Beta Alpha Psi
Encyclopedia
ΒΑΨ is a national honors business organization for highly successful accounting, finance
and information systems
students and professionals. It was founded on February 12, 1919 at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
and is currently headquartered in Durham, North Carolina
. The organization has 287 active chapters and over 300,000 members worldwide.
and information systems
. It also provides opportunities for personal growth, service, and association between members and professionals who practice careers in these fields. The organization strives to encourage a sense of ethical, social, and public responsibility.
(CPA) designation. This designation in business encouraged a greater focus on accounting and commerce
knowledge, and Beta Alpha Psi was formed in 1919 to promote the CPA rank on college campuses. Two years after the formation of the organization, all of the existing states adopted CPA regulations.
The genesis of Beta Alpha Psi evolved out of the return to the University of Illinois by Hiram Scovill, class of 1908, as an accounting professor. Several new honor societies and professional fraternities that had formed a few years before Scovill's return introduced students to the benefits of professional organizations.
Scovill set out to organize these benefits by first forming an accounting club on the campus. In 1917, Scovill, along with his junior colleague A.C. Littleton, accomplished this. Beta Alpha Psi emerged two years later. The first members were six students from Professor Scovill's CPA Problems course. The organization was founded on the three basic principles of scholarship, practicality, and sociability, and its initial objective was to stimulate cooperation and interest in accounting. One of its main purposes was to encourage and foster service as the basis of the accounting profession and to secure the highest ethical ideals in the practice of accountancy. On this multifaceted base, eleven students were initiated as active members of the organization on February 12, 1919. Professor Scovill was initiated as an honorary member.
In the original constitution for the University of Illinois chapter, the initiation fee was $10 and dues were an additional $2 per semester. Any member who was absent from a function without first being excused was charged 25 cents. Section I, Article IV, of the original constitution stated that any male person who was registered in third-year accounting, who contemplated a continuance in accounting work, and who had a junior
class standing as shown by his college records was eligible for membership in the organization.
Nine of the eleven members became CPAs. By 1939, only one of the original eleven members, the first president Russell Morrision, was a practicing CPA. Morrision was actively involved in the American Accounting Association
. In 1964, he, along with eight other leading accounting professors, was selected to serve on the "Committee to Prepare a Statement of Basic Accounting Theory," which provided major contributions to American accounting thought.
In February 1921, Beta Alpha Psi officially became a national organization after it adopted a national constitution. Less than nine years later, the organization boasted 900 members, and on November 8, 1950, Jeannie Skelton, the first female member of Beta Alpha Psi, was inducted into Miami University (Ohio) chapter.
in Australia
and at the Massey University
Albany campus and University of Auckland
Business School, both in New Zealand
.
The International Advisory Forum consists of prominent professional accountants who are active in public accounting, industry, and government. Members serve three-year terms. The Forum provides the Board of Directors independent, external advice on and assistance in both the routine operations and the special projects of the organization.
The International Chapter is composed of all faculty advisors, student presidents, and past and present members of Beta Alpha Psi. This body holds a meeting every year and provides advice and assistance to the Board of Directors.
Local chapters are composed of the students and the faculty members at each university. Students guide each chapter's activities while faculty advisors mentor the chapters and provide a liaison between the members and other faculty. But different local chapters operate in diverse ways. While some chapters are organized as accounting honor societies, others operate as financial information fraternities or general business fraternities.
A separate set of requirements is set for election to membership, including:
Finance
"Finance" is often defined simply as the management of money or “funds” management Modern finance, however, is a family of business activity that includes the origination, marketing, and management of cash and money surrogates through a variety of capital accounts, instruments, and markets created...
and information systems
Information systems
Information Systems is an academic/professional discipline bridging the business field and the well-defined computer science field that is evolving toward a new scientific area of study...
students and professionals. It was founded on February 12, 1919 at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
The University of Illinois at Urbana–Champaign is a large public research-intensive university in the state of Illinois, United States. It is the flagship campus of the University of Illinois system...
and is currently headquartered in Durham, North Carolina
Durham, North Carolina
Durham is a city in the U.S. state of North Carolina. It is the county seat of Durham County and also extends into Wake County. It is the fifth-largest city in the state, and the 85th-largest in the United States by population, with 228,330 residents as of the 2010 United States census...
. The organization has 287 active chapters and over 300,000 members worldwide.
Mission statement
"Beta Alpha Psi is a nonprofit international honorary and service organization for accounting, finance, and information systems students at AACSB- or EQUIS-accredited universities. Beta Alpha Psi provides opportunities for development of technical and professional skills to complement university education; participation in community service; and interaction among students, faculty, and professionals."Objectives
Beta Alpha Psi's primary objective is to encourage and recognize academic and professional excellence in the financial information field. Beta Alpha Psi promotes the study and practice of accounting, financeFinance
"Finance" is often defined simply as the management of money or “funds” management Modern finance, however, is a family of business activity that includes the origination, marketing, and management of cash and money surrogates through a variety of capital accounts, instruments, and markets created...
and information systems
Information systems
Information Systems is an academic/professional discipline bridging the business field and the well-defined computer science field that is evolving toward a new scientific area of study...
. It also provides opportunities for personal growth, service, and association between members and professionals who practice careers in these fields. The organization strives to encourage a sense of ethical, social, and public responsibility.
History
On April 17, 1896, the New York legislature established the Certified Public AccountantCertified Public Accountant
Certified Public Accountant is the statutory title of qualified accountants in the United States who have passed the Uniform Certified Public Accountant Examination and have met additional state education and experience requirements for certification as a CPA...
(CPA) designation. This designation in business encouraged a greater focus on accounting and commerce
Commerce
While business refers to the value-creating activities of an organization for profit, commerce means the whole system of an economy that constitutes an environment for business. The system includes legal, economic, political, social, cultural, and technological systems that are in operation in any...
knowledge, and Beta Alpha Psi was formed in 1919 to promote the CPA rank on college campuses. Two years after the formation of the organization, all of the existing states adopted CPA regulations.
The genesis of Beta Alpha Psi evolved out of the return to the University of Illinois by Hiram Scovill, class of 1908, as an accounting professor. Several new honor societies and professional fraternities that had formed a few years before Scovill's return introduced students to the benefits of professional organizations.
Scovill set out to organize these benefits by first forming an accounting club on the campus. In 1917, Scovill, along with his junior colleague A.C. Littleton, accomplished this. Beta Alpha Psi emerged two years later. The first members were six students from Professor Scovill's CPA Problems course. The organization was founded on the three basic principles of scholarship, practicality, and sociability, and its initial objective was to stimulate cooperation and interest in accounting. One of its main purposes was to encourage and foster service as the basis of the accounting profession and to secure the highest ethical ideals in the practice of accountancy. On this multifaceted base, eleven students were initiated as active members of the organization on February 12, 1919. Professor Scovill was initiated as an honorary member.
In the original constitution for the University of Illinois chapter, the initiation fee was $10 and dues were an additional $2 per semester. Any member who was absent from a function without first being excused was charged 25 cents. Section I, Article IV, of the original constitution stated that any male person who was registered in third-year accounting, who contemplated a continuance in accounting work, and who had a junior
Junior (education)
"Junior" is a term used in the United States to describe a student in their 3rd year of study . A Junior is considered an upperclassman...
class standing as shown by his college records was eligible for membership in the organization.
Nine of the eleven members became CPAs. By 1939, only one of the original eleven members, the first president Russell Morrision, was a practicing CPA. Morrision was actively involved in the American Accounting Association
American Accounting Association
The American Accounting Association is an "organization of persons interested in accounting education and research". It was formed in 1916. Its main publication, The Accounting Review, was first published in 1926. It is the principal professional association of accounting academics in the United...
. In 1964, he, along with eight other leading accounting professors, was selected to serve on the "Committee to Prepare a Statement of Basic Accounting Theory," which provided major contributions to American accounting thought.
In February 1921, Beta Alpha Psi officially became a national organization after it adopted a national constitution. Less than nine years later, the organization boasted 900 members, and on November 8, 1950, Jeannie Skelton, the first female member of Beta Alpha Psi, was inducted into Miami University (Ohio) chapter.
International Presence
Beta Alpha Psi continues to grow as new chapters are installed internationally. Outside the United States, local chapters operate at the University of SydneyUniversity of Sydney
The University of Sydney is a public university located in Sydney, New South Wales. The main campus spreads across the suburbs of Camperdown and Darlington on the southwestern outskirts of the Sydney CBD. Founded in 1850, it is the oldest university in Australia and Oceania...
in Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
and at the Massey University
Massey University
Massey University is one of New Zealand's largest universities with approximately 36,000 students, 20,000 of whom are extramural students.The University has campuses in Palmerston North , Wellington and Auckland . Massey offers most of its degrees extramurally within New Zealand and internationally...
Albany campus and University of Auckland
University of Auckland
The University of Auckland is a university located in Auckland, New Zealand. It is the largest university in the country and the highest ranked in the 2011 QS World University Rankings, having been ranked worldwide...
Business School, both in New Zealand
New Zealand
New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...
.
Organizational structure
Beta Alpha Psi is governed by a constitution and bylaws. It is managed by the Board of Directors, which consists of thirteen financial information professionals or professors of accounting, finance or information systems, the chair of the International Advisory Forum, and two alumni representatives. The alumni representatives are recent graduates who were active in their Beta Alpha Psi chapters.The International Advisory Forum consists of prominent professional accountants who are active in public accounting, industry, and government. Members serve three-year terms. The Forum provides the Board of Directors independent, external advice on and assistance in both the routine operations and the special projects of the organization.
The International Chapter is composed of all faculty advisors, student presidents, and past and present members of Beta Alpha Psi. This body holds a meeting every year and provides advice and assistance to the Board of Directors.
Local chapters are composed of the students and the faculty members at each university. Students guide each chapter's activities while faculty advisors mentor the chapters and provide a liaison between the members and other faculty. But different local chapters operate in diverse ways. While some chapters are organized as accounting honor societies, others operate as financial information fraternities or general business fraternities.
Admission Requirements
In order to become a part of Beta Alpha Psi, students must be invited to join by the local chapter at the university they attend, and they are required to meet various requirements. Beta Alpha Psi establishes these requirements as the minimum for eligibility to election as a pledge, though a chapter can set stricter requirements:- Declaration of an academic majorAcademic majorIn the United States and Canada, an academic major or major concentration is the academic discipline to which an undergraduate student formally commits....
in accounting, finance, or information systems - Completion of at least one year of courses at the collegiate level (30 semester hours or equivalent)
- Maintenance of a GPA of 3.0 (where an A is equal to 4.0)
A separate set of requirements is set for election to membership, including:
- Declaration of an academic majorAcademic majorIn the United States and Canada, an academic major or major concentration is the academic discipline to which an undergraduate student formally commits....
in accounting, finance, or information systems (or have stated an intention to declare a concentration in accounting, finance, or information systems) - Completion of two years of collegiate courses and at least one upper level course beyond the business core (for transfer students, the most recent qualifying course must be at an AACSB- or EQUISEquisEquis may refer to:*European Quality Improvement System an international system of assessment and accreditation of higher education institutions in management and business administration run by the European Foundation for Management Development....
-accredited institution) - Maintenance of a cumulative grade point average of 3.0 in upper level courses of their declared major, beyond the business core; and
- attainment of at least a 3.0 cumulative grade point average, or
- achievement of a rank within the top 35% of their university class, or
- attainment of at least a 3.25 cumulative grade average on the most recently completed 30 semester hours
Notable alumni
The following alumni have distinguished themselves in business or in service to Beta Alpha Psi.- Arthur E. AndersenArthur E. AndersenArthur E. Andersen was a founder of the accounting firm Arthur Andersen LLP. -Biography:Arthur Edward Andersen was born in Plano, Illinois. John William and Mary Aabye Andersen, Arthur Andersen’s parents, had immigrated to the United States from Norway in 1881. Andersen was left on his own at the...
, Founder of accounting firm Arthur Andersen - T. Coleman AndrewsT. Coleman AndrewsThomas Coleman Andrews was an accountant and an independent candidate for President of the United States....
, Entrepreneur, Commissioner of Internal RevenueCommissioner of Internal RevenueThe Commissioner of Internal Revenue is the head of the Internal Revenue Service , a bureau within the United States Department of the Treasury.The office of Commissioner was created by Congress by the Revenue Act of 1862...
1953-1955, 1956 IndependentIndependent (politician)In politics, an independent or non-party politician is an individual not affiliated to any political party. Independents may hold a centrist viewpoint between those of major political parties, a viewpoint more extreme than any major party, or they may have a viewpoint based on issues that they do...
candidate for President of the United States - Yuji IjiriYuji IjiriYuji Ijiri is a retired accounting researcher and educator. He was the Robert M. Trueblood University Professor of Accounting and Economics at Carnegie Mellon University until his retirement on June 30, 2011....
, Distinguished researcher in accounting and economics, President of the American Accounting AssociationAmerican Accounting AssociationThe American Accounting Association is an "organization of persons interested in accounting education and research". It was formed in 1916. Its main publication, The Accounting Review, was first published in 1926. It is the principal professional association of accounting academics in the United...
1982-1983, and inductee into the Accounting Hall of FameAccounting Hall of FameThe Accounting Hall of Fame is an award "recognizing accountants who are making or have made a significant contribution to the advancement of accounting" since the beginning of the 20th century. Inductees are from both accounting academia and practice... - Russell Morrision, First president of Beta Alpha Psi
- William Andrew PatonWilliam Andrew PatonWilliam Andrew Paton William Andrew Paton William Andrew Paton (July 19, 1889 - April 26, 1991 was a founder of the American Accounting Association in 1916, and was founder and first editor of its flagship journal The Accounting Review....
, A founder of the American Accounting AssociationAmerican Accounting AssociationThe American Accounting Association is an "organization of persons interested in accounting education and research". It was formed in 1916. Its main publication, The Accounting Review, was first published in 1926. It is the principal professional association of accounting academics in the United...
and founder of its journal The Accounting Review
External links
- Beta Alpha Psi website
- Delta Gamma Chapter - University of South Florida
- Iota Lambda Chapter - Pace University - NYC
- Lambda Chapter - University of California, Berkeley
- Kappa Beta Chapter - Grand Valley State University
- Eta Alpha Chapter - UNC Charlotte
- Gamma Omicron Chapter- California State University Fresno