Employment of Recent University Graduates in Iranian Firms' Internal Audit Department

This research investigates the employment of Recent University Graduates in Iranian firms' Internal Audit department. From 95 respondents participated in our survey, approximately 50 percent (47 people) seek to employ recent graduates for internal audit departments supervised by them. On the other hand, about half of the participants are reluctant to employ recent universities graduates and the main reason can be related to the small size of Internal Audit departments, budget constraints and supervision problems because evidence suggests that larger internal audit departments are more likely to employ recent university graduates. As expected, evidence suggests that audit firms often employ recent university graduates. The main reasons mentioned by those who decide not to employ recent universities graduates is lack of experience, the gap between professional needs and academic education, the lack of legal, professional, and industry knowledge and etc. Findings show that the major identified factors (39 Factors) are effective on employment decisions so that all five research hypotheses are approved. That is, individual characteristics, university education, other education, prior experiences, professional certifications, and membership in professional associations are considered in making decisions on employment of recent universities graduates.