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Accounting majors and minors study principles of accounting, accounting theory, macro- and micro-economics, and business statistics. Additional accounting courses to complete the major are chosen according to specific career goals. Students are encouraged to augment their skills in business writing and speaking through coursework in those areas. Business ethics also is a recommended course, and ethics issues are integrated into accounting classes.


Augustana has a well-known and successful internship program. Students receive a full term of academic credit for participation in a full internship. Senior accounting majors may work for a term on the staff of a major public accounting firm to experience public accounting firsthand. The department also arranges accounting internships ranging from internal auditing and budgeting to government contract bidding.

Recent internships include such firms as:


Many students further enhance their educational background by choosing to double-major in accounting and another field such as computer science, business administration, English, or a foreign language. Agreements with universities assure acceptance of Augustana courses toward graduate degree prerequisites.

I have more questions. Who do I call?

Contact any of the faculty. See below.

Here are some examples of where recent graduates have accepted positions:




VOLUNTEER INCOME TAX ASSISTANCE (VITA)

The Volunteer Income Tax Assistance program is a federally approved program designed to help people who cannot afford professional tax assistance. Students from Augustana College have been involved since the early 1980's. The program has been more formally organized on campus since 1991.

Students who participate go through an IRS training program. The training process consists of attending classes for one and one half Saturdays in early January. IRS agents grade the students' completed "take-home" tests. With satisfactory test results, the students are certified to prepare returns.

Approximately 25 to 30 students volunteer each year. We prepare returns for three to four days a week (including Saturday) at the offices of Project NOW in downtown Rock Island. Each student is assigned to work one session per week from late January to mid-March. The students have prepared approximately 2,000 federal and state income tax returns over the last five tax seasons.

The students benefit in many ways from participation in this program. Many comment about the "good feeling" that they get from their community service.

As sophomores and juniors they have shown initiative in learning income taxes prior to their income tax class at Augustana. They get the opportunity to apply tax knowledge to real tax situations, most of which deviates somewhat from the basic situations that they encountered during their training process.

Students gain valuable experience is dealing with people. Students learn to work with others since they prepare returns in two-person "teams." They also learn to interact with people who differ greatly from themselves. Our clients typically are very low-income persons. Our students must learn to deal with persons who are sometimes angry and with some do who do not speak English very well.

Some of the experienced senior students serve as session supervisors. These persons coordinate the flow of clients through the office, assigning clients to preparation teams. These same students act as resource persons answering questions from the teams and have the responsibility to reviewing all tax returns. They then work with the team to correct the return.



Pamela Druger, (309) 794-7394, email PamelaDruger@augustana.edu

John Delaney, (309) 794-7732, email JohnDelaney@augustana.edu

Janene Finley , (309) 794-8157, email JaneneFinley@augustana.edu


Please contact Pamela Druger for additional information or questions.