CPA IN Perspective

INDIANAPOLIS — The Indiana CPA Educational Foundation provides financial assistance to students pursuing their accounting major and ultimate entry into the CPA profession. This scholarship program was established in 2021 as part of a strategic initiative to help build the accounting workforce in Indiana by alleviating financial and logistical barriers to sitting for the CPA Exam and obtaining the CPA license.

In November 2025, an opinion on the Kwong case was handed down by the U.S. Court of Federal Claims. This opinion has wide applications to individual Hoosier taxpayers as well as Hoosier businesses. However, applicable taxpayers must move quickly and act on or before July 10, 2026, by filing a Protective Refund Claim to preserve their potential refund rights. A note of caution is appropriate, as the Kwong decision may still be overturned. The IRS recently filed a Notice of Appeal on May 15, 2026.

Name: Eva Nodine, CPA Job Title: Chief Executive Officer Company: Purdue Global Company Size: 3,300 Most Interesting Thing About What You Do: No two days are the same. As CEO, I move between strategy, operations, finance and people leadership—often within the same hour. What I enjoy most is connecting the dots across the organization and helping turn big ideas into practical, actionable plans that improve student outcomes.

More students are choosing accounting, and that’s good news for the future of the profession. For the third consecutive year, enrollment is rising, even outpacing growth in other majors. But as encouraging as that trend is, it raises a more important question: Are graduates truly ready for today’s CPA profession? The answer is more complex than it used to be. While technical knowledge remains essential, readiness now extends far beyond the classroom.

Why did you choose accounting as your major? I have always been drawn to numbers. When I was little, my favorite toy was a cash register that let me add up anything I wanted. As I grew older, math became my favorite subject, and coming from a family full of business majors, I eventually gravitated toward accounting. My mom is an accountant and tax professional, so I have been exposed to the field for a very long time.

What is the Indiana CPA Educational Foundation’s role in shaping the future of the CPA profession in Indiana? “The Foundation invests in the pipeline and the competencies the profession will need tomorrow. Through scholarships, grants, and programs like INCPAS Scholars, ACAP, and campus initiatives, it helps reduce financial barriers, enrich the educational experience, and encourage more students—especially from diverse and underrepresented backgrounds—to choose and persist in the CPA path.

“As leaders of the profession, we have a responsibility to model what it means to be trusted advisors and ethical leaders, and ensure students understand the ‘why’ behind our work, not just the ‘how.’ ” As workforce expectations evolve, what skills or experiences do you believe accounting students need most to thrive in today’s profession? Strong communication skills. Our profession, while data driven and technical in nature, is also very much about relationship building.

Summer days are often filled with hanging out with friends and family, road trips to sunny locales, massive music festivals and seaside vacations. But for driven accounting students, the warmest months are often spent planning and plotting their journey toward their professional careers. The early bird gets the schedule A smooth year starts with prepping for the perfect fall semester.

A few years ago, the chatter around AI really started to build. Accountants, CPAs, writers, animators, doctors, lawyers—everyone was trying to figure out what it meant for their work. At first, it was all fear: robots taking over the Earth, jobs disappearing, and humans slipping into some kind of dystopian existence. It felt bleak for a lot of us. Since then, the conversation has shifted.

We’ll start with a one-hour orientation session to set you up before you begin studying. This session covers the CPA Exam application process, additional pathways, eligibility requirements, and how to plan your approach. Each month this summer, the series pairs a 90 minute Exam Focus Session with a virtual Mock Exam, one section at a time. Focus Sessions are led by content expert Joe Maslott, CPA, AICPA Director of Content Management for Examinations, alongside a panel of CPA professionals.