Benedictine College Accounting Program Gains National Recognition

Monday, September 17, 2018

The Accounting Program within the School of Business at Benedictine College received a top national recommendation by AccountingEDU.org, a website created to serve as a comprehensive resource for both aspiring accountants and seasoned professionals. Benedictine was rated as one of the top two schools in Kansas along with Washburn University. The overall recommendations and methodology can be found here.

“Part of our mission is to help students identify high quality programs available in their area,” said Carly Pierce, senior editor of the site. “We created this list to help potential students interested in the field of accounting find programs we feel really deserve their attention and that we can feel 100% confident about recommending.”

Although the list shows affordable schools, Pierce said they looked at more than just affordability. They were looking for “efficiency” and did research to find quality programs with strong first-time CPA exam pass rates.

“Benedictine students who have chosen public accounting have an extremely high pass rate,” said Christine Glenski, chair of the Accounting Program at Benedictine College. “Another testament to the success and rigor of the program is that students are prepared to handle real-world accounting and perform well for their employers.”

According to Glenski, recent Benedictine graduates in public accounting have gone to some of the Big Four accounting firms, like KPMG, Deloitte, and Ernst & Young (EY), as well as BKD, RSM, RubinBrown, MarksNelson and Myers & Stauffer.  In the corporate or private sector, she said Benedictine graduates have taken positions at companies like Cerner, Cessna, Koch Industries, the Federal Reserve Bank, Midwest Grain, BNSF, Mutual of Omaha and State Street Bank. 

“We have success placing our graduates in good positions at great firms,” she said. “The best feedback we receive from employers is when they want more of our students. That repeat performance is a good indicator that our students are well prepared.”

Founded in 1858, Benedictine College is a Catholic, Benedictine, residential, liberal arts college located on the bluffs above the Missouri River in Atchison, Kansas.  The school is proud to have been named one of America’s Best Colleges by U.S. News & World Report as well as one of the top Catholic colleges in the nation by First Things magazine and the Newman Guide.  It prides itself on outstanding academics, extraordinary faith life, strong athletic programs, and an exceptional sense of community and belonging.  It has a mission to educate men and women within a community of faith and scholarship.