ACCOUNTING STUDENTS’ SKILL SET ACQUISITION-EMPLOYERS' EXPECTATION NEXUS IN GHANA: MODERATING MULTICULTURAL PLURALITY

Abstract

Purpose: This study examines how multicultural diversity moderates the relationship between pre-service accountants’ skills development and alignment with employer expectations in Ghana, considering institutional pressures as antecedents of skills acquisition. Design/Methodology/Approach: A quantitative cross-sectional survey was used to collect data from 145 final-year undergraduate accounting students from 10 universities and 125 employers across three regions in Ghana. Partial least squares structural equation modelling (PLS-SEM) in SmartPLS-SEM 4.0 was used for data analysis. Research Limitation: The study's cross-sectional design limits causal inference, and the geographical concentration in three Ghanaian regions with a focus on undergraduate programmes and managerial-level employers constrains generalizability across the broader accounting education sector and diverse stakeholder perspectives. Findings: Technical, non-technical, and technological competencies significantly predict alignment with employer expectations. Multicultural diversity significantly moderates these associations, and institutional pressures play a crucial role in aligning employers’ demands with students’ skill set development. Practical Implication: Accounting education institutions should strategically leverage multicultural diversity through cross-cultural pedagogical designs, while employers should recognise that graduates from culturally diverse learning environments demonstrate enhanced technical and non-technical competencies valued in globalised accounting practice. Social Implication: Universities should recognise multicultural diversity as a pedagogical resource rather than a constraint, given its significant benefits for shaping students’ skill sets holistically. Originality/value: The paper demonstrates that institutional pressures (coercive, normative, and mimetic) differentially shape distinct competency domains (technical, non-technical, and technological) through an integrated institutional theory-cultural capital theory framework in an emerging market context.