Accounting Students Earn Microsoft Office Specialist Excel Certification

In Fall 2020 the Accounting Department conducted research on offering Microsoft Office Specialist Excel 2016 certifications to Cleveland State business students. Initial students assisting with research were Eleena Tol (pictured at left), Kaila Griffin and Brice Bechtel (pictured below).

Our goal is to offer this certification to all ACT 222, Introductory Accounting II (Managerial) students. In addition to the test group, an initial group of 11 students from ACT 222 took and 5 passed the Excel certification exam those include:

• ​​​​​​​James Clark
• Tyler Lyons
• Joshua Morreale
• Chase Yaratch
• Alexander Weinheimer

Certiport stated that the the first time pass rate is 20% and the CSU students in the initial group exceeded that pass rate.

Research indicates that the most requested skills from employers for new graduates are excellent oral and written communications, detail orientation and Microsoft Office proficiency. Accounting graduates must have Excel skills to pass the soon-to-be-revised CPA exam.

MOS certification is the leading IT certification in the world. More than 2 million MOS exams are taken every year in over 140 countries. Offering MOS certification as part of the curriculum is a step towards closing “the skills gap”. Students are able to leverage learning and instructional materials, preparatory assessment exams and industry-recognized Microsoft certification to ensure future success in today’s technology-driven learning and workforce environments.

From a student who passed the MOS Excel certification: “Excel certifications enhance your resume so that future employers will recognize your achievements over the “standard” applicant.”

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