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is increased efficiency and effectiveness
in taxation topics in the classroom that
comes with an increase in the depth and The impact that participation in a VITA
program can also have on a student’s
rigor of topical coverage.
The certification process to become
a VITA volunteer is rigid and compre- appreciation of volunteerism should
not be undervalued.
hensive. Successful completion of cer-
tification requires in-depth knowledge
of basic taxation concepts. A student
who has passed the basic certification with basic skills and familiarity with tax and the college or university risk
program and gained experience prepar- preparation. This allows the instructor management plan.
ing returns will have background and to implement the increased rigor dis- At the same time, the instructor ne-
experience in filing status, exemptions, cussed above. gotiated the purchase of tax preparation
basic income and expense reporting, and software TaxWise — $199 for a license
deductions and credits. Option 2: Integration of with unlimited users and support — and
Since students will gain this founda- independent free tax services worked to set up a curriculum for the
tion early in the semester through VITA into an accounting course class. With the help of two experienced
training and experience, instructors can A second option for integrating volun- tax preparation volunteers and gradu-
eliminate many assignments on basic tax teer tax preparation into the accounting ate fellows in the masters in taxation
principles and preparation of tax return curriculum is to run an independent vol- program, the instructor developed a
forms. Instructors will have the flexibil- unteer free tax preparation center. The syllabus; resident, nonresident, and code-
ity to cover other topics more in depth center implementation and operations of-conduct exams; training materials;
for areas of importance, such as property described here were run outside the a reflection paper; and content for a
transactions, tax planning, and applica- scope of VITA and the IRS. All training, Blackboard course.
tion of tax principles to case-based recruiting, preparation, and filing was Volunteer recruiting began in early
situations. They can also assign more done in-house and on campus. November, and the response was strong,
research and writing projects, as well as During the summer before imple- though mostly limited to accounting
assignments that integrate data analytics mentation, the instructor worked with undergraduate and graduate students.
into tax, which is a crucial requirement a department chair, associate dean, and The instructor spoke at a Beta Alpha
of accounting and taxation programs registrar to create a one-credit course Psi meeting with a panel of returning
by firms. for undergraduate students and a zero- volunteers, and fliers were distributed
Of course, many accounting pro- credit course for graduate students. The around campus, emailed to all account-
grams offer the individual taxation instructor also coordinated with the ing majors, and posted on e-boards; the
course during both the fall and spring university legal department to ensure accounting faculty also encouraged stu-
semesters, while the VITA requirement that the tax preparation center could dents to volunteer. Volunteers signed up
can be completed only in the spring. operate independently. It also developed for either the undergraduate section or
Departments may need to examine their a waiver for clients to sign before tax the graduate section, which were capped
course scheduling or ensure students can preparation. The tax returns were signed at 25 and 10, respectively. Once the class
complete this exercise during the spring with the center name rather than by an was full, volunteers were sent an email
semester if the individual income tax individual preparer. and asked to sign a commitment pledge.
class does not overlap with filing season. Note: Each state has different rules On the first day of class, volunteers
An option for programs that offer for the treatment of paid preparers signed up through an internally devel-
the individual tax class during semes- who are not CPAs, enrolled agents, or oped scheduling software and entered
ters that do not overlap with the filing attorneys. These rules might apply if an their availability for client appointments.
season would be to offer VITA service employee of the college or university is Students were required to complete and
as a separate one-credit course or lab compensated for overseeing the center pass three take-home certification exams
prerequisite prior to the individual tax and/or perhaps signing returns. Consult before preparing tax returns, with exams
course. The background learned from with your university’s legal department covering topics in a range of areas relat-
the hands-on preparation and deliv- before starting your center because the ed to income tax preparation, including
erables completed ahead of time helps comfort level with waivers will vary resident 1, resident 2, and nonresident
ensure that students enter the class based on the school, state requirements, and foreign student tax return topics.

www.thetaxadviser.com May 2022 53