insignificant impact on students’ intentions. This study thus contributes to the accounting education literature in Malaysia by providing evidence with regards to the major determinants of the accounting students’ intentions to pursue a professional qualification post-university, hence providing insight to students’ career-decision-making process. Extant literature has predominantly focused on the context of more developed countries thus this study provides valuable insights from the perspective of a developing country in Southeast Asia. Further, this study utilizes the BDT which differs from most prior career decision making studies. Keywords Belief, Preference, Constraint, Accounting Students, Professional Qualification 1. Introduction The scope of work for professional accountants has grown so much over the years that the participation of these professionals can be seen in nearly every field and stage of a business, from carrying out typical audit work and tax planning to offering professional advice on capital budgeting, financial structure and investment decisions. Clearly, the skills and expertise offered by professional accountants are exceptionally important in maintaining a healthy accounting system and business environment, and by extension, a stable and vibrant economy. It is thus unsurprising that the global demand for professional accountants has continuously been on the rise, as the profession is vital in providing invaluable support to businesses in multiple areas. The ever-changing accounting regulations and economic landscape, in addition to the increasing complexity of todays’ businesses due to rapid globalization, has only added to the heightened need for professional accountants (ACCA Global, 2016; Monga, 2017). However, unbeknownst to many, this increase in demand for professional accountants is actually not matched with a comparable increase in supply. In fact, many countries have reported a similar problem, albeit the shortage may be fueled by various reasons in the different parts of the world. A recent study carried out by Korn Ferry Consulting estimated that a talent shortage crisis is expected to be most severe in the financial and business services sector, with a potential deficit of 10.7 million workers globally by 2030 and as consequence, a possible annual loss of revenues amounting to $1.3 trillion (Kurschner, 2018). The USA 2016 Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) Occupational Handbook reported that employment for auditors and accountants are expected to grow at an 11% rate from 2014 to 2024, representing an additional 142,000 jobs (AICPA, 2017). As highlighted by the American Institute of CPAs (AICPA) president and CEO, Barry Melancon, CPAs remain uniquely positioned to take advantage of the changing employment trends, thus reflecting the bright job prospects for those who have earned their CPA license. Yet, the economy continues to face an accounting and audit talent shortage (Whitehouse, 2015). CITE THIS PAPER [1] Hani Hamizah Nor Hashim , Erlane K Ghani , "Belief, Preference and Constraint Factors Influencing Malaysian Accounting Students' Intention to Pursue Professional Qualification," Universal Journal of Educational Research, Vol. 8, No. 3, pp. 1078 - 1091, 2020. DOI: 10.13189/ujer.2020.080343.